A problem that e-commerce websites often face (especially the smaller ones) is keeping products in stock, and keeping their online inventory status up to date. One byproduct of this problem is that it becomes necessary to handle situations where inventory must be listed on the website as temporarily out of stock. Though this can be a serious problem for users it doesn’t need to be.
Too often the standard approach has been to simply inform the customer, “This item is out of stock”, end of story. There are plenty of examples of this to be found on e-commerce websites and they often look like variations on this:
Putting yourself in the shoes of the customer who’s shopping for this product, this isn’t a very helpful message is it? So it’s out of stock – what’s next?
Look at it this way…
Suppose we think of an out of stock situation as a type of error, and approach it accordingly. As I’ve mentioned previously there are a few things you want to give users when they encounter an error:
- A clear and concise explanation of what happened
- If possible, a brief explanation of why it happened
- Specific guidance about what to do to resolve the problem
If we approach an out of stock problem as if it’s an error we can see that when at item isn’t available it makes sense to:
- Explain in simple terms that the product is unavailable, and possibly address why
- Explain what will happen next (will the item come back into stock? when?)
- Give the user some type of recourse (for example an option to place a back order, or to be notified when it’s back in stock)
Let’s look at each of those points in more detail.
Explain the problem clearly
Simply displaying a message to the effect of “Out of stock” isn’t enough. Perhaps you’ve had the experience of being in a retail store and asking about an item that turns out to be unavailable. If the store clerk simply tells you “No, that’s not in stock” and offers no other information, then the conversation is over and you’re likely going to be left with a negative impression of the experience. The same is true online. In an out of stock situation we want to start by explaining in more detail what happened. Instead of the fairly curt and impersonal “Out of stock”, how about something like:
“Sorry, we’re temporarily out of this item. Our most popular products sometimes sell out quickly.”
This is a more conversational tone and gives the user a bit more than just the bare minimum of information.
Explain what will happen next
The next step is to give some insight about what happens next. This could be as simple as “We do our best to replenish sold out items as quickly as possible”. Or, if you deal with products that have a predictable restocking schedule you could indicate, “We expect to have more in about a week”. Naturally every situation will be a little bit different; you may not know or be able to predict when an item will be available – and even that is probably worth stating if it’s the case (“We’re working to reststock but do not have a date at this time”). The point though is that if you can share information – even to say definitively that you don’t know when an item will become available – it’s often beneficial to do so. Communicating more with your users helps set expectations and sets the tone that you care about their concerns. As a side note it’s likely to reduce the volume of customer service email or calls, since user’s won’t be tempted to write or phone asking, “Hey, when’s this going to be available again?”.
Offer some recourse
Here’s perhaps the most critical point: as I mentioned above, if an item is out of stock
it need not be the end of the conversation between you and that customer. You may not be able to complete the sale right at that moment but you can strengthen the relationship by providing alternatives. For example:
- If the item is likely to come back into stock, offer to notify the customer at that time
- Offer alternative products that might suit the customer’s needs just as well or almost as well
- If the item is unlikely to come back into stock, offer an alternative or at least an apology
Now let’s look at the same example product listing from above, but modified to address some of these points:
Here we’ve done a few things:
- Used a strike-through over the price to reinforce that it cannot be purchased
- Added an easily visible message that gives the user an option to be notified when the product comes back in stock
- Explained succinctly that the user’s email address will only be used for that purpose
In this manner we help set expectations and provide an alternative path for a customer who might otherwise be turned away. True, the customer is still empty-handed at this point. But they know they will be contacted when the product is once again available. This is the type of experience we’d expect at a competent retail store, and it makes sense to apply the same thinking to shopping online.
Photo credit: veganstraightedge. Creative Commons licensed.
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