The 12 Benefits of Guided Selling

If you sell products online, you know how important it is to help customers find the right products. However, it can be challenging to ensure that visitors convert, make the right choices, and leave satisfied. A guided selling tool can offer a solution here. In this article, we explore 12 benefits of using guided selling for your online business. From boosting conversions and reducing returns to saving time and costs, discover how guided selling can improve and optimize your online store.

1. Increase your conversion rate

Many online stores struggle with increasing their conversions. The more customers hesitate, the more often they abandon their shopping carts before checkout. This can be frustrating, especially when you notice that many visitors leave your site without making a purchase. Imagine this scenario: a customer is looking for a new electric bike. They want a bike that best suits their daily commutes. Soon, they're faced with a sea of options and technical specifications. How do you help this customer overcome their doubts and make a choice?

Guided selling users convert faster. On average, you can see a 255% increase in conversions.

With a guided selling, you can eliminate this uncertainty by focusing on the specific needs of the customer. For example, ask them about their intended usage, such as the type of rides they take and their preferences for comfort and power. Based on this information, a guided selling tool provides targeted product recommendations that match their actual needs. This way, the customer receives exactly the advice they need to find the ideal bike, turning hesitation into confidence and a satisfied purchase.

By removing uncertainty from your visitors and providing personalized advice, you can significantly improve the conversion rate on your website. Guided selling users convert faster. On average, you see a 255% increase in conversions. This not only means more customers checking out, but also increased customer satisfaction and higher revenue for your business.

2. Fewer product returns and costs

Every online store deals with product returns. Customers often order something hoping it will meet their expectations, but if it’s not exactly what they were looking for, they send it back. One of the main reasons for returns is that the product doesn’t fit the customer’s needs.

Additionally, uncertainty and hesitation during the purchase process play a big role. Customers who are unsure whether a product is the right choice for them often order it anyway with the thought that they can always return it. This "try it out" behavior often leads to returns, as these customers are more likely to order the wrong product.

Have you ever thought about how to reduce these returns and provide a better experience for your customers?

One of the main reasons for returns is that the product doesn’t fit the customer’s needs.

With guided selling, you can directly assist customers in choosing the right product, significantly reducing the chances of returns. Imagine someone looking for a new pan but unsure which one best fits their stove and needs. A guided selling tool can guide them through a series of questions to figure out which pan they need. Here’s an example of how the process might look:

The first question you could ask is: "What type of stove do you have?" By asking this, you can determine whether the customer needs a pan suitable for induction, gas, electric, or ceramic cooking.

The second question you could ask is: "What do you plan to cook most with this pan?" This question helps the guided selling tool assist the customer in choosing between, for example, a frying pan, sauté pan, or sauce pan. A different pan is ideal for pancakes than for stews.

The third question you could ask is: "How important is it for you that the pan is dishwasher safe?" This helps the tool filter out pans that are dishwasher safe from those that are better washed by hand.

Now that we know what you’re looking for, we can directly recommend a pan. Based on the answers, the guided selling tool could recommend a frying pan that is perfect for induction, with a non-stick coating and dishwasher safe. By also showing an image of the recommended pan, the customer can immediately visualize the product.

With these targeted questions and recommendations, guided selling helps customers choose the right product from the start. This reduces uncertainty and the chances that customers will return the product because it didn’t meet their expectations. As a business, this not only saves on return costs but also ensures happier customers and a better image.

3. Reduce customer contact and costs

Customers often reach out for advice on products, which can be time-consuming and resource-intensive. This not only costs money but can also reduce your team’s efficiency. Imagine your customer service team receiving dozens of questions daily about which product is best suited for a specific situation, such as “Which pan can I use on an induction stove?” or “What size jacket is right for me?” Answering all of these questions takes up a lot of time, leads to longer wait times, and takes attention away from other important tasks. What if you could reduce customer contact without compromising customer satisfaction?

With a guided selling tool, you can automatically provide product advice, significantly reducing the number of direct customer service interactions. Imagine a customer on your website inquiring about the best e-bike for long distances. Normally, this customer would have to wait for a response from customer service. This not only causes wait time for the customer but also means your team must spend time answering questions that could be automatically addressed.

Customers often reach out for advice. With a guided selling, you can provide this advice automatically.

These types of questions can become quite a burden for your customer service, especially if there are many of them. Employees are continually distracted from more complex tasks, which reduces efficiency and ultimately affects customer satisfaction. However, with a guided selling tool, a customer can immediately receive advice based on their specific needs, such as the desired range or terrain type. This way, customers quickly get the information they need without seeking additional help, and your team can focus on more important tasks.

By providing automatic product advice, you not only save time and costs that would otherwise go toward customer contact, but you also increase your team's capacity. This means your customers are helped faster, while your team can focus on other important tasks. Furthermore, you inform your customers in a smart way by asking them questions they might not have thought of themselves. This not only leads to a better product choice but can also create upsell opportunities.

For example, when a customer asks for advice about a new e-bike, the guided selling tool can ask questions about additional features like a longer battery life or a more comfortable saddle. These are aspects the customer may not have considered, but they could enhance their final purchase and increase the sale value.

4. Average +8% higher order value

Increasing order value is something companies are always aiming for. Who doesn’t want more revenue (and often higher margins)? However, this is often quite challenging. So, how can you get customers to purchase more expensive products? Customers are often unaware of the extra benefits or features of pricier items. When they aren’t aware of the additional benefits of these features, they don’t see the value and are less willing to spend more on a more expensive product.

For example, imagine you have a webshop that sells both basic and advanced coffee machines. Customers who only look at the price often choose the cheaper model without realizing that the more expensive one comes with a built-in grinder and advanced settings for a better coffee taste. If customers don’t know that this extra model can significantly improve their experience, they are likely not willing to spend more.

It’s essential to make visitors aware of the added value of more expensive products. Once they see the value, they’re more likely to pay for it.

This leads to a missed opportunity. How do you make customers aware of the additional benefits of pricier products so they start to realize their value and are more willing to buy them?

With a guided selling tool, you can directly highlight the benefits of more expensive products. Let’s take trampolines as an example. Here’s how it works:

1. The customer starts with the guided selling tool:
   Imagine a customer is looking for a new trampoline and uses the tool on your website. The guided selling tool begins with simple questions to understand what the customer is looking for.
2. The tool asks about the use of the trampoline:
   One of the first questions might be: “How many people will be using the trampoline?” and “What is most important to you: safety, durability, or additional features like a net or ladder?” The customer indicates that the trampoline will mainly be for children and that safety is the top priority.
3. The software provides more information:
   Once the customer indicates that safety is important, the tool provides more details in the description of the answer: “Safer trampolines have a stronger safety net, a more robust frame that can support more weight and is better resistant to heavy use. This ensures that the trampoline remains safe for a long time, even when multiple children are jumping at the same time.”
4. The tool makes a recommendation:
   Based on these preferences, the tool recommends a trampoline that best fits the customer’s needs. For example: “Based on your preference for safety, we recommend this model, which has an extra strong safety net, a sturdy frame, and a ladder for added protection and ease of use.”
5. The customer sees the added value and considers the more expensive option:
   Thanks to the explanation from the guided selling tool, the customer understands why the more expensive trampoline is a better choice for their family. This helps them see why it’s worth the extra money and increases the likelihood that they will choose the more expensive model.

By informing customers about the added value of certain product features, you can increase the average order value with guided selling. On average, customers using our software spend 8% more. This means an additional 8% revenue for your store. 

5. Always provide the most relevant product advice, even when you don't have the exact product your customer is looking for

Ideally, you always want to give your customers the best product advice, even if you don’t have a product that perfectly matches their original request. You naturally want to avoid turning a customer away.

Imagine walking into a physical store looking for a specific smartphone. The sales associate understands your needs and knows they don’t have a product that exactly fits. They offer you an alternative that might not meet all of your criteria, but it best addresses your most important needs. This type of salesperson looks beyond what you ask for and finds the best option to fulfill your true needs.

With guided selling the same happens online. Even if you don’t have a product that perfectly matches the customer's criteria, the guided selling tool provides the most relevant advice by offering alternatives that may not exactly fit the selected filters but fully address their needs. This way, your customers always see the best options, which increases the likelihood of a purchase.

Let’s say you're looking for a new electric bike with the following needs:

• I want to easily ride up hills without too much effort.
• I want to ride long distances.
• I need a bike that is light enough to take on the train.
• My budget is a maximum of €1,500.

With a guided selling tool, you can answer these needs as follows:

• Hilly terrain.
• Minimum 70 km range.
• Lightweight frame.
• Budget up to €1,500.

But what if no product exactly matches these needs?

Disappointed, you leave the online store, unaware that there is actually a bike that perfectly fits your needs, but it's just €100 above your set budget. Due to strict filters, you miss the chance to find a bike that would be a better match for you, leading to a lost sales opportunity for the store and a frustrating experience for you as a customer. This results in you buying a ‘no’ instead of a ‘yes,’ missing the opportunity to be flexible and truly cater to what customers are looking for.

With Qonfi's "best match" feature, you always receive the most relevant product advice. Instead of only focusing on technical specifications, we go a step further. We compare your selection with other options that may not fully meet your filters but are a better fit for what you're truly looking for. For example, you might still see that one bike that is perfect for you, even if it’s just €100 above your initial budget.

6. Discover what your customers are truly looking for and use the insights to optimize the customer journey

It can be a major challenge to understand where customers get stuck in their purchase journey. Without these insights, you miss opportunities to address issues and improve your customer journey. For example, imagine customers often abandon their shopping carts before checking out. Without knowing that this is happening because of unexpected shipping costs, you miss the chance to communicate these costs earlier in the process. By understanding where customers get stuck, you can make targeted improvements and increase conversions.

A common challenge is estimating the exact needs and wants of customers. 63% of businesses say this is a challenge. Often, it’s difficult to know in advance which specific products or services a customer is looking for. This can lead to inefficiencies and missed opportunities, especially if you don’t have a clear understanding of their preferences. Did you know that 76% of consumers expect businesses to understand their needs? Customer-centric companies are found to be 60% more profitable. Without these insights, your business may miss opportunities to serve customers better and increase profits.

By analyzing automated customer conversations, you can identify pain points and gain valuable insights. These insights not only help you better align your sales and marketing messages but also improve your product research and development. Moreover, you can optimize your customer service and drive innovation based on real customer needs and feedback. But how exactly can you uncover where these pain points lie?

With a choice helper, you can automatically engage in conversations with your customers about their specific preferences and needs. For example, customers may often have questions about the type of air conditioner that best suits their situation, such as choosing between a mobile air conditioner or a split-unit, or doubting the required cooling capacity for their space. By automatically measuring these interactions, you gain valuable insights into where customers get stuck, such as uncertainty about energy efficiency or the costs of different air conditioner models.

With these insights, you can quickly and automatically assess whether your product assortment aligns with your customers' needs. This ensures that you’re always up-to-date with market demand and can optimize your offering for maximum customer satisfaction. By understanding what your customers are truly looking for, you can make targeted improvements to your product range and customer journey, leading to higher conversion rates and customer satisfaction.

With targeted recommendations, you can now suggest specific air conditioners to customers that are both energy-efficient and easy to install, based on their preferences and questions. This makes it much easier for customers to make a choice that fits their needs, increases the likelihood of a purchase, and reduces the number of customers who abandon their decision.

You enhance the customer journey by guiding them more effectively, increase conversion opportunities, and can refine your marketing strategies by focusing on what truly matters to customers.

7. Provide automatic, relevant product advice and save time and money

Offering personalized advice can be a time-consuming task. Customers prefer tailor-made product recommendations that match their exact needs. It’s not feasible to provide this level of personalized service manually and in real-time for every unique customer without significant time and resources.

With a choice helper, you can easily address this challenge. A choice helper automatically provides personalized product advice to customers based on their specific preferences and needs. By automating the advice process, you save valuable time and resources. This allows you to serve more customers efficiently without compromising on quality. The result? Increased conversion rates and revenue, while enhancing customer satisfaction and loyalty.

8. Optimize easily and maintain full control

Developing a custom-made guided selling tool can be both costly and time-consuming. Often, this requires a specially built solution, which leads to high expenses and limited scalability. Additionally, many custom solutions lack the ability to measure customer insights. This means that you miss out on valuable data about customer preferences and pain points, potentially frustrating customers who can’t find exactly what they’re looking for, resulting in lost sales.

With choice helper software like Qonfi, you can easily solve these problems. Choice helper software is user-friendly, affordable, and scalable. You have full control over customizing and expanding your guided selling tool without being dependent on expensive developers. For example, if you want to add or adjust a question, it’s simple and immediate. Moreover, choice helper software provides valuable insights into customer behavior and preferences, even when you don’t have a perfectly matching product. This ensures you always provide the most relevant advice.

9. Collect first and zero-party data

Another valuable benefit of a choice helper for your online business is the ability to collect zero and first-party data. Zero-party data refers to information that customers voluntarily and consciously share with you, such as their preferences, desires, and needs. This data is directly provided by the customer, for example through a choice helper or survey.

First-party data is information you collect from interactions with your customers, such as their browsing and purchasing behavior on your website. Although valuable, this data is often less specific about customer needs compared to zero-party data.

These data points give you direct insights into your customers’ preferences and needs. However, collecting and enriching this data can be challenging. Many businesses struggle with how to obtain and utilize this valuable information to improve customer profiles.

With Qonfi’s choice helper, you can easily automate this process. The choice helper engages in conversation with your customers and automatically collects zero-party data by mapping their preferences and needs. This data is then automatically fed into your data warehouse, CRM, CDP, or any other desired applications you’ve integrated with Qonfi. This ensures you always have up-to-date customer information, helping you run targeted marketing campaigns and personalize your communications. You can tailor ads and offers to your customers’ specific preferences and needs, resulting in higher engagement and conversion rates.

10. Improve the user experience (UX)

Providing a smooth customer experience is important for the success of your business, but it can be challenging to maintain consistently. Customers have increasingly higher expectations and want you to understand what they’re looking for, what their needs are, and how you can best meet them.

With a guided selling, you can automatically engage in a user-friendly conversation with your customers about what they specifically need. You can address their particular applications and requirements, and then offer relevant product advice within an intuitive environment. The customer experience is enhanced because the product selection is fully tailored to the customer’s needs. By automatically collecting and analyzing this data, you gain valuable insights that help you continuously improve the customer experience on your site.

By understanding what your customers need, you can not only align your sales and marketing strategies but also optimize your product development and customer service. This contributes to an innovative and customer-centric business, as highlighted in a report by Harvard Business School on customer needs and innovation.

11. Improve NPS (more loyal customers)

With guided selling, you can create a unique customer experience that helps customers find exactly what they’re looking for. By making online shopping more relevant, easier, and faster, customers feel better understood and appreciated. This positive experience means they are more likely to return to your webshop.

Guided selling not only makes shopping simpler but also increases customer satisfaction. This leads to happier and more loyal customers who not only visit your store more frequently but are also more likely to recommend it to others. In this way, you build a loyal customer base that keeps coming back.

12. Easy and transparent start with Qonfi

Many companies hesitate to implement new software due to concerns about costs and uncertainty about the benefits. Is it worth the investment? What if it doesn’t work as expected?

Qonfi offers transparent pricing, a free trial, and the flexibility of monthly cancellation. With the ability to measure the impact of Qonfi by linking GA4 and GTM, you can directly track its effect on your conversion rates and customer insights.