Managing Customer Data & Communication: HoduSoft’s Answer to E-commerce Call Center Struggles
From daily-use commodities such as groceries and personal care items to luxury goods such as designer apparel, footwear, and accessories, e-commerce websites are one-stop solutions for a majority of people.
In the digital age, as more and more people entrust e-commerce companies with their personal and financial information, effective management of customer data and communication becomes crucial for e-commerce call centers.
If you put yourself in the shoes of an online shopper, you can better realize how important management of customer data and communication is for an e-commerce organization. Just imagine, one fine day you wake up to the news of a massive data breach in your favorite online store.
When you try to contact the customer care number, you get no response. This won’t just make you anxious about your personal and financial data but also angry. You would never want to put your customers in that situation. Right?
That’s why it’s extremely critical to manage customer data and communication as efficiently as possible.
At HoduSoft, we engineer specialized, sophisticated, and reliable contact center software solutions and omnichannel CX suites to enable e-commerce companies manage their customers’ data and communication.
In this blog post, we have described the challenges e-commerce call centers face when it comes to managing customer data and communication, the expectations of contemporary customers from e-commerce companies, what e-commerce companies can do to manage customer data and communication, and how our solutions can help e-commerce companies in managing customer data and communication.
Struggles E-commerce Call Centers Face
E-commerce call centers face a wide range of struggles when it comes to efficient management of customer calls and data. Here are some challenges they face:
1. Huge Call Volumes
E-commerce call centers deal with large volumes of customer calls starting from placement of orders to delivery status. One thing that makes the situation more challenging is unlike traditional retail brands, e-commerce companies are not restricted by geographical boundaries. They get calls from customers from different regions, states, and even countries. That adds up to the call volume.
2. Data Overload
Call centers handle vast amounts of customer data daily. Without the right tools, it can be challenging to organize all customer data. When e-commerce companies are inefficient with data then it results in poor customer service.
3. Proper Data Security
Due to the sheer volume of customer data they store, e-commerce call centers face massive data security threats. Some data are sensitive in nature as they involve customers’ financial information. If those types of data ever get leaked, then it would not only result in a lack of trust but also huge financial loss in the form of lawsuits and repatriation.
4. Integration of Channels
In today’s time, a majority of people are smartphone users. Empowered by high-speed internet, most of them prefer to communicate using a wide range of communication channels such as video conferencing, email, live chats, text messages, instant messages, social media, and more.
When e-commerce call centers don’t integrate their communication channels, they fail to provide a unified customer experience. When communication channels are not integrated, it results in fragmented customer profiles and poor customer service. For e-commerce companies, that’s a sure-shot recipe for disaster!
5. Long Wait Times
This is one of the biggest challenges for e-commerce companies. As most e-commerce companies struggle with massive incoming call volumes, it also has an impact on customers’ waiting time. In today’s time, nine out of every ten people will hang up their phones if they have to wait for more than two minutes. In peak hours, the waiting time is often longer than two minutes.
6. Communication Breakdown
Many e-commerce companies struggle with communication breakdowns when their call centers face issues such as delayed responses and miscommunication. It can prove to be extremely costly and damaging for e-commerce companies. It not only makes customers abandon the website but also reduces agents’ productivity and reduces employees’ morale.
7. Agent Training and Performance
Let’s be honest, training call center agents is not as simple as it seems. It not only needs organizations to commit a substantial amount of money and resources but also time and effort. Many e-commerce companies find it challenging to make that investment. In a majority of cases, that’s not their fault. They simply cannot afford to do so.
How The Right Call Center Solution Can Enhance E-commerce Sales?
Stats Highlighting What Customers Want from E-commerce Companies
When it comes to buying from an e-commerce company, contemporary customers are highly discerning, selective, and assertive. They not only want high-quality goods and services from online stores but also nothing less than the best customer service and after-sales support. Here are some stats that show the high expectations of customers from e-commerce companies:
1. Diverse Options for Communication
According to Zendesk, 40 percent of consumers say that multiple options for communicating are the most important feature of a company’s customer service department.
2. More Personalization
According to Netcore, 96 percent of retailers face obstacles when personalizing their e-commerce experience, such as limited IT capacity and difficulty aligning internal teams.
3. More Self-Service Options
According to Salesforce, 61 percent of customers prefer to use self-service to resolve simple issues.
4. Superior CX
As per a recent stat, three out of every five respondents said that they wouldn’t mind paying a minimum of five percent more in exchange for a good customer experience.
5. Faster Response
A new study conducted by Emplifi revealed that more than half of respondents expect to get their question answered within one hour of posting it on an e-commerce company’s digital channels (website and social media).
6. Understanding of Customers’ Needs
According to research findings, more than three-fourths of respondents said that they want e-commerce companies to understand their needs, including types of payment options offered and speed of site loading.
What E-commerce Companies Can Do to Manage Customer Data and Communication?
When it comes to managing customer data and communication, e-commerce companies can use multi-pronged strategies to achieve their objectives. Some of them are:
1. Leverage the Right Technology
To quote Canadian-British blogger and journalist Cory Doctorow, “If you use the right technology, it could give you power and privacy.” That’s just what e-commerce companies need to understand. Sophisticated communication technologies such as contact center software and omnichannel CX suite are some solutions that can work like a charm for e-commerce companies.
2. Invest in Robust Security
American security expert, novelist, and former government official Richard Alan Clarke famously said, “If you spend more on coffee than on IT security, you will be hacked. What’s more, you deserve to be hacked.” E-commerce companies need to keep this in mind and do whatever it takes to ensure that their communication systems and technology platforms are secure and hack proof.
3. Train Customer Service Agents
Bestselling author and marketing consultant Roy H. Williams rightly said, “Training is not an expense, but an investment in human capital.” That’s so true for e-commerce companies. E-commerce call centers must train customer service agents to handle sensitive customer information carefully as well as personalize communication as per the available data.
4. Automate Customer Service Process
One of the best ways e-commerce companies can manage customer data and communication is by automating customer service processes. They can leverage interactive voice response (IVR) systems and artificial intelligence (AI) powered chatbots to automate customer service processes.
5. Provide Omnichannel Communication
In a time when a majority of people use smartphones and expect omnichannel communication from businesses, it would be prudent for e-commerce companies to unify a wide range of channels into a single platform. E-commerce call centers must upgrade to handle communication from all communication channels such as audio calls, video calls, text messages, instant messages, emails, social media, and more.
6. Leverage Cutting-edge Analytics Tools
As noted management guru Peter F. Drucker said, “If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.” Analytics tools are extremely useful to measure key performance indicators (KPIs). By using the right analytics tools, e-commerce companies can find out if their data management initiatives are in sync with the desired results.
7. Regular Audits and Updates
Regular audits are necessary to ensure smooth and consistent business operations. As the popular saying goes, “Timely audit can function as a catalyst for real improvement.” E-commerce companies must run regular audits and update their customer service operations from time to time.
How HoduSoft Can Help E-commerce Companies Manage Customer Data and Communication
In today’s era, taking a cookie-cutter approach to designing communication systems for organizations across all industries is a recipe for disaster. The needs of one industry can hugely vary from another. So how can you expect desired results from a one-size-fits-all communication system?
That’s why HoduSoft specially engineers its contact center software and omnichannel CX suite solutions for e-commerce companies. Here is what you can expect from HoduSoft’s e-commerce contact center solutions.
1. Automated Features
HoduSoft’s e-commerce contact center solutions come equipped with a wide range of automated features such as Interactive Voice Response (IVR), AI-powered chatbots, and virtual assistants.
IVRs are the first point of contact for customers and e-commerce companies need to present appropriate menus and options to customers so that they get connected to the right agents. AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants can work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and provide round-the-clock availability.
2. CRM Integration
HoduSoft’s e-commerce contact center solutions come with cutting-edge customer relationship management (CRM) integration capabilities.
This integration enables e-commerce call center agents to access customer data from various sources such as purchase history, interaction logs, and preferences. When agents have a unified view of customer data, they are better able to provide personalized service.
3. Omnichannel Communication
Hodusoft’s e-commerce contact center solutions come equipped with omnichannel communication capabilities. That enables e-commerce contact centers to integrate audio calls, video calls, emails, chat, text messages, instant messages, and social media interactions into a single platform.
In today’s time, offering omnichannel communication is extremely essential because a majority of people are smartphone users. They prefer to contact businesses using a wide range of channels and expect omnichannel communication from them. By supporting omnichannel communication, you can empower your customers to contact your e-commerce contact center using their preferred communication channel.
4. Skill-based Call Routing
Hodusoft’s intelligent skill-based call routing system uses algorithms to direct calls to the most suitable agents based on their skills, availability, and previous interactions with the customer.
When customers are connected to the right agent, they are able to get their issues and queries resolved in the very first instance of contact.
5. Robust Security Features
Hodusoft’s e-commerce contact center solutions are replete with robust security features such as multi-factor authentication, two-step verification, access control, and more.
When e-commerce call centers are fortified with robust security features, they are safe from data breaches and cyberattacks.
Taking Everything Into Consideration
For many e-commerce companies, managing customer data and communication is a herculean task. They face several unique challenges that make it difficult for them to streamline the huge volley of customer calls.
In order to handle the incoming calls, e-commerce call centers need to leverage specialized solutions tailored exclusively for them.
At HoduSoft, we understand how difficult it can be to manage such a huge volume of customer information and ensure seamless interactions. Our contact center solutions are engineered to meet the needs of e-commerce companies of all sizes.
If you want to know more about our e-commerce contact center solutions and omnichannel CX suite or book a free demo, feel free to contact us today.
