VoIP Buying Trends and Customer Trust

Phone Orders versus Web Orders

Do online shoppers trust the internet when they have to make high dollar purchase decisions? A high dollar purchase decision is relative to each person, and some people tend to feel more comfortable than others when spending hundreds online. Seemingly, most prefer to pick up the phone and call the 1-800 number displayed on the site to place an order over a certain dollar amount. At VoIP Supply, phone orders average twice that in dollar amount over web orders.

What would encourage you to shop more online? Ecommerce-guide.com conducted a study that shows both new and seasoned internet shoppers would shop more online if the following top four factors were better controlled:

1. Protection of credit card information against fraud
2. Reasonable shipping/handling fees
3. Assurance of the privacy of personal information
4. Guarantee that the product ordered will actually arrive

Consumer trust while shopping online is significant, and well worth its weight in gold. Ultimately, proper branding of your e-commerce store should ensure consumer trust. If people feel comfortable buying from your online store by calling the 1-800 number displayed on your site, then why don’t they continue to “check-out” online – either way they’re still buying from you, so why is ‘trust’ such a big deal?
Our site, VoipSupply.com displays multiple icons verifying our security. These include the Thawte and Hacker Safe certificates, along with PayPal and Authorize.net verifications. We also display logos noting our businesses achievements and awards such as our inclusion in Inc. 500 among others. Even with these emblems of trust, prominently displayed throughout the entire site, we continue to see buying trends favoring phone orders over web orders.

Data displayed was collected for VoIPSupply.com during 2007

Why do people call the 1-800 number to place an order, instead of clicking the “check out” button? Consumer trust isn’t necessarily the culprit. The VoIP industry is still new –comparatively to analog phones that have been around for over a century. Naturally, people have questions about VoIP. It’s easier for them to call the 1-800 number on the site, get their questions answered and place their order – they’re killing two birds with one stone. Proactively, we’ve compiled a list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) on the site to help our customers make a more informed decision.

There is a slight difference in online shopping trends with new users compared to seasoned internet users. Seasoned users are more prone than new internet users to try new e-commerce stores. This is good news for start-up sites, much like our sister site IP Camera Supply, which is seeing a similar trend in bias favoring phone orders over web orders.

Data displayed was collected for IPCameraSupply.com during 2007

Bottom line, people are going to stick with what they know, and shop where they trust. If people have questions about new technologies, trends show they’re more likely to call in to place an order. From my research, web orders can increase over time by stressing customer service. If people have a fantastic first time shopping experience with us over the phone, they may be more prone to “check-out” through the site next time around. Placing a web order usually saves the customer valuable time. And that’s what we’re here for, making life easier through VoIP.