To grow their business, e-tailers pour everything into improving products, pricing, and promotions—and they should. But there's one factor that's just as important: support. Support has ripple effects on almost every aspect of an e-tailer's operation. It can push buyers away, increase costs, and even lead to chargebacks.
But here's the great news: Support isn't a liability. It's an opportunity. When done right, it builds loyalty, improves advocacy, and keeps costs low. Let's break down how support impacts your business—and, more importantly, how you can get it right.
3 Ways Weak Support Drains Revenue
Negative Reviews Threaten Your Reputation and Revenue
A single negative service experience can have an impact on your brand. When support fails, a frustrated buyer will often warn others. The leading cause of negative online reviews is customer service. Every time a service failure generates one of these reviews, your brand takes a hit that's tough to recover from.
With 95% of shoppers reading reviews before making a purchase, word spreads fast. 94% of consumers say a negative review has convinced them to avoid a business. Mitigating those effects is not easy, either. Research shows that it takes 40 positive reviews to counteract just one negative review.
Based on that data, there's rarely a situation where you can ignore a customer's complaints and service experience. Every failed support ticket is a potential risk to your brand.
Every failed support ticket is a potential risk to your brand.
Repeated Inquiries Dig Into Your Bottom Line
At scale, low first-contact resolution (FCR) indicates costly operational inefficiency. The longer tickets sit unresolved, the more resources you need to handle them, and the more your margins shrink. Support costs rise as ticket volumes inflate, and customers left waiting too long are more likely to abandon purchases, dispute charges, or churn altogether. Most of those outcomes will mean more work on the backend for your teams. Simply put, weak support with poor FCR increases your costs all around.
Mismanaged Returns Raise Costs and Risks
Returns are a reality of e-commerce. A smooth, hassle-free return process does more than close a transaction on good terms; it secures customers for life. 92% of e-tail shoppers say they'll buy again if returns are easy. But there's more at stake than just retention.
A weak return support system opens the door to a huge financial threat: chargebacks. When customers hit a wall with support, they don't disappear. Instead, they go straight to their banks and file a chargeback, triggering a costly chain reaction. Merchants lose $125 billion annually to chargebacks, much of it from preventable disputes.
The problem only gets worse as time goes on. Too many chargebacks and payment processors may hike your fees, hold funds, or even terminate your account, putting your entire operation at risk.
3 Ways to Strengthen E-Tail Support
The best brands don't just close the sale and move on. They invest in post-purchase support that keeps customers coming back. Here's how to bolster your support and make it your competitive advantage.
Invest in Brand-Focused Support
If you want customers to stay and bring others with them, investing in brand-focused support is the key. These teams understand your policies inside out, mirror your brand tone, and know how to leave a good impression. Experienced support partners can deliver low-cost efficiency while making customers feel valued.
When customers feel valued, they spread the word. Eighty-two percent of customers say they'd recommend a company based solely on excellent service, with 92% of shoppers saying they'd trust those recommendations over all forms of advertisement. Even a 12% boost in customer advocacy can double revenue growth.
Prioritize First-Contact Resolution
Nailing First-Contact Resolution (FCR) is all about speed and precision. A centralized support platform like Zendesk, Intercom, or Gorgias is a must-have, giving agents instant access to customer history, order details, and policies to provide fast, accurate resolutions without unnecessary back-and-forth. It goes without saying that you'll need a skilled team to operate that software effectively.
The right tools and team will only get you so far, though. To improve FCR, you'll need to track it. Spotting recurring issues helps you fine-tune training, remove bottlenecks, and streamline workflows. Like brands tweak products based on data, support should track FCR to understand what's impacting it and what targeted improvements will have the biggest impact.
Streamline Your Return Process
Returns don't have to be a resource drain. Here are a few things you can do to make returns more effortless for both you and the customer:
- Provide Seamless T-0 Support: Give customers the power to solve issues independently with robust self-service options for simple returns.
- Automate the Basics: Automate the standard tracking and refunds to speed up returns and keep things moving.
- Build an Efficient Team: Equip your team with clear processes and the authority to handle complex returns smoothly. With the right approvals in place, they can resolve issues quickly—reducing friction, chargebacks, and bad experiences.
Turn Support Into a Profit Driver
When support is done right, it's a strategic asset. Smooth experiences, hassle-free returns, and fast, effective resolutions protect your business and revenue. The brands that master this turn their customers into lifetime fans. Let's make sure yours can do the same.
