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Making a remarkable difference to your customers with the call center

The phrase ‘Voice of the Customer’ has become very popular recently, with businesses focusing their efforts on listening to their customers and understanding exactly what their needs and desires are. Nowhere is the actual ‘Voice of the Customer’ more often encountered than via the call center, which means call centers and their agents should be at the center of any company’s customer experience programs. In fact, call centers are deemed so important at Amazon, that CEO Jeff Bezos ensures that all of his managers, himself included, attend two days of call center training every year. Investing in call center agents The call center is often the first, and sometimes the only, time a customer gets to talk to a representative of your company, so you have to make the experience a successful and remarkable one – you want your customers to be so impressed with your agents’ knowledge and telephone manner that they will want to tell others about their experience. This can only happen if you put the necessary investment into recruiting and training your agents. If you are tempted to cut costs in this area, be aware that all of your marketing, product development and feedback capture will be for nothing if poorly trained agents drive your customers away when they come through to the call center. A decent call center agent training program will result in agents who are diplomatic and courteous, knowledgeable about your products and the industry and skilled at identifying customers’ needs, even those that are hidden in the initial conversation. In-house or outsourcing? Outsourcing your call center is not something that should be considered lightly. It is true that there is a lot of potential for cutting operating costs, but you have to be confident that your chosen call center is capable of delivering the remarkable service your customers expect. Before committing to outsourcing your call center you should ensure there is an effective management structure in place and that all agents assigned to your business have sufficient industry experience, are well-trained and receive regular and rigorous appraisals. The call center itself also needs to be equipped with the technology and infrastructure required to operate effectively. The role of call center technology The most important asset of a call center is its people, but technology helps to make the most of every encounter you have with your customers. The latest call center technology can integrate data from multiple channels (from online, telephone, mobile and face-to-face interactions); host live chat platforms, an increasingly efficient and popular way for customers to access support and information; distribute workload efficiently, streamlining business operations and provide in-depth monitoring of calls and data analysis. In the end, deciding where your call center is to be based is less important than its overall quality. A combination of highly trained, skilled and happy call center agents with up-to-date, smart, 21st Century technology is a potent tool in the quest to really hear the ‘Voice of the Customer’, and provide every one of them with a remarkable experience they will remember for a long time – and will want to share with others.

The ROI For Listening To Your Customers

Businesses live and breathe for ROI (return on investment), yet running a modern customer-facing business is a complex mixture of day-to-day business operations (accounting and admin sadly never go away) and managing a brand identity that is somewhat out of control, with conversations between brand advocates and detractors ongoing on multiple communication platforms. How can these realities be brought closer together? How can companies listen to what customers (and prospects) are saying and apply the knowledge gained to maximize growth? Social Media Monitoring With conversations about customer experience able to travel faster and further than ever before, successful businesses are starting to increase the priority of measuring Customer Referral Value – how much new business an advocate brings in – placing it at least equal to Customer Lifetime Value – how much business one customer provides over their lifetime. To start measuring CRV, companies need to get a grip on social media monitoring, which means overcoming the three challenges of: Determining Scale. How widespread an experience, opinion or mood is Measurement. How conversations can be turned into hard data for ROI purposes, and Tracking. How brand conversations over multiple platforms can be quickly located New Tools for a New Age As might be expected, the need to meet the challenges above has led to the growth of technology designed specifically for Social Media Monitoring (aka listening). These tools can often monitor billions of conversations across forums, blogs, chat-rooms, Twitter, social media sites and more; identify the key influencers in an industry; gauge a general mood based on the tone of discussions and provide in-depth demographic and geographic information. These tools are rapidly replacing traditional market research methods which can be expensive and unreliable. In addition to the number-crunching that can be done with the aggregated statistics, actually reading the conversations can provide raw qualitative data – sometimes quite eye-opening – which can lead to quickly identifying customer expectations, areas of concern and, just as importantly, areas where you out perform your competitors. Rather than remaining on the outside, it is good practice to join conversations with both advocates and detractors to extract as much information as possible. This must be done in a positive manner, regardless of the content of the conversation. Listen, Hear, Act We all know how frustrating it is when we explain an issue to a friend or family member and they listen, nod and continue to act in the same way. It’s the same for a business (in fact it’s worse since you can easily choose a new brand to spend money with). No matter how sophisticated the tools, listening is a waste of resource unless a clear, cost-effective strategy is created on the back of it. Fortunately, many of the conversations a brand will read will contain suggestions for how you could do things better. You don’t have to follow every recommendation, but the best ideas can be used to stimulate positive discussion. Another action step that should be considered is building rapport with any industry influencers you have identified (note, these are not necessarily industry leaders). You are searching for the ultimate combination: a powerful industry influencer who is also a brand advocate.

The 5 Things that Always Matter to the Customer (Whatever your Industry)

To work out exactly what it is that matters to customers, we don’t have to look very far. We are all customers ourselves, and have discovered the things we like about a company and those things that turn us away. Although customers tend to appreciate the same values as they always have: integrity, speed of service, politeness, quality, etc., we are living in an age where large, medium and even small businesses have the tools and technologies to really deliver on those needs, which means customers’ expectations are raised across the board. After all, if company x can provide a fantastic customer experience, what’s stopping company y from doing the same thing? To help you keep customers happy and loyal, this article highlights five things that always matter to customers – no matter what industry you’re in. Ease & Convenience We have busy lives these days, and when we need to purchase products or services, whether it is our weekly bag of groceries or a movie to watch in the evening, the quicker and easier it is to complete the transaction, the happier we will be (providing our other needs are met too). If we have to spend too long on a website, fill in complex forms or wait for ages on hold or in a long line we will definitely consider whether the product or service is worth the effort next time. Sometimes it’s the little things that make all the difference, like the position of a ‘buy’ button on your payment page or the number of options on a telephone menu. Have a look at what your competitors and industry leaders are doing and compare their customer journey with yours to make sure your process is as simple and quick as it can be. Multiple Communication Channels In the past there was face-to-face communication, the telephone and the snail mail. Then came email and mobile phone technology. Today, there are more ways to communicate with companies than ever before, with live chat, various social media platforms (Twitter tweets, Facebook posts, etc.), blogs, webcasts, podcasts, webinars, videoconferencing and VoIP services such as Skype™ to name just a few. It is not economical to jump on every option available, so make it your mission to find out which communication channels your customers prefer and concentrate on excelling in those areas. Any other channels you can manage will be a bonus. Continuity Humans are social creatures and although we understand, particularly with large companies, that we cannot possibly have a personal relationship with every staff member, we still love it when an employee of the company remembers our name, the details about what products and services we are interested in and what experiences we’ve had in the past. This kind of continuity doesn’t come about by chance, but by organizing our databases and customer records and giving our workforce the training and technology (smart interfaces, well-designed scripts, etc.) to access and use them. Trained & Equipped CSRs A company’s overall customer service provision is only as good as its weakest CSR (Customer Service Representative). As your biggest asset, you need to invest generously to employ high quality personnel, train them to a high standard in product knowledge, technical skills and ‘soft’ skills, such as rapport-building, and equip them with the tools and technologies that will let them shine. The Right Products & Services It seems obvious, but customers will only buy from you if you offer the products and services they want and need, so finding this out should be your number one priority. There are many methods successful companies use to keep on top of this challenge such as surveys, questionnaires, online feedback, point-of-sale interviews, focus groups, etc. The best companies of all can actually anticipate, and sometimes shape, customers’ future needs.

A recipe for creating amazing customer experience

Excellent customer service has the potential to create loyal customers that will stay with your business for life. When they need a specific product or a service in the future, they will think of using your business without hesitation. Moreover, they will likely refer your business to colleagues, family and friends, bringing your business more and more potential buyers. That’s why you need to provide excellent customer support, which can create an amazing customer experience. The following are some simple tips that can be used to deliver an amazing experience to your customers. First, it is important that your customer service agents have a good knowledge about the product or service that you offer and this is achieved by providing great training to your agents. Taking the time to teach your agents about your products or services will allow them to speak confidently to your customers and know how to answer their questions and solve any problems your customers may have. Regardless of what you are selling, it is important that your customer service agents really know your product and how it can meet the needs of your customers. A staff that has been well-trained in the products or services offered by their company is one of the most essential qualities for being able to offer a great customer experience. In addition to training in product knowledge, training in the area of service is equally important. Product knowledge is great but so is a pleasant agent who knows how to field questions, handle complaints and solve problems in a timely manner. This involves listening to the customer……really listening! Listening allows you to not only hear what is being said, but what is NOT being said. For example, in a face to face interaction, body language can communicate volumes, however, over the phone, agents need to be trained to listen for tone of voice and other non-verbal queues that can communicate frustration or anger. It is important that agents know how to quickly diffuse this in a customer by reassuring them that they understand and will do everything to handle their issue quickly. If an agent encounters a problem that may take a bit of time to solve, it is very important that they communicate this to the customer and give them an idea as to how long it may take to find their answer. This may even involve the agent having to call the customer back, but a little “wait” time, beats poor customer service EVERY time! Additionally, agents should be trained in expressing gratitude to their customers. Let’s face it, we live in a world where there are many options available for just about any product or service, so when a customer chooses YOUR business over another, it’s important to acknowledge that and be thankful for their business. Plus, if you have agents who are well trained in product knowledge AND service, you give customers a reason to come back to you every time! Finally, another important aspect of providing great customer service is Feedback! Yes, FEEDBACK, because this helps you know where you’re doing great as well as where you can make some improvements. Feedback is a powerful tool when it comes to knowing what your customer wants and then implementing that. Getting proper feedback can be a challenge, but if it’s a quick and easy process for your customers, you are more likely to get the information you need. It may take a bit of time and effort to know what process works best for your customers, but once you’ve identified it, you will have a steady flow of helpful information that will provide the recipe you will need for great customer service every time.

At Etech, We Are Thankful For Our Customers, The Lifeblood Of Our Business

Anyone who is in any type of business will tell you that were it not for their customers, they would not be in business. It’s really a no-brainer: businesses survive and thrive because of their customers. On the other hand, businesses die due to a lack of customers. Customers are the life-blood to any business. A quick Google search will give you an array of articles offering advice on how to keep your customers, how to increase your customer base, how to offer great customer service, etc. Many of these resources are excellent and offer great advice. A growing, thriving business cannot expect to stay that way if they don’t treat their customers well. During this month of November, when we all take time to reflect on our blessings and what we are thankful for, I’d like to take a moment to say ‘Thank You’ to each and every one of our customers. At Etech Global Services, we support a variety of industries from Telecommunications and Finance to Education and Healthcare. We are extremely thankful for all of our customers, those who have recently joined us and those who have been with us since the beginning. During our early years, our first clients had faith that we could provide customer support services and technology that would help them grow their businesses. We had some ups and downs, made mistakes and learned some things the hard way, but our customers never lost faith in us and we proved them right! That’s amazing to me as I look back on it now. I’m not sure I could have demonstrated that same, unwavering faith as they did, but I’m extremely grateful for them. Without those first customers, we would not be one of the leading providers of inbound, outbound and web chat technology and services as we are today. So as you take time out to give thanks this month, make sure you say a thank you to the people who have made you who you are today! All of us, individuals as well as businesses, have people in our lives who showed faith in us when they didn’t have to, let those people know how thankful you are for them. Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Etech Global Services.

How to Power Online Sales With Chat

The benefits of utilizing live chat seem to be endless. Each and every day more and more companies who are taking advantage of this competitive edge are finding more benefits and positive outcomes that they did not experience previous to implementing live chat. Whether it be providing real-time customer service, or having the ability to walk a customer through a technical process, live chat continues to deliver. For the purpose of this blog however, we are going to focus on the positive effect live chat can have on increasing a company’s overall sales conversion rates. Live Chat Enhances Sales: The Evidence If any company can attest to the value of having a live chat program it is, Everything Everywhere (EE). EE revealed that, during their first year of implementing live chat, not only did their overall customer satisfaction score remain at a stellar 83%, but they also saw a remarkable boost in sales conversions of 40%. Of the 30,000 contracts they sold that year, their online chat operators were not only outperforming their telephone and physical store teams, but they were doing so with authority. With an average rate of one new customer every two hours, their online team was twice as effective as their telephone sales team and a whopping ten times more effective as colleagues in brick and mortar stores. Different Ways to Use Live Chat One of the reasons live chat is such an attractive means of communication is because of its versatility. Whether it is used to answer general questions and assist in the visitor’s overall experience, or if it is strategically placed to assist at just the right moment, live chat is there. The potential is virtually limitless so let’s take a look at some of the most common places companies implement live chat: Specific Customer Questions: The most common use of live chat to increase sales is to answer questions from customers whenever they might have one. Customers want answers immediately and if there is a live chat agent there and ready to answer that question, their chance of buying and converting to a sale significantly increases. General Conversation: A lot of the time we see customers visit a site who are not 100% sure on what exactly it is they need. In this situation having a live chat agent there to actively listen to the customer and understand what they are looking for works wonders. A competent chat agent will use this conversation to identify the customer’s needs and then suggest a solution. Behavioural Analytics: This tactic requires a little more work. By observing real-time visitor behaviour on a website, the chat agent can recognize certain sales cues as to what the customer is trying to achieve. Having the knowledge the products and after observing the customer’s behaviour, the chat agent is able to strategically time their chat to come in and offer to assist at just the right moment. Following a Visitor’s Footprint: Sophisticated tracking analytics can also determine where a visitor has arrived from. For example, they may have followed a link from another website or clicked on a promotional ad. Every step a customer takes on their path helps paint a picture of their goals which helps the chat agent to affectively communicate with them. Other tools: Some live chat services can integrate chat buttons in social media posts, outbound emails, affiliate sites and search results. This further increases the chances of interaction and sales. At the end of the day, it comes down to the fact that customers want assistance and communication in the easiest and fastest way possible. Chat is continuing to prove that it is the most effective means of communication when it comes to customer choice and effectiveness. As for EE, they believe their results speak for themselves with a conversion rate that is five times higher with live chat assistance than when visitors have to self-serve. Contact us today to see how live chat can help you!

Live Chat – Online Customers Prefer Human Touch

According to their recent Global Customer Experience Survey, NICE systems have discovered yet more evidence to support the hypothesis behind Live Chat: that customers want to deal with a real person when they are experiencing issues. While all of the attention may be on social media and smartphone apps, the clear message from 64 per cent of respondants was that these count for nothing in terms of customer service – unless there’s a live person on the other end. Live Chat combines the ease and speed of social media with the human contact of the customer service phone line. Since it provides exactly what customers are asking for, the use of Live Chat has doubled from 2011 to 2014, with everyone from big banks, retail outlets and media firms to small start-ups taking advantage of the cost- and resource-saving potential. Remember them and they will remember you However, just because Live Chat is growing in popularity, it doesn’t mean that a business will suddenly start converting more sales just because they install a Live Chat platform. Visitors still want to be seen as more than just chat windows on a screen and expect that your company will remember the last three to five interactions you had with them, regardless of which channel was used. Fortunately, Live Chat is made for that level of service continuation. Most platforms give agents an easy way to recall historic chat conversations, enabling them to pick up where they left off. And the rewards are potentially huge, with 96 per cent of customers saying that they would reward quick and effective resolution of problems with loyalty to that particular brand. Personalization: the root of the issue Delving deeper into the whys of the NICE findings, it becomes clear that personalization is what customers are looking for. In a new age of web traffic, clicks and conversion rates, people are crying out to be treated as a human being with needs and wants. A strategic Live Chat set up can really help with this by seamlessly blending the power of mass data analytics with the human touch of a caring Live Chat agent. As soon as your tracking software flags that a visitor has satisfied the rules for a Live Chat approach (lingering on a particular page, performing a specific action, etc.), their transition from nameless statistic to real person has already begun. By the time a chat agent engages with that customer they should know enough about them to make a human connection. The danger of the one-click, no-touch mentality When a company like Amazon, which prides itself on its one-click ordering and no contact with customers, does an about-turn and starts promoting its customer engagement facility, it is wise to sit up and take note. It is a fundamental law of business that it costs a lot more to attract a new customer than to retain an existing one, and that principle applies even over the huge global ecommerce marketplace. With so much competition on the internet, it becomes just as easy for a customer to click an order button on one site as it is on another. If there is no opportunity to talk to a human being to resolve an issue, a customer is likely to leave a site frustrated. If a rival vendor engages that customer and solves their problem, that customer my never return.

Slash Cost of Acquisition using Live Chat

Acquiring new customers is no simple task. It requires a large amount of time and resources dedicated to getting potential customers through the door – or on to your website. Advertising by Direct Mail or through the media is notoriously expensive, but even when your marketing has been limited to an online campaign, there is still the cost of web design, copywriting and hosting to consider. In this blog we will focus on a couple of key questions every online business asks themselves, “How are you losing customers?”, and “Why are visitors not becoming customers?” and also how implementing Live Chat can help turn those visitors into actual paying customers. Using Analytics and Live Chat When visitors arrive at your website they are either looking to buy, or to educate themselves on your products. When a customer is casually shopping, they want to have an error free, enjoyable experience. If they encounter any type of issue, whether it is a page not loading correctly, or that they simply can not find the product they desire, the entire experience could take a quick turn for the worse and they could leave your page for good. Your analytics data – working in unison with your Live Chat platform – can help to track your visitors’ movements and solve any problems they are having in real time. The chat option will provide the customer an outlet to express whatever situation they are experiencing and the chat agent would be able to supply them an answer. Example 1: The frustrated buyer Imagine a visitor is interested in purchasing a product and, due to a browser incompatibility issue, after they click the order button nothing happens – or their browser ‘hangs.’ Worried that resending the order will trigger multiple payments, they simply choose to close their browser and buy the same product elsewhere. In effect you have just paid advertising money to sell to a competitor! This is where Live Chat can help. If there was the option for Live Chat or, even better, one of your agents jumped in with a pro-active offer of support, we could have retained that customer by dealing with their order manually and reassuring them that they would not be billed twice. Also after the issue, you could pass the browser issue to your website development team to ensure the issue is resolved. Example 2: The interested observer A second example of how Live Chat and analytics can save money on customer acquisition is when you see that a customer has spent an above average amount of time on a product page. Whether they are looking for more information or undecided about making a purchase, you can practically guaranty that they have questions they would like to ask. By opening up a chat window, your agent can engage your visitor to increase the chances of making a sale by using a professional sales approach (identifying the customer’s needs, removing barriers, etc.) to help them alleviate any uncertainties they may have People Buy From People In both of the above examples, we have shown that people want to ask questions and people want to be reassured that their purchase is the right purchase. If your company is lacking in these two areas or if the customer has a difficult time reaching you, they will have no problem whatsoever to leave and go to a competitor. Whether you are solving technical problems or increasing buyer confidence, your live chat interaction with your visitors will have a positive impact on your ROI.

Is Your Company Customer-Centric? Live Chat Is the Option

Most businesses would probably claim to be very customer-centric. It is a term that one hears a lot in sales and marketing circles, but what does it mean? Literally Customer Centric means that your customers – not your products, services or balance sheet – are the center around which your business is built. It means starting each work day with the question: ‘What do my customers want today?’ rather than ‘what product should I launch?’ or ‘what is my cash flow situation?’ Given this definition, do you still say your business is customer-centric? Changing your mind-set Fortunately, becoming a fully customer-centric organization requires less upheaval than one might think. It is really a matter of a small but significant change of mind-set. When you consider the fact that your customers ARE your business, every problem becomes a symptom of where you’re letting your customers down; every KPI becomes a barometer measuring how your company is fulfilling the customers’ needs and every new product launch has to be justified against real customer needs. So how do you find out what those needs are? The answer to that could be simpler than you think too. Why every business should offer Live Chat One thing that is becoming apparent in market research is that customers both want and expect prompt service delivery. For an online business, the only tool that can consistently and pro-actively fulfill those expectations is a live chat platform. Once a customer decides to respond to your company’s invitation to chat, you can start to demonstrate what a truly customer-centric organization you are by identifying your customer’s needs, asking about any problems they might be experiencing and making changes to your products, services or business operation depending on what is needed. Inexpensive with instant results Compared with other business development costs, integrating live chat with your business is easy, inexpensive and offers instant results. Sophisticated software means the technological side of things is usually refreshingly simple, with most of your time and resources needed for training live chat agents to make the most of their opportunity to engage directly with active visitors. Once live chat is up and running, the surveillance capabilities of most platforms can be employed to full effect. If online ‘surveillance’ sounds a bit sinister, think of it as being no different than observing the movements of a customer in a bricks and mortar store with the motive of helping them find what they need with minimal time and effort. With live chat packages you can usually track where a customer has arrived from, which pages they have looked at and what on-screen actions they have taken. Inviting a browser to chat has the same function as walking up to a shopper in-store and asking whether you can be of assistance. In fact, the live chat window is even more customer-centric than an in-store assistant, as the online browser is free to ignore the chat window without feeling awkward. It’s all in the training Finally, a live chat platform is only as good as its customer service agents, which is why you will need to ensure the customer-facing agents are trained (or re-trained if necessary) to employ that customer-centric mind-set. A professionally trained customer service agent will look beyond the initial request for help to provide the fullest service possible. This may, or may not, involve cross-selling or up-selling and can include identifying problems with the customer journey that can be fixed for the benefit of future visitors.

How to Successfully Chat With Customers

Live Chat Live Chat is the latest trend that is used by companies to help their customers. Providing customer support through live chat should be done with extra care. You need to pay special attention towards several important facts in order to satisfy customers with their concerns. From this article, we will let you know the method that you can follow in order to successfully chat with customers. Take ownership of the conversation Once a customer initiates the conversation, you need to take ownership and keep it flowing towards a defined resolutions. You can use specific questions instead of general questions to maintain the smooth flow. This will assist you to provide a quick solution to the customers with their concerns as well. At the end of the conversation, you need to summarize everything in order to make sure that you have not left out anything. Moreover, you need to maintain politeness throughout the entire conversation. Be helpful You need to be helpful to the customer from the beginning of the conversation to the end. If the chat is not helpful, potential customers will not tend to use your services and you will miss a sale. You need to listen carefully to the concerns of the customers and provide the appropriate solution. You should also know when to escalate the customer concern to the next level. You should also respond immediately to the messages sent by customers. Using a proper script can assist you with quick replies. Communicate professionally Professional communication is an essential aspect that all the live chat conversations should have. You need to pay special attention towards spelling, punctuation and grammar. Moreover, you need to think twice before using jargons or acronyms. Your customer might not be familiar with them. You need to build credibility, trust and rapport with customer throughout the conversation. It is recommended to stay away from conversations that can give life to a negative light. Show your expertise in subject Customers who initiate a conversation through live chat think that all the agents are experts with the service. You need to show your expertise to the customers and build trust in their minds. You can also share knowledge with them which and make sure that they tend to seek your services again without any hesitation. Multi task seamlessly Agents who offer help through live chat will have to multi task and chat with more than one customer at a given time. You need to switch between those conversations in a seamless manner and make sure you provide an accurate service to all the customers. Agents can seek the assistance of tools like sales gen system, knowledge base and CRM to provide this seamless service. Moreover, you need to have a basic understanding about the services that you offer to the customers. This can assist you to provide a quick solution to the customers with their concerns.

Increase Customer Loyalty to Your Website With Live Chat Option

Customers are primarily viewed as the driving factor behind the overall success of a company. Therefore, companies are constantly battling each other to win that ever so important intangible, customer loyalty. Companies are seeking ways to please and satisfy their customers in ways in which they want to be pleased. Each and everyday, more and more companies are finding that this competitive edge is associated with having a live chat service option on their website. Providing excellent service through live chat is one of the best options available for a web-based company to increase their customer loyalty. Customer support through live chat has a multitude of purposes. Not only can it act as a portal for customers to receive assistance like they would in a store, but they can also utilize the chat to ask questions and find benefits in products that they may not have been aware of. From a recent study, it showed that customers who engage in live chat are four times more likely to convert to a sale, as those who do not. Like all of us, most customers think twice, sometimes much more than that, before they take that final leap to make a purchase. Regardless of the products and services the website is offering, customers are going to have questions. That is a given. Customers who do online shopping want the help and assistance that they would normally find in a brick and mortar store, right there on the page. For example, if you store is selling home appliances, electronic items or furniture, customers might want to ask a couple of questions to ensure that they are getting the best deal. Having that chat agent there to assist and answer any questions for the customer, increases the overall experience for the customer and gives them the feeling of confidence in their purchases. According to studies, right around 60 percent of the chats lead to sales simply because the chat representative is able to give the customers the answers they are looking for. The ultimate objective of all businesses is to gain more customers and to please our customers. Adding a live chat customer support service is one of the most effective methods available to increase your sales and your customer loyalty. The customer market is changing radically the evidence is showing that the trend is moving to chat for assistance. Even though it is a challenging task to gain customer loyalty in the present market, customer support through live chat can make it possible.

How Do You Get Executive Buy-In?

Having researched the benefits of live chat, you have probably seen the potential benefits for your business. This is great if you own your business or have executive powers in the area of technology acquisition. But if you are not in that fortunate position you have a major task ahead of you: convincing the board! An article by change management expert, Kirk Sievert, from Canadian firm AdPro recommended an approach he referred to as ‘the 5 Bs’. Best Practice Change management is a structured process which enables a company to adopt new procedures and technology such as live chat, while also meeting current objectives and remaining on schedule and on budget. If you have little experience of change management you will need to immerse yourself in the field by studying various change management models. These models will give you an idea of best practice during change management and will enable you to frame the adoption of live chat in terms that the executive board will be comfortable with. If you can show that you have taken into account the need to meet stakeholder sales expectations and to make cutbacks in inefficient areas to finance live chat, they are likely to be impressed and also trust your judgement. Business Case Using best practices you can then begin to build a strong business case for investing in live chat. A business case needs to address benefits (e.g. increased conversion rates, higher customer satisfaction and more efficient use of agents), risk mitigation (e.g. taking advantage of a free live chat trial); ROI and likelihood of success. For the latter two points it can be useful to bring up examples of large corporations who are already making use of live chat and seeing results. Notable examples are BSkyB, EE, and Wells Fargo. The more you can base your case around facts and research rather than emotion and baseless optimism, the more likely you are to achieve executive buy-in. Be Specific Who is on the executive board and what are their concerns? If heads of departments and stakeholders know exactly what is expected of them, they are more likely to get on board as it quells their anxiety. For example, if a senior manager knows they will need to organize training for agents and direct the web development team to design and implement the live chat interface, they will feel more comfortable than being told they will need to ready their teams for live chat. Again, the more you can demonstrate you have considered every angle of live chat implementation, the more confident they will be in your judgement. Be Assertive Most executive boards contain strong characters who may challenge you on any number of points. By arming yourself with research and figures and dealing with facts (while acknowledging fears) you can avoid being dragged into a personality contest and drive home your position. In the face of opposition, try not to react angrily. Other people have the right to challenge your business case and, at the end, as long as you win over the majority you will get the buy-in you are after. Bring in the Experts Do you know a senior figure in another company who has already implemented and enjoyed the benefits of live chat? Or do you have industry insiders with technical knowledge of live chat platforms? Consider bringing these experts to your board meetings. Not only will they be able to address some of your colleagues’ questions, they will also provide moral support and deflect some of the intensity of the questioning.

Empower your Business with Live Chat

One of the biggest frustrations of running a business where much of your customer interaction is handled remotely via a website, is the limited ability to react to your customers’ needs until it is too late. During busy times, when your customer help phone lines are jammed, you know you will be losing potential sales with every dropped call but feel powerless to do anything about it. If you’re not attracting enough interest, you can spend a lot of time scratching your head over analytics without really knowing where the problem lies. This is why we are seeing an increasing number of businesses embracing the live chat tool. There are various live chat services available, both software and cloud-based, each offering new and exciting ways to track and engage with visitors to your website. Work faster and smarter Business owners are always looking for ways to improve speed and efficiency, and live chat can help in many ways. The flexibility of the live chat platform frees up your customer-facing agents to perform more simultaneous tasks. Answering phone call questions is resource-intensive because once an agent is engaged on a call there is little else they can do without risking missing important parts of the conversation. With live chat, everything is there in front of you on a chat screen and most agents will be able to handle numerous chats at the same time even while attending to other duties. Live chat can also be a helpful tool in the development of your business by allowing you to resolve problems quickly. By integrating live chat with your analytics program you can reach out to customers at the exact time they are experiencing problems and actually have them describe to you what is happening. Demonstrate your brand values All too often, a business relies on communicating its brand values solely through the design of its logo, marketing materials and website. But it is a well-known business adage that customers buy from people and not brands. With live chat you can take full control of your brand image by demonstrating your core values and principles through your customer interactions. To take advantage of this benefit, your customer service agents need to be well-trained in how they are expected to address visitors. By adding a live chat option, your business is already demonstrating a commitment to using state-of-the-art technology to quickly answer questions and solve problems with a personal touch. Control and Customization To be empowered, a business needs to be able to control the manner in which live chat is incorporated into their existing framework. Most quality live chat services offer a high degree of customization with powerful yet simple to use features that can be turned on and off as needed including automatic invitations, pre-set responses, language translation and file-sharing . Business owners may be able to set up internal departments, assign agent roles, receive agent performance reports and block nuisance IP addresses. Design is another area that can often be customized so that a company’s live chat window blends seamlessly in with the rest of their website. Knowledge is Power Not only does live chat give businesses the benefit of instant customer contact, it also helps in the accumulation of valuable information via chat archives. Every recorded chat session adds information that can be collated and analyzed to identify patterns that point the way to further refinement. By combining the rich, qualitative data of real customer interactions with the powerful number-crunching capability of analytics software, businesses can be more flexible, responsive and effective, giving them an edge over their competitors.

Global Strategies: Technology and the Next Generation of Workers

As I sat down to write this fourth and final installment in the Global Strategies series, I pondered what would be the best way to conclude this series. The last three installments have all dealt with the preeminent issue of keeping people at the forefront of all global strategy. No matter how much technology advances, no matter how many tasks computers may be able to perform for us in the future, nothing can ever take the place of the human connection. Yet, we live in a world where technology is changing and advancing at light speed. We know that it will continue to do so and that we will continue to have to adapt to these changes. Knowing this, how do we keep the human factor at the center of a rapidly advancing technological world? How do we continue to grow and advance with technology without letting it run our lives and replace that connection? And finally, how do we begin to prepare the next generation of workers to keep pace with technology while not losing that very critical piece of the human connection? Those are difficult questions that don’t have easy answers but as I pondered these questions and how to answer them, I came across a couple of articles which I thought provided some great insight that can help us begin to address those questions. The first article, by Pew Research, deals with the question of how technology impacts the youth of today and is this impact positive or negative? One of the primary arguments for the 42% who thought the affects would be negative was that this generation lacks face-to-face social skills. A very valid concern, I think. Interestingly, 55% believe the affects will be positive, but most of these positive affects had to do with their ability to handle technology and adapt to its changes. It’s an interesting read that you can find here, but no matter where your opinion falls on the effects of technology on teens, the fact remains, technology is here to stay and today’s teens know how adaptability is one of the keys to use it and adapt quickly to its changes. This will serve them well as the future workforce. According to Nicholas Enna, author of the second article, 10 Skills The Workforce of the Future Will Need, adaptability will be one of the most vital skills the future workforce will need. This article was a great read and provided some keen insight on how technology will likely shape the workforce and the qualifications needed to succeed. Both of these articles provide some great insight on humans, technology and the future which can be a great starting point for answering the more pressing question of how to maintain that human connection amidst ever-changing technology. However difficult these questions may be, two things we can know for sure: humans and technology will both shape the future. This blog was written by Dilip Barot, Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Etech Global Services, and founder of Creative Choice Group, headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Etech employs 2,500 team members across the US, India and Jamaica. If you would like to learn more about Etech, contact info@etechgs.com for more information.

How to Select the Best Live Chat Software for Your e-Commerce Website

It is a well-known fact that websites with live chat make more sales than others. It is one of the best methods available to clarify all the pre-sale and post-sale questions of customers. If you own an ecommerce website and are considering implementing customer support through Live Chat, you are on the right track. However, knowing which software to choose can be a challenge, so let’s take a look at some guidelines that will help you make the best choice for your business. First, it is important to choose a Live Chat method that can answer customer concerns even when an agent is away from their computer. Larger operations may offer customer support 24/7, but a smaller operation may not do that. Therefore, is it very important that a customer is able to have their questions or concerns addressed even after normal business hours. Providing a method that can do this will go a long way in building customer satisfaction and loyalty. Live chat software should be able to integrate with smartphones. The interface should be independent from the type of mobile device. It is better to find a live chat software that will work on the majority of mobile browsers. There are some live chat applications that send a text message, once a customer has engaged in a conversation; this is an ideal option for the small business owner to respond quickly. Live chat applications can be divided into several categories. Some applications require business owners to install operator software on all business computers while others offer services online. A live chat software that offers its services online can be more cost effective than installing software on all business computers. Not to mention the need for professional IT services to reconfigure everything. A web based software does not require this expense and also allows users to log in from any part of the world through any web browser. Live chat was introduced to the world in order to provide quick solutions to customer concerns. Therefore, the live chat software you choose, should offer quick responses with prepared answers. Having prepared answers will allow you to answer simple concerns within a few seconds. A prepared answer would be something like: “Give me few seconds to look up your record”, which keeps the customer from having to wait for an answer. Last but not least, when considering the cost of live chat software, it is always better to look for high quality over the lowest price. A high-quality system can enhance your sales volume and customer base. Additionally, cloud based services have dramatically reduced the costs associated with live chat applications, which has allowed a number of small scale e-commerce website owners to experience its benefits.

What You Need to Know Before Using Live Chat

If you’ve been tracking the current trend of how major companies and small businesses are reaping the benefits of live chat, you might be tempted to dive right in and give it a try – especially if there is a free trial offered. If you have the option of a free Live Chat trial, resist the urge to treat it as just a fun gimmick. Used correctly, Live Chat is a powerful customer support and sales tool and you should have a clear purpose as to how you will use it for your business. However, before you take the plunge there are a few things you need to know: What are your goals and objectives? Are you seeking to increase sales? If so, are you focusing on a general increase in conversion rate or looking to sell a particular product? Are you cross-selling or up-selling? Are you concerned about basket abandonment or another part of your payment procedure? Determining from the start what you are trying to achieve, will inform every subsequent decision from how to train your agents, where to place the live chat window(s) to which analytics you will study to measure your success. This will, in turn, help you to decide whether to turn a trial into a purchase or to calculate RoI if you are paying for your live chat software or service. Which live chat package is right for you? Every live chat service has its strengths and weaknesses and you should use a company which provides everything you need without charging extra for the things you don’t need. Questions to ask before placing an order include: How much are you willing to spend? What level of support do you require? Which features do you need (e.g. mobile access, chat archiving, social media integration, etc.)? Another important factor to consider is the type of licensing they are offering. There is little point in paying extra to license unlimited agents if you are likely to employ just one or two for the foreseeable future. What are your training needs? Before opening your live chat option to the world, consider what training your agents might need. If this function will be outsourced to an external company, then you will need to plan for ample time to educate them about your products or services. They will also need to familiarize themselves with the specific Live Chat system they will be using. Your agents should also understand whether they will be playing a purely reactive role (answering customer support queries, providing technical assistance, etc.) or whether you will expect them to engage more pro-actively to help drive sales. You will also need to carefully consider how many agents you will need to recruit in order to be efficient and cost effective. How will your live chat window integrate into your website? You will also need to consider carefully how your live chat buttons and windows will integrate into your website. Most Live Chat providers offer at least some degree of choice and customization when it comes to size, shape, appearance and colour scheme, while placement on screen will be completely up to you or your website owner. As a rule, it is best to ensure your chat facility is clearly visible on the relevant page without dominating it. Once you have completed all of these steps, you are ready to launch your live chat feature and begin to reap the benefits that live chat will bring to your business.

Why Do Customers Use Chat?

In today’s fast pace, convenience first world, customers want, and more importantly expect, great customer service. They expect that wherever they are, the companies they want to do business with should be to. Live chat in e-Commerce For users, it is much easier to engage with a store through the availability of live chat. Having this option is much more welcoming and less threatening to customers who may not feel comfortable speaking on the phone to a sales representative. Additionally, some people might not feel like waiting for replies to the emails sent (which could arrive in days). So a quick solution lies in chat. In fact, research shows that companies using live chat end up doing roughly 30% more direct sales with their customers as compared to companies who do not offer live chat. Using this type of communication you can help to decrease the rate of shopping cart abandonment, improve conversion, grow average order value, reduce cost per acquisition, and most importantly creates a good relationship with your clients. One important aspect of live chat is letting the customer come to you. We all can relate to that feeling of walking into a store and almost immediately getting bombarded with questions from the employees who start sharing the “latest and greatest” sale they have. The way chat can help solve this problem is when the chat agent strategically times the chat with the customer. This gives the customer time to get acquainted with the website explore and shop at their own pace. So at the end of the day, customers are turning more and more to the chat channel to do their business due to a multitude of reasons: accessibility, quick answers, non-threatening environment, and a environment in which they can control the interaction. Want to increase sales? In this case you need to have sales people to answer questions from users. Live chat in your online store must be enabled normally 24/24, but many smaller companies keep it open solely during the day when more customers are likely to use it. If you don’t want to keep the live chat service open on a 24-hour basis, then make sure to announce your available schedule to the clients in the Contact section of your website. It is very important to prepare your team or the man who will take care of this activity. The operator might be too busy, does not have time to “tell” ok, still does not know what the client missing, but the client must be informed of this. A default wait message or animation is great in these cases. If you’re already using live chat in your store, do you do it correctly? My advice is to try a free month of live chat solution, and then you can see if it’s worth it or not to continue with it. I say this because most companies have such applications, offering free access for a period of 30 days. More recently these applications offer support on mobile, so you can answer your customers even if you’re not in front of a computer (but that means knowing your merchandise and website). If you believe that investing time and resources in live chat helps increase sales, you can always switch to a paid version of the live chat application that you use. A customer chat service is considered to be a good investment by many sales experts.

Do We “Talk the Walk?” – Third in the Global Strategies Series

As I have written this series on Global Strategies for 2014 and beyond, I’ve been challenged to think long and hard about the most pressing strategies for us as an organization going forward. We toss around a lot of subjects from technology to growth and everything in between, but as my colleagues and I discuss these issues, it never fails to get back to the ONE thing that remains constant: PEOPLE! I’m thankful to be part of an organization that puts people first. Our entire operation centers around servicing our customers and we have a deep understanding that our employees need to be cared for or they will not perform well. In my last blog entry in this series, I focused on the importance of building a positive work environment which would, in turn, strengthen our customer service. As I contemplated how to expand on this for this blog entry, I came across a fantastic article in the Harvard Business Review. This article shares the story of a company in Detroit that has seen phenomenal growth because of a specific language they teach their employees to speak. This “language” not only strengthens the work environment, but has put this company at the top when it comes to customer service. This article resonated with me so deeply, I felt it was worth reposting. I promise you, you’re in for a treat! Enjoy! The Best Leaders “Talk the Walk” By Bill Taylor One of the most ubiquitous aphorisms in business is that the best leaders understand the need to “walk the talk” — that is, their behavior and day-to-day actions have to match the aspirations they have for their colleagues and organization. But the more time I spend with game-changing innovators and high-performing companies, the more I appreciate the need for leaders to “talk the walk” — that is, to be able to explain, in language that is unique to their field and compelling to their colleagues and customers, why what they do matters and how they expect to win. The only sustainable form of business leadership is thought leadership. And leaders that think differently about their business invariably talk about it differently as well. I saw the power of language come to life earlier this summer when I made an eye-opening visit to a day-long orientation held every six weeks or so for new employees of Quicken Loans, the online mortgage lender based in Detroit and owned by high-profile billionaire Dan Gilbert. Quicken Loans is known for lots of things, from torrid growth (the company closed a record $80 billion worth of home loans last year, up from $70 billion in 2012), to much-praised customer service (it is a perennial JD Power customer-satisfaction winner), to its intense and outgoing corporate culture. But behind it all, at the heart of the company’s approach to strategy, service, and culture, is a language system that defines life inside the organization and reminds everyone what really drives success. Founder Dan Gilbert and CEO Bill Emerson call this language the company’s “Isms” — which is why the rollicking, fast-paced, eight-hour orientation session is called “Isms in Action.” Gilbert and Emerson, who present separately and together over the entire eight hours — an executive teaching marathon unlike anything I have seen before — march employees through the company’s 18 Isms, with a combination of slide shows, stand-up humor, war stories from the trenches, and unabashed appeals to the heart. A few of the Isms get covered in 10 or 15 minutes, some take an hour. But the end result is a full-day immersion in a whole new language — a “vocabulary of competition” that sets the company apart in the marketplace and holds people together in the workplace. On the day I attended, more than a thousand participants crowded into a ballroom in the Marriott Renaissance Center on the banks of the Detroit River. Gilbert and Emerson urged their new colleagues to embrace the idea that, “The inches we need are everywhere around us” — in other words, there are countless small opportunities for people to tweak a product, or improve a process, that lead to big wins in the marketplace. They insisted, no excuses allowed, that everyone agree with the Ism, “Responding with a sense of urgency is the ante to play.” Gilbert personally emphasized again and again, sometimes with jokes, sometimes with withering disdain, the absolute requirement that Quicken employees return every phone call and every email on the same business day they were received. “We are zealots about this,” he thundered, “we are on the lunatic fringe. And if you’re ‘too busy’ to do it, I’ll do it for you” — at which point he gave out his direct-dial extension and promised to return phone calls for any overwhelmed colleagues. On and on it went — funny stories, sure, sage pieces of advice, a quick history of the company. But mainly an urgent iteration ands reiteration of the company’s Isms: “Numbers and money follow, they do not lead.” “Innovation is rewarded, execution is worshipped.” “Simplicity is genius.” In business leadership, as in all forms of leadership, words matter. Indeed, several of the attendees with whom I spoke weren’t new employees at all. They’d come back for a refresher, a reminder, an opportunity to spend a day reacquainting themselves with the language that defines life at Quicken Loans, a chance to spend a day watching the founder and the CEO “talk the walk.” So ask yourself, as you try to lead an organization, or a business unit, or a department: Have you developed a vocabulary of competition that helps everyone understand what makes your company or team special and what it takes for them to be at their best? Can you explain, in a language all your own, what separates you from the pack and why you expect to win? Even as you make sure to walk the talk, do you know how to talk the walk? This blog was reposted by Dilip Barot,

Why Chat is an Important Channel

Chat has proven to be a very important channel for those who want to offer superior customer service. For this reason, it is important for every business site owner to make sure they have live chat service on their site in order to reap the benefits that come with it. Some of the things that can be expected from this include: Concurrency Concurrency is usually a pretty huge deal for anyone who is looking to offer live chat as part of customer support. This implies that the customer service agents are able to handle more than one customer at a time; something which cannot really be done when working with customers through phone calls. This helps to reduce costs when working with this medium especially if you take into consideration things such as technical training, experience, as well as the complexity of the questions that are being answered. This way, the customer feels as though their needs are attended to immediately, something that helps with customer retention. First contact resolution Chat as a customer service platform enhances first contact resolution more so than other platforms such as email services. Clients are able to have their questions answered immediately in live chat versus the wait time of email. This also enhances purchasing decisions which helps the business’s bottom line. Offers great customer satisfaction When compared to email or voice channels, studies show that live chat service normally results in greater customer satisfaction; a huge plus for any kind of business. There are numerous reasons that lead to this such as the fact that customers feel their questions are answered much more quickly. This alone makes live chat the most efficient communication method. Customers are able to stay engaged with self service When utilizing chat as a customer service option, you will also be happy to learn that clients can stay engaged with self service. Self service geared towards solving a problem generally offers the fastest service. The chat agents usually play a huge role when it comes to providing the hyperlinks that can provide more information about the company branded web pages and community forums. This usually helps customers to learn about how to find additional details when it is needed in the future. The power of this cannot be underestimated when it comes to running an online business thus it should be harnessed to your advantage. Increases AOV (Average Order Value) Live chat can also help your business sell more allowing you to maximize profits. This allows the customer to really know what they are getting and gives them more confidence to purchase your goods or services. This also helps you to get feedback about your business which can help you make your services better to attract more people. Make sure you set up a functional and effective chat channel on your site if you would like to take full advantage of the platform to help your business.

Life in the Boardroom (Part Two)

A few weeks ago, we discussed the issue of how Life in the Boardroom has changed dramatically over the last decade. While many concerns remain the same for today’s executives, technology has ushered in a new set of challenges and concerns. One of the biggest changes and challenges facing executives today is Social Media. Social Media’s entrance into the market place has been like a tidal wave coming so fast and so furiously it can be over-whelming. While it has opened a new avenue for reaching customers, it can also be a PR nightmare when it comes to a negative experience. Staying ahead of the PR curve has always been a concern for executives and Social Media has become a huge piece of that mix. However, when used more “proactively” Social Media can be the greatest tool in the arsenal when it comes to managing the public relations aspect of business. What do we mean by “Proactively?” A recent article published in Ask a PR Expert sheds some light on that question. The Gallup Blog suggested that companies could better utilize social media by being “authentic,” “responsive,” and “compelling.” In other words, ditch the sales pitch and create an “open dialogue” with consumers; listen to what customers are saying and offer a timely response to negative feedback; and finally, create compelling content – that is, content that readers find valuable and not just promotional. (This article had some pretty interesting things to say about the human connection, which you can read here.) This was very welcomed information for us here at Etech. What this says to us is that people still need that “human connection” and Social Media can provide that when used proactively. Its very title “social” conveys interaction, connectedness and meaningful communication. So as we learn to use Social Media as a tool to build relationships, rather than just promote our business, we take a very proactive approach to this new aspect of public relations. As we approach Social Media in a more proactive rather than reactive way, that enables us to better manage the other modern-day challenge of the impact of Smartphones. Nothing has changed the way we do business, or life for that matter, more than the advent of Smartphones. No other technological device has changed our lives more than the Smartphone. We have instant communication anytime and anywhere. The immediacy that smartphones bring to life, can certainly be the source of much angst when it comes to social media, but as stated above, if we see these tools of Social Media and Smartphones as the means of building relationships, we will find that these new technologies can become our strongest ally. This blog was written by Dilip Barot, Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Etech Global Services, and founder of Creative Choice Group, headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Etech employs 3,000 team members across the US, India and Jamaica. If you would like to learn more about Etech, contact info@etechgs.com for more information.

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