3 Ways To Ease Customers’ Concerns On Supply Chain Issues

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The concept of supply chain issues is one most people have become familiar with over the last couple of years. Unfortunately for business owners and consumers alike, even the mere suggestion of limited stock can drive some people to panic and overbuy. Even if the possibility of shortage was remote, to begin with, this spreading of rumor can be instrumental in making it a reality.

This is not to say concern regarding supply chain issues is entirely unfounded. From both regional and national perspectives, there is the possibility for disruption due to recruitment challenges and access to certain raw materials. Especially in the run-up to the holidays, it is understandable some consumers may feel anxious about your company’s ability to provide goods and services.

However, to mitigate further problems resulting from panic buying and damaged customer confidence, it’s vital to find ways to ease your customers’ concerns. Let’s take a look at a handful of tactics you should employ to be effective.

1. Create Reassuring Content

It’s important to understand your consumers are not likely to be receiving rumors and data about potential supply chain issues from personal experiences. In all likelihood, they’re going to be exposed to these ideas as a result of content — social media posts, news articles, podcasts, and videos. As such, one of your most impactful tools in countering these ideas and easing your consumers’ concerns is by making credible and high-quality content of your own.

This can’t just be the occasional social media post stating your supply chain is fine. You’re not providing your consumers with any useful information here and no evidence they can rely on. Showing, rather than telling, can be key here.

Make behind-the-scenes videos demonstrating the efficacy of your supply chain and the efforts you’re taking to minimize potential disruptions. Create blog posts acknowledging the concerns and addressing them with the solutions you’re implementing. Build these pieces into your overall content marketing strategy to make sure they get seen by your demographic.   

Another good approach is the inclusion of staff profiles and interviews. Go into the level of experience key members of leadership have. Provide detail on how their formal business education included the efficient operational skill sets that positively impact their entrepreneurial success. You should certainly outline details of any degree thesis they developed around maintaining an effective supply chain.

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Wherever possible, provide tangible examples of how they’ve faced similar challenges in the past and how they overcome them. This can imbue consumers with some confidence in the fact they’re being taken care of by experts.

2. Keep Communicating

Silence is a problem when it comes to addressing consumers’ concerns about the supply chain. You may feel there’s nothing much to say on the matter because you don’t foresee any problems. But a lack of formal insights leaves a giant gap consumers may fill with their personal worries about problems and the misinformation they receive from non-credible resources.

One of your best tools in easing your customers’ minds is clear and regular communication. Keep providing regular updates on the supply chain to your consumers. This could be issued through your email list, your social media channels, or even a dedicated news page on your website.

Even if there are no changes to the chain or any expected delays, provide frequent information to consumers. Give statistics on your fulfillment times, quotes from your logistics managers on the state of play, and informed predictions for the weeks ahead.

Your tech tools can also be a passive way to communicate reassurance to consumers. Global positioning system (GPS) tracking for commercial shipping is already known to improve route efficiency and encourage safe driving. But the ability to provide real-time data on precisely where a package is and where it’s going can be a great communication tool.

By giving customers access to GPS data with all deliveries, they can have the confidence of being fully and honestly updated on the current progress of the supply chain.  

3. Be Transparent

It can often feel like there is a wall between companies and consumers. While there are certain elements of business practice that are protected due to competition, this doesn’t help build consumer trust. Indeed, if they feel they aren’t being shown the whole picture about the supply chain, they may draw their own conclusions. As such, it’s worth applying some transparency here.

Start by placing details of your supply chain management process on your website. Your consumers may not be fully aware of how the process works. After all, the ecommerce industry has changed the shape of traditional supply structures, particularly with the addition of automated fulfillment procedures and competitive shipping.

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You might also be integrating order management systems designed to streamline the route of goods to consumers. Providing a little transparency in this regard can help to show customers how the system is designed to function quickly and reliably.

This transparency should extend to when you do foresee problems with the supply chain. Be open about exactly what is causing them and what your intentions are for addressing them. By maintaining openness here you remove any ambiguity from the situation and can set reassuring expectations for your customers. These may amount to only little changes in your approach, but they can make a big difference to customer confidence.

Conclusion

Predictions of supply chain issues have been a prevalent feature on news and social media as of late. It’s only understandable that consumers may have some concerns about whether you’ll be able to get goods to them. Take the time to create content designed to address the worries customers may have and maintain a habit of regular communication.

Being transparent both about the stability of your supply chain management and any issues you may be facing can help consumers feel more informed and in control. This isn’t a problem you should ignore or fail to address.

Do what you can to make sure you and your customers face the challenges ahead with clarity and honesty.

 

Dan Matthews
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