Customer Service

Crafting a Customer Service Game Plan With Generative AI
October 12, 2023 at 3:39 pm

Customer service has crossed a threshold thanks to the rapid ascent of generative artificial intelligence. Retailers can tap the powers of generative AI to automate internal and external customer service processes, improve and personalize experiences, and elevate problem-solving. However, integrating generative AI into customer service processes requires careful planning and implementation. Decision-makers must develop a…

Are You Customer-Obsessed? Here’s Why You Should Be
October 12, 2023 at 2:51 pm

Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos said in 1999 that what matters most to him is providing the best experience he can to his customers. In the same interview, he added “If there’s one thing that Amazon.com is about, it’s obsessive attention to the customer experience end to end.” Decades later, Amazon never wavered from its commitment…

Beyond Products: How Brands Are Cultivating Trust in the Age of Customer-Centricity
October 11, 2023 at 2:01 pm

In the last few decades, the market has witnessed a gradual power shift between brands and consumers. Previously, brands would work on their ideas and develop a product or service that they believed would help customers. Now, brands are taking notes and working on innovating and devising products and services that customers believe in. By…

The Mobile Way: Activating Messaging Channels for Better CX 
September 25, 2023 at 1:08 pm

April marked 50 years since the first mobile phone call. Since then, mobile devices have matured to become the remote control for our lives, our primary point of digital interaction. Most desktop activity has moved to mobile, providing consumers the ability to instantaneously search the web, shop for goods and services, track online orders, find…

’Tis the Season to Bust 3 Customer Experience Myths
September 21, 2023 at 4:17 pm

The holidays are filled with myths, misconceptions and half-truths. We’ve all heard them: “Santa is real,” “I love this heinous sweater,” or “I’m not sure where that last cookie went.” When it comes to the retail industry, myths about customer experience (CX) are some of the most pervasive. During the holiday season, it’s critical for…

Generative AI: The Conversational Revolution is Reshaping E-Commerce
July 19, 2023 at 4:35 pm

Generative artificial intelligence isn't a trend, but rather a profound global paradigm shift in the conversational universe. The more than 100 million Open AI users signifies a record-breaking adoption rate in the tech industry. AI experts agree that while this isn't a technological revolution in its own right, it’s definitely an adoption one. For the…

Ghosting in Retail: The Silent Threat to Reputation and Revenue
July 17, 2023 at 4:31 pm

In an increasingly omnichannel and digital landscape, shoppers expect quick and dynamic communication from brands they engage with. Unfortunately, a significant portion of retailers are falling short in meeting this basic expectation.  At my company, SOCi, we recently conducted our fifth annual audit of nearly 600 U.S. chain retailers. We found that 54 percent of all…

How SMBs Can Leverage Tech to Meet and Exceed Today’s Retail Consumer Demands
July 10, 2023 at 11:23 am

Small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are often called “the lifeblood of the American economy.” A 2022 GOBankingRates survey found multiple reasons consumers patronize SMBs: elevated employee-consumer interactions, niche product and service offerings, supporting the local community, and more. However, despite their love for SMBs, customers still expect these businesses to meet their evolving preferences, and…

Customer Effort Score: What it is and How to Use it
June 28, 2023 at 11:33 am

Broadly speaking, a customer effort score measures how easy or difficult it is for a customer to resolve a given issue with a company’s customer service team. Have you ever waited your turn to speak to a customer service representative, only to be transferred to another agent? Have you ever waited on hold so long…

How Retailers Can Avoid Generative AI Failures in Customer Service
June 22, 2023 at 9:08 am

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has become the technology to watch, and major retailers are starting to leverage this breakthrough new tech. Insider Intelligence reports that Walmart is using generative AI for its “Text to Shop,” which lets customers add items to their shopping cart by texting or speaking the item they’d like to purchase. Instacart is…