Why Virtual Assistants will be Key to Getting through the Holiday Shopping Season on Top

Photo credit

Black Friday and Cyber Monday have kicked off the holiday shopping season this year with a bang. While it was reported that the number of shoppers increased from last year, retailers saw a drop in the average amount of money that was spent - approximately $10 less. (money.cnn.com) This drop could be attributed to a number of things. 1. More people reported all their purchases were sale items, 2. A higher percentage of people bought items that were that were 60% off and higher, (IMAGE) and 3. Businesses were ill prepared (specifically online) for the massive amount of shoppers. According to Forbes, lots of big brands' websites were experiencing server issues that couldn't handle the volume of people. 

Photo credit

"Consumers faced a variety of technical problems on Black Friday and through the so-called “Turkey Five” (the five days after Thanksgiving). Major retailer sites, including Macy’s, QVC, Walmart, Victoria’s Secret and Newegg, all experienced outages, due at least in part to server overload due to enormous boost in traffic. The Gap, Inc. family (Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic and Athletica) was offering a massive 50% off site-wide deal fell victim to the same fate. Other retailers, such as Williams-Sonoma, saw a significant decrease in their page load time—not a great occurrence when buyers are in a hurry to empty their online carts and get on to the next sale." (Forbes)

While things like this are bound to happen,it did not effect the number of online users which continues to grow each year. From last year to this year, approximately 5 million more users were shopping online (about $3.34 billion came from online sales), while brick and mortar store shoppers decreased by 3 million people this year. Out of the online shoppers, $1.2B came from mobile purchases. This is a huge increase from previous years. 

Creating the ultimately customer experience online (via any device) is important to attract new customers and retain existing ones. A major trend this year that consumers are adopting (and preferring) is Virtual Assistants (VA's). While having a VA all year round is a good practice, VA's are also valuable to have during peak seasons as well, such as the holidays. Being able to position your Virtual Assistant as a way for consumers to get quick answers to pre-sales and post-sales questions will reduce the number of inquiries to live agents/employees and increase customer satisfaction. Check out this white paper showing how some of our customers have leveraged their Virtual Assistants during peak seasons: http://www.nohold.com/manage-traffic-spikes-better-with-self-service.html

And it is not just large brands that can benefit. Small and medium businesses, even little personal shops on eBay or Etsy can have a Virtual Assistant to eliminate some of the holiday stress. Visit albertai.com to learn more about creating a Virtual Assistant (bot) quickly and easily, no programming skills required. 

Cheers!

Black Friday: 4 Tips to Avoiding a Customer Service Nightmare this Holiday Season

Ready or not, the 2015 holiday season is among us! While it may be the happiest time of the year for some, it can quickly turn into a nightmare for customer service professionals if the right measures aren't taken to ensure smooth sailing through the season. 

Some companies have been preparing for this rush since the end of summer, and rightfully so. 2015 is expected to be the "most connected holiday shopping season - ever. Almost half of holiday shopping occured online" (thinkwithgoogle.com). "In 2014, Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday set new (online) sales records with 1.33 billion and $2.4 billion spent. This number is only expected to rise for 2015" (shortstack.com) We can't forget about the growing trend of Cyber Monday either. Check out the infogrpahic below sharing 2014 Cyber Monday results.

Photo Credit: pfsweb.com

These couple months are the biggest time of year for businesses to see growth in every aspect of their company. "Ad impressions get a 50 percent boost, [Click-through rates] CTRs skyrocket 100 percent, direct traffic grows 150 percent, average order values rise 30 percent and conversion rates increase 60 percent" (Entrepreneur).

With the expected spike in traffic during this season, consumers already anticipate long wait times and rude people; and companies witness customer satisfaction scores drop. But what if there was a way to keep up with the increase in demand AND maintain customer satisfaction, though? World-class brands have accomplished it, and with the right recipe so can you. Here are some tips to help your company continue to hit top sales all season, while (doing the most important thing) keeping customers happy. 

Tip #1 Planning ahead- As mentioned earlier, it is always helpful to get a head start so you aren't frantically trying to get everything set up in a short amount of time.

Photo Credit: capitolmediasolutions.com

Tip #2 Hiring enough help- Making sure you are not under staff during the rush season has a few positive affects. (a) customers don't have to wait for busy agents, and (b) agents don't feel rushed and can help customers completely through their issues. It's a win-win situation. Happy employees = happy customers. 

Tip #3 Providing helpful resources-  With the influx in contact volume coupled with the increase in seasonal agents, proper tools and resources should be made available to agents. One resource many call centers are equipping their agents with is a Virtual Assistant, promoting efficiency and consistency to new and seasoned agents. 

Tip #4 Self-Service- As a common theme throughout this blog, mobile and eCommerce are playing a huge role in the way people are interacting with your company. Online support holds true as well. Intuitive/ diagnostic self-service options should be readily available and easily accessible to consumers via the web.

Example of Interactive self-service solution (Virtual Assistant)

How is your company preparing for the holidays? Are you taking a different approach this year to account for the web? 

For more information on how Virtual Assistants help to alleviate some of the stress during peak seasons, please read "How Stand Out Brands Weather the Storm During Critical Spikes in Traffic." 
www.nohold.com

How Self-Service Can Increase Revenue and Customer Satisfaction this Holiday Season

Photo Credit: newyork.cbslocal,com

While the holidays are a time filled with love and joy, they can also be one of the most hectic times of the year. Yes, I am talking about the infamous holiday shopping experiences. No parking, long lines, and crazy crowds are something everyone can agree does not put cheer into the holiday season.

While shopping for consumers is hectic on its own, the companies are feeling the holiday pressure as well. Large and small businesses alike must strengthen customer service options to prepare for the increased volume of sales. Not just for the initial sale, but also for the customer service, care, support and overall customer engagement that follows.

According to an article from salesforce.com, one tip for your company’s customer service to conquer the holiday rush is to “improve self-service support.” Since companies can already predict the high volume of customer interactions (and the short fuses they have by the end of a long day), implementing a web-based, Virtual Customer Assistant (VCA) for consumers to find the answers to questions on their own terms will take some of the load off, while making consumers happy they didn't have to spend even more time waiting on hold or getting passed around to different representatives.

VCA’s aren't just useful for support questions though. For example, many electronics require product registration. The VCA can quickly offer guidance through the process, while answering any questions that may arise, and/or cross-sell other products/services when appropriate.

Mobile shopping is another major factor effecting companies this year. “If it wasn't official last year, it will be this year – holiday shoppers are eager to shop online for gifts and other needs. According to a survey, 56 percent plan to shop online, up from 51.5 percent last year and the most in the survey’s 13- year history. Additionally, the average person plans to do 44.4 percent of their shopping online, the most since NRF first asked to 2006.” (National Retail Federation) Providing customers with the tools they need to make the holiday shopping experience easier is key to increasing sales, but moreover, increasing loyalty.

How is your company enhancing self-service and engagement options this year? Does your strategy incorporate usability for mobile shoppers?

We hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving weekend. Enjoy!

www.nohold.com     

Tips Tuesday: Send Your Kids Back to School with the Best Suited Device for Them

As August is coming to a close, friends and family are trying to catch their last 'fun in the sun' moments before summer officially ends, and school begins. In light of it being back-to-school month, and having the added stresses that come along with that, I wanted to share a resourceful article with great information about picking the right device that fits your youngsters needs. The article is titled "How to Pick the Right Back-to-School Computer for Your Kid." Check it out to see some suggestions regarding which computers are best for kids of different ages. 

Photo Credit: www.imore.com

Not only is picking the right device important, but choosing the right support to go along with that technology is also key. With so many consumers turning to mobile and portable devices, the best way to respond to troubleshooting, diagnosing problems, and how-to support questions is to utilize light-weight and intuitive self-help options such as Virtual Agents. 

Since the kids of this generation are growing up in a technology driven society (also referred to as the App Generation), it is inevitable that they will utilize their devices in school settings. Parents need to know how to pick the right one, and teachers need to learn how to incorporate the kids identity with technology and use it in their curriculum. "Born after 1990, members of this generation have been surrounded and immersed to an unprecedented degree by technology: laptops, tablets, smartphones, handheld devices of every size and shape. Unlike so-called digital immigrants, they cannot remember a less technological era; indeed, unlike every previous generation, most of them do not know what it is like the be lost" (The App Generation: How Technology is Changing Us). 

What devices work best for your family's needs? Do they like the kid-friendly touchscreens or the more advanced software for performance?
www.nohold.com

Throwback Thursday: How Window Shopping Has Changed In the 21st Century.

Happy Throwback Thursday!

In recent years, window shopping has taken on a new meaning. It no longer means that you physical need to be at the store to find out what the great deals are. You can virtually be there and find the best prices without having to travel from shop to shop, which takes hours! 
Have you ever gone shopping for something and used your Smartphone as a tool to help you find the best deals? I know I have. Just recently, I was shopping for a TV; I started at Costco and examined their prices, and then, as I was casually walking around, I was looking online at Best Buy's company website seeing what kind of deals I can get over there. Unfortunately for Costco, I ended up doing my business with Best Buy because I found a better deal for what I was looking for with my Smartphone.

I’m bringing this up because I came across an article that actually gave a name to what I (and many other Americas) do instead of the traditional window shopping. They call it showrooming, being in a store and looking at their competitors’ website on your Smartphone, shopping for better deals. To me, this concept is genius. I mean we are in the era of technology, so why not use it to conveniently save some money? 

Companies are becoming very upset when they find out that they are losing business to a competitor because their consumers were able to hop on their phones and quickly compare prices. Stores are trying to figure out ways to combat showrooming. In the 1to1 Media article linked above, they mention stores charging fees for people who come into there stores "just to look."                                

To say the least, people were not thrilled with these signs at all. In my opinion, this store will probably lose more customers because of these signs, than because of showrooming. 

Instead of coming up with ridiculous ways to stop people from showrooming, experts suggest companies to embrace this phenomenon and use it as incentive to work a little harder to make sure consumers make purchases and also, come back to their store. Providing EXCEPTIONAL customer service is a great way to keep customers from leaving your store to go to another. Whether we like to believe it or not, people base a majority of their decision on emotion. They remember the experience they had and the feeling they got when shopping in a store and will likely come back if these feelings were positive. 

Another way, is to get showroomers to leave the store they are at and come to yours by having an attractive AND effective website. Seth Godin wrote a blog called “Q&A: What Works for Websites Today?” He shared a list of questions that should be addressed when creating a good website. He stated, “But I stand with a series of questions that will expose the challenges of any website (and the problems of the organization that built it):

• Who is this site for?
• How did they find out about it?
• What does the design remind them of?
• What do you want them to do when they get here?
• How will they decide to do that, and what promises do you make to cause that action?

The only reason to build a website is to change someone. If you can't tell me the change and you can't tell me the someone, then you're wasting your time.” Create a website that works for your business...it is one of your biggest resources for gaining customers and increasing customer loyalty. 

How do Virtual Agents (VA's) fit into this equation? Simple. SalesAdvisor™ , a VA can give your company one up on the competition. Having SalesAdvisor™ implemented on your company website can help customers find what they are looking for easily and answer any questions they may have about your products, all while cross-selling. Since people are using their phones to access your website, it is a great idea to have someone/thing on their assisting the customer. SalesAdvisor™ can also be used as a tool for employees to provide even better customer service. Maybe implementing the VA on a company tablet? 

How to Increase Sales by Tracking Four Specific Problems - by noHold Inc. from noHold, Inc.

The term “window shopping” has changed throughout the 21^st century because of the convenience of mini-computers in the palm of our hand, 24/7. Point being, we should embrace what technology brings to us, not fight it. Challenge ourselves to adapt to the times and continue innovation. 

Cheers.