In a world where shoppers use multiple channels, devices and touchpoints to engage with retailers before making a purchase, it is now more important than ever before that it’s simple for customers to access the information and support they need to complete that purchase – at any time.

In an ideal world, the customer should be at the heart of all communications. They should be in a position where they can choose what device they’d like to buy from, which channel they use and be able to shop at a time that is convenient to them.

But all too often, retailers have restrictive customer service times and only offer certain channels for shoppers to engage through. In fact, our recent research showed that 17% of online shoppers said they feel they have to work hard to find essential information online, while a fifth (19%) believe retailers should make it easier to find product information online.

The truth is that retailers are failing their customers when it comes to online assistance. And as a result, sales opportunities are lost, or customer relationships damaged, because shoppers encounter friction when they are trying to get real-time help.

This is often the case, unfortunately, as customer service is pushed towards the back of retailers’ priorities as they look to focus on driving more sales and reach more customers as the landscape becomes increasingly competitive. But retention of these customers is equally as important, as is the conversion of potentially negative conversations into a more positive reaction.

Often the customer service element of retailers’ offerings can be weaker than their sales capabilities. But with a quarter of customers saying that they will abandon their online purchase if they find it too hard to find the information they want this needs to change. By creating a support network that enables consumers to interact when, where and how they want can increase sales revenue, improve customer loyalty and foster greater brand advocacy.

And more importantly, a careful balance between machine and human, to enable around-the-clock customer care is essential to ensure that customer expectations are met and service promises kept. By using chatbots to initiate conversations, offer assistance and respond to the first point of outreach, retailers will free up sales employees to deal with the more complex conversations.

Striking this perfect balance of people and technology will enable retailers to create customer journeys that are run by the consumer, but where the retailer still retains full control, and can positively influence the outcome.

Many retailers have a planned strategy for traditional channels but have not yet taken into consideration emerging technologies which are fast becoming the new norm for customer engagement and interaction. Retailers will need to get a firm grip on areas such as, live chat, social media and messaging applications, which are continuing to elevate responsive customer service capabilities.

The challenge presenting organisations looking to implement real-time customer service options over multiple platforms is to implement these technologies into an overriding ‘conversational commerce’ strategy, while ensuring that is cost-effective for the business and continues to offer a user-friendly customer experience.

 

By Julien Hervouet, CEO at iAdvize

PrivSec Conferences will bring together leading speakers and experts from privacy and security to deliver compelling content via solo presentations, panel discussions, debates, roundtables and workshops.
For more information on upcoming events, visit the website.

comments powered by Disqus