Sign of Trouble – FAQs

What are FAQs?

No matter how you interact with customers and products, if you store that data, you may find the same questions asked over and over again. These interactions can be in person, over the phone, by email or in your help desk. However you document your interactions, you may find the same or very similar questions asked frequently. And these repeated questions make up your businesses frequently asked questions.  Straightforward, right? Well…

If you are getting a large number of FAQs what does that mean?

It means is that you are failing to communicate the answers to those questions in your store, on your website and in your brochures. People feel  these questions are important to them and you have not supplied the answers.  So they have to ask. That is,  those that are willing to ask.

How many people want the answers but don't ask?  They just click and leave your website or walk out of your store.

How to reduce the rate of FAQs.

Once you have discovered these FAQs, go back to your store/website and place the answers where they can easily be found. Put them in more than one place if appropriate. Get them on the pages people search.  Most people aren't going to bother going to a frequently asked questions page, when they don't find the answer, they're gone.

Now monitor your FAQs.  Have the questions you've included significantly decreased? If they have your efforts have been successful.

An Example

Cinnabon Box

My wife knows I love Cinnabon. She was out shopping and picked one up for me. She knew it would be cold by the time she got home so she asked how to reheat it. She was told the the instructions were on the bottom of the container. Did you know that? I would never flip the box upside down.  I'd lose the frosting and the pecans.

Cinnibon Reheat Directions

Assuming "how to reheat my Cinnabon" is a FAQ for them, they did supply the answer. However there is no indication in the store or on the container that the instructions are on the bottom. So I suspect that this FAQ has not gone away.

So if your FAQ is responded to but does not go away,  take another look at how you responded.

Back to Have a Website, Now What?