Customer Service

When it comes to in-store shopping during the holiday season, opinions tend to be mixed. PwC's “Retailers and the Age of Disruption” survey found that while 68 percent of respondents intentionally browse products in-store before purchasing them online, 73 percent said they browse online and then purchase the products in-store. Consumers can’t decide which channel to…

Retailers have mastered the art of curating a superior customer experience up to the point of purchase, but new research indicates they're missing the mark when it comes to delivering the superior aftermarket experience today’s customer expects and, as importantly, they're missing out on new revenue opportunities. Ikea's recent acquisition of TaskRabbit, a sharing economy…

The holiday shopping season is upon us, and its year-over-year transformation cannot be overstated. Twenty years ago, the ramp up to Black Friday looked vastly different than it does today — Cyber Monday didn’t even exist! — and that's entirely due to the ever-evolving technologies that are shaping our digital landscape and market demands. For…

The way customers interact with organizations is changing. When consumers use certain social channels and platforms in their everyday lives, they expect companies to interact with them on their terms and on their channels. Historically, while many consumers used to, and still do, use the phone to reach a company if they have a problem,…

There's nothing more important than building up confidence for your brand. However, it won’t happen fast and it won’t happen easily. It will likely take some incremental investments, but it doesn’t need to break the bank. Here a few ways that will help: Authenticity One of the most important elements of building confidence is authenticity.…

There’s nothing more important than building up confidence for your brand. However, it won’t happen fast and it won’t happen easily. It will likely take some incremental investments, but it doesn’t need to break the bank. Here a few ways that will help: Authenticity One of the most important elements of building confidence is authenticity. […]

To really understand the customer journey, you’ve got to take it yourself. That’s why we stepped in consumers’ shoes for our Global Mystery Shopping Study. We walked through eight different shopping scenarios with 50 global brands to learn where they're succeeding and where they’re falling short. As mystery shoppers, our team simulated purchasing products, researched…

Today more than ever, retailers are being forced to take their focus on customer satisfaction to extraordinary levels. The standard for customer satisfaction is being driven higher by companies like Amazon.com and its large retail competitors as these companies move from a focus on “customer satisfaction” to “customer obsession.” This obsession has made factors such…

Wal-Mart is throwing 20,000 parties in its stores across the country in an attempt to attract more holiday shoppers. According to a company press release, the parties will take place on Nov. 4, Dec. 2 and Dec. 16, and will include 165,000 in-store toy demos, visits from Santa and other activities. The Nov. 4 party will…

If you want to be a showstopper in your market, then you must be innovative. Not only innovative — you must WOW prospective customers or clients with your amazing ingenuity. To be a showstopper, you must amaze people — not only amaze them with what you're offering them, but also amaze them with how you're…