In the past we have talked about the importance of branding. I know some of you may still be hesitant to go to the trouble of branding your name and or business. There are also some lessons in customer service and web design. Here are some things to think about.

For the past few weeks I was waiting for the price to drop on an appliance at Amazon. No local stores had the model I wanted. I searched a few other places online like Best Buy, but none could compete on price. I did find a cheaper deal at a small online retailer. However there were several reasons issues I found with their website.

First of all I don’t know who they are. Which brings up many concerns.

What happens if the appliance arrives broken or defective? I’ve had issues in the past as many of you have. What is the website’s return/exchange policy? Do I have to pay return shipping on a damaged item?

Now this would not be a problem on a smaller item like a book. However it becomes an issue with an appliance of this size. The return shipping could be an ugly headache.

Second when I did add the item to the cart as a test no shipping amount was added or calculated. Not a good way to get customers. What will the potential customer do?

A) They will abandon the cart as I did as no shipping cost was showing or listed on the site anywhere. FYI: State your shipping charges on your website and make it easy for customers to find.

B) They will add the item to the cart and assume shipping is free. Then when the website emails them the cost of shipping they will most likely cancel the order.

In the end I did not trust the website enough to order from them. I had never heard of them and was not even sure the appliance was new. They had not done any online branding!

Amazon lowered their price last week and my item arrived a few days ago. I knew I would have no problems if my item arrived damaged like my electric screwdriver did a few weeks ago. Amazon takes care of their customers when it comes to defective or damaged goods.

Build your website to instill confidence in your products your website and your name. You will build stronger business’ and find loyal customers who keep coming back.