Cover Story: 50 Best Tips of 2009

44. Let CSRs see inventory status in retail stores.
Integrate the inventory in your stores with catalog systems. “CSRs can see on the phone if there’s a SKU that matches in the store. Daily, we ship products that don’t show up in our warehouse inventory but are in our stores.”
Chris Bradley, Cuddledown of Maine
“10 Survival Tips From NEMOA,” Sept. 29, The ROI Report

45. Chatter about live chat.
Companies excel at live chat when they respond quickly, cut the drama (i.e., CSRs know how to cut to the chase) and communicate well when no CSRs are available so customers don’t keep holding on forever.
Amy Africa, Eight by Eight
“The Practical Social Media,” July, All About ROI

46. Use automated greetings with the voice of the actual rep who’ll answer the call.
When a call is routed to a particular rep, that rep’s recorded greeting gets played. This buys you time to get the customer’s information on your screen.
Jay Minnucci, Service Agility
“Agile or Clumsy: How Does Your Contact Center Rank?” April 7, Catalog Success: Tactics & Tips

47. Communicate among departments.
Work to align your merchandise planning process with marketing planning and campaigns. Include merchandise planning for print offers, features on your website’s homepage and email campaigns. The more you align these internal functions, the greater chance you’ll have to maximize demand and fulfillment by delivering the best product at the best price.
Ray Goodman, Direct Tech
Inventory Management column, “The New Math,” August, All About ROI

48. Know what makes customers’ hearts beat.
“When analyzing product performance levels, I refer to a balanced view of traditional catalog metrics, matchbacks and sales across channels. As customers become more channel agnostic, knowing what makes their heart beat and multiple left-brain metrics provide direction for our merchandising decisions.”
Chris Tso, Musician’s Friend
“Juggling Stats?” April, Catalog Success