How to Build a Best-In-Class Customer Experience Like Shopify
Step aside, Amazon. Shopify’s the new Goliath in commerce. The company’s built a best-in-class customer experience that’s ignited growth like rocket fuel.
In a short, 15-year time span, Shopify’s shapeshifted into one of the world’s leading supporters of small businesses, now powering more than a million stores and generating more than $307 billion in annual economic impact across the globe.
Shopify supports household names like Budweiser and new, groundbreaking brands like Allbirds and Brooklinen. And this year, the company ranked 7th on Fast Company’s list of the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies.
We’re crushing on Shopify and their dedication to building better tools and the best customer experience for entrepreneurs. So, here’s what we admire about Shopify and how you can apply it to your own customer experience.
1. They create a positive work atmosphere.
Shopify treats employees well, and it shows. Glassdoor reviews showcase an environment that’s both challenging and rewarding. Shopify employees (called Shopifolks) tout the pros of working at the company, like:
- Great people
- Remote work (without any micromanagement)
- Generous PTO
- Growth opportunities
- Positive team communication and morale
It’s clear Shopify employees love their work. And, treating your employees well is the first step to a better customer experience.
I could shout the benefits of happy and engaged employees from the rooftops. Happy employees pass their enthusiasm off to your customers to create the best customer experience. They’re 12% more productive. They keep team morale high. And, they’re 87% less likely to look for a new job (and rack up company-wide attrition costs).
2. Shopifolks invest in customer support.
When business owners try to find a trusted partner to host their ecommerce stores, they can scan review sites and feel good about choosing Shopify. Consumer review sites and even entire blog articles talk about Shopify’s great customer service, with tons of users listing it as one of the brand’s benefits.
“With Shopify – you get answers fast. And all my customer support experiences with Shopify have been really fast, correct, and helpful – from both a developer and store owner perspective.
“They have a huge database of FAQs, email/chat support…and phone support – with a real, knowledgeable rep on the other side.”
The company has excellent agents running the show, and they also invested in self-help resources for their customers. The Shopify Help Center is clear and well-organized. It’s sorted by the business needs a user has, like starting a store or setting up shipping. That way customers can easily find answers to relevant problems. With their extensive help center, agents have more time to help with complex issues, so it makes sense that they knock service out of the park.
What’s more? The company’s self-help resources go beyond simple how-to articles. They have a YouTube channel (with more than 133k subscribers!) dedicated to helping customers set up their Shopify stores and tackle common issues.
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3. Customers live at the heart of Shopify.
Shopify’s mission is to support and empower entrepreneurs. And, it shows up in everything they do. The company simplifies the user experience for business owners big and small, and also they create every new product or service with the intention to help their customers grow their own businesses.
“Shopify remains focused on empowering merchants instead of chasing revenue—and this shows up in the numbers, too. For every $1 of Shopify’s revenue, our merchants generate $40.82.” – Shopify’s 2020 Global Economic Impact Report
4. Shopify streamlines experiences for small business owners.
Shopify has expanded beyond an ecommerce platform helping entrepreneurs run their stores. Now, they also have a Point of Sale (POS) app, payment processing plans, and even fulfillment centers to run shipping for their customers. Plus, users can integrate their Shopify site with thousands of other digital tools using Shopify’s app store. They can add things like dynamic forms, automated inventory tracking and hiding, and buttons to download invoices.
Whether customers choose to run a traditional brick-and-mortar store, a booth at a local farmer’s market or an online shop, Shopify has options to help business leaders grow their footprint. Customers don’t have to glue together a bunch of different solutions and hope they stick. They can streamline all the services they need into one. And, Shopify even hires out experts to consult on business projects and coach customers on how to get the most from their suite of tools.
5. They’ve built a community for customers to learn and grow together.
Nearly 85% of customers say a community improves their experience with a brand. When customers have a way to communicate and collaborate they learn more about your products and services and discover more features they can’t live without.
Shopify built a community for customers to communicate and share ideas. And, as a result, they have a collection of online forums, resources and events to help business leaders and entrepreneurs grow together.
And just this month, the company launched their own entrepreneurial space in New York City. They’re taking their hybrid commerce model and building their customer community in the same way, too. The space will include a cafe, a pop-up shop where they can showcase products from rotating Shopify users, a podcasting studio, a photo studio, and free, 30-minute consults with Shopify experts.
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