Query (noun)
A question, especially one expressing doubt or requesting information.
‘if you have any queries please telephone our office’
In customer facing roles, we can spend a lot of time responding to queries. Do you ever take time to consider if some queries are more common than others? This might mean you’re not being as clear as you could be in your communications.
Don’t worry! This blog will outline some ways you can answer queries and save yourself time.
Is your website clear?
While taking your car for an MOT or booking a dental check up feels like a pain, we all know that taking time to give things the once over can help deal with minor issues, or prevent major problems occurring. But do you apply the same logic to your website?
Set aside some time to review your website regularly to make sure it’s answering your most common queries. Check:
- Are your contact details, including ‘how to find us’ correct and easy to find?
- Are your opening times clear?
- If you have a staff page, are job titles accurate? Have you removed previous staff members and added new ones?
- Have you removed or hidden pages for services you’re not currently offering?
- Have you taken down past events?
- Is the most important information at the top of each page, or does the visitor have to scroll to find what they need?
- Are there any broken, or out of date links on your website pages?
Google Analytics, Google Search Console and Hotjar can all help you to better understand how your users engage with your website. Our Charity Marketing Peer Support Group recently ran a session with Mike Wade exploring how these tracking tools can benefit your organisation. To view the recording, please join our facebook group.
Is your Facebook action button the most relevant for your audience?
You can have one or two action buttons at the top of your facebook page to help people contact you, support you, or to link to your website or app.
There are options for this button which include; a link to email you, to start a phone call, send a Whatsapp message, open a sign up form, buy tickets, or visit your website.
Consider your followers, and which action buttons would most benefit them? For example, if you’re a charity supporting young people, is a ‘call us’ button best or would a Whatsapp link be more relevant?
What about when you’re not available?
Answering emails and work messages can easily creep into our evenings and weekends. This isn’t good for our wellbeing, so It’s important to ensure your automatic responses are working to minimise this.
Consider:
- Are your working days and times in your email signature?
- Do you include actions for urgent queries in your out of office emails?
- Do you change your voicemail to reflect bank holidays, or changes to your usual office opening hours?
- Are your opening times on Google correct?
These simple tweaks can make a huge difference to ensuring your audience gets the information they need, while minimising their need to contact you out of working hours.
Do you have different caller options on your phone line?
That two minutes you spend at the start of a phone call to your doctor, where you have to run through all the connection options. Annoying right? But so helpful for reaching the right person, and getting the help you need.
If you’re a business or charity with many different departments, make sure you have caller options on your phone, or even just an automated message with key information before they speak to a real person. Again, check this regularly to make sure the information is accurate and up to date.
Finally, how do people try to find you?
We were recently introduced to a website called ‘Answer the Public’. This is a great visual tool to explore the many different queries people search for, linked to different topics, brands or products. You can give it a try for yourself here: https://answerthepublic.com/
Look at what what people are searching for and make sure that text is on key pages on your website or in the meta descriptions. This will help you to be found by people with a query you can help with!
If this blog has motivated you to make the changes you need to ensure your audiences queries are answered, then we can support you through that process. Get in touch with Jo for a further conversation.
Now read R is for Research >
Lisa Cormack
Marketing & Client Services Manager, JG Creative