Research shows that still 59% of Twitter users are not receiving any response
Brands understand that social media can support their customer care programme if it's well-resourced and they have a clear strategy according to this Social Media Customer Service 101 infographic from West Interactive which focuses on Twitter customer service. It's working well for leading brands such as Nike and you may have seen Nationwide are promoting Twitter for customer support on their current TV campaign in the UK. Though how good are brands at providing a good user experience across their social media channels as '17% of consumers expect this media as a channel for responding to their customer service questions'.
Companies who are succeeding with social media as a channel for managing their customer service…
50% of customer service representatives disagree
Customers naturally have high expectations when it comes to customer service and will easily switch brands, so it's all well and good having a good workflow and technologies but 'customer service' is paramount and the 'human contact' and making it easy for online shoppers to quickly get responses to their questions.
Research on multichannel customer service backs this up, and consumers are still influenced by not only response times, but also the tone of voice and the information they are receiving.
Voice automation services (IVR) is popular amongst brands, but is this from the company's point of view to cut down on call time with a live agent rather than for the benefit of the customer!. Even customer service representatives aren't impressed with internal technologies and 75% of consumers are dissatisfied as ' it takes too long to get the info they…
New research shows the popularity of Online Customer Service including Live Chat, Social Media and Email
Improving customer service can be the answer for many companies to stand out in the crowd, as they trade in competitive environments with increasing customer expectations. Omnichannel customer care is being recognised by retailers, as the number of customer communication channels are increasing, as consumers are buying products and services. Consumers are contacting companies via traditional methods of the phone, in-store face to face contact and via social media such as Tweeting and Online chats.
What is the preferred method of contact for goods bought in-store?
Retailers know that customer service at every touchpoint, regardless of the communication method, must provide a positive experience every time so they don't lose sales or damage their brand. But which are the customer care channels they need to offer and how do they compare?
The research highlights the…
Diners are expecting Personalisation, Rewards and Discounts in return for their loyalty
This research shows how Loyalty schemes and freebies can pay off for new restaurants or bars, and for established food and beverage companies focusing on customer retention. There are also some specific tips on email, mobile and social media marketing.
Coniq's research highlights the pay back businesses receive from loyalty programs, how rewards and incentives are expected by today's diners and what encourages them to return hungry for more.
This may seem second nature for some businesses, though the majority of UK restaurants are missing out as they still don’t offer a loyalty program, and customers would be 2x likely to return with a loyalty card.
Findings on loyalty habits showed that '80% of 1000 customers would return if they were offered a loyalty scheme’ and ‘70% of your social followers expect rewards.'
Coniq's CEO Ben Chesser said 'We have certainly seen…
Plus techniques that can boost retailer loyalty
This new research from Emarsys explores the well-known thinking in marketing that it costs a lot to acquire a new customer, yet many will make a single purchase and not purchase again. A repeat purchase, on the other hand, costs far less than acquiring a new customer, estimated at between 4 and 7 times less.
Despite this 'truism', many brands are failing to develop true loyalty according to this research. Although brand marketers talk about loyalty, this research show that few consumers have true loyalty. The implications? Measure loyalty to understand how your brand rates and the factors that drive or prevent loyalty.
What's the reason behind this lack of loyalty? Well, marketers need to research this for their business, but it seems that poor communications is one reason...
If we get our email marketing or other…
Perhaps it’s customer engagement
There’s a huge irony in marketing now - I feel - one that ignores understood, proven mantras of direct, or one-to-one, marketing stretching back decades.
“Your future prospects resemble your best customers, and that’s the place you should start.”
Holger Schulze, vice president of eG Innovations
Put existing customers (consumers) first in marketing planning
It doesn’t matter how advanced modern marketing gets, how intelligent our advertising, our targeting and re-targeting, our key-phrase strategies in search and our use of social and mobile advertising. Marketing success and commercial growth rely on strategic thinking and most importantly begin with customer retention and loyalty before acquisition. Yet how much marketing spend do we see launched into cold reach and acquisition compared to the spend volumes in how we add value to our customers and leads? Is it possible then that we’re over-spending on acquisition and underspending on the sustainable opportunities in customer engagement and…
New security vulnerability potentially “bigger than Heartbleed” - are you prepared?
Importance: [rating=3]
Recommended link: Register summary of security vulnerability
We wouldn’t typically report security vulnerabilities to our readers since they are more relevant for an IT audience to act on, but after the Heartbleed security bug from April 2014, many mainstream news outlets are reporting this, so you may well be asked about what you’re doing about it to protect customer data!
Remember that Heartbleed was linked to personal data breaches at Community Health Systems, a US hospital group that manages more than 200 hospitals, Canada’s tax agency, UK parenting website Mumsnet and the developers of Call of Duty...
What is Shellshock?
Shellshock is a vulnerability to systems within the ‘bash’ shell processor which runs on different versions of UNIX/Linux. Since Apple OS X uses a derivative of this it could cause developers…
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May 20, 2014
Best practices for managing CRM implementation projects to avoid the common sources of failure
CRM projects are well-known for high failure rates since there are many different obstacles along the way that can derail the initiative. In this article I will look at some of the typical challenges and ask experts how problems can be avoided.
Some of these obstacles to projects occur as a direct result of poor preparation. For example, in a study of over 500 individuals involved in CRM projects by Forrester Research, two-fifths (40%) reported that some of the biggest challenges they encountered related to CRM strategy, such as a lack of clearly defined objectives.
Other CRM obstacles are tools-related. In the Forrester study, a third (35%) reported that they had experienced challenges related to technology deficiencies,…
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May 7, 2014
Which measures are best for evaluating CRM programmes?
There is certainly no shortage of things to measure in the world of customer relationship management. With modern CRM systems straddling multiple departments, disciplines and channels, it’s a number crunching nightmare.
'CRM technology can deliver benefit in lots of different ways,' explains Richard Boardman, founder of Mareeba Consulting. 'You might use it for lead management purposes to help you increase the number of leads you get and the percentage that you convert to end business. It can be used to help you manage your existing customers more effectively and sell more to them. It can be used to help you with your marketing communications or improving the quality and speed of fulfilment of your products and services or streamlining your support operation. It really can be used in lots and lots of different ways.'
Indeed, it may even be used to do…
New research shows consumer preferences for online service and experience
LivePerson carried out a survey with over 6,000 consumers to understand their online consumer behaviour and expectations of the digital online experience from an organisation. Although they are known as an online customer service chat service the report covers broader perceptions than this.
Did you know that a consumer will wait no more than 76 seconds to receive help online? - a small window of opportunity to retain the customer.
The full report can be downloaded from Liveperson's site. Here is an overview of the four key themes from the findings:
1. Do not be complacent! Consumers will switch brands for a better experience - 48% are still experiencing problems navigating websites and 33% can not find a customer service contact.2. Create trust and loyalty with your brand Consumers still expect the personal touch and to speak on…
