Give the Gift of Live Customer Service

Did you know that holiday shopping through e-commerce sites has been steadily increasing by 3.5% each year? If you are an e-commerce retailer, then some of the hottest shopping days to boost yearly revenue have just flown by: Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Super Saturday, and Cyber Monday. And there are still 19 shopping days left until Christmas! So, the question is, are you fully equipped to handle the retail rush? And more importantly, how do you ensure that in a crowded e-commerce marketplace, customers will spend their holiday cash on your site and not on your competitors’? Specialty Answering Service has the answers!

First things first. Make a list, and check it twice.

You certainly have the potential to pull in your share of this season’s serious retail revenue – and the key is to be well-prepared. If you weren’t ready for the swell of Thanksgiving Day and post-turkey day shoppers, don’t lose your feathers. There is still time to get things going in the right direction. Here’s a list of a few e-commerce basics that you’ll need to review:

• Double check with your IT team to find out if your servers can handle increased site traffic. If not, then add a backup server, or consider cloud hosting services.
• Keep your web content simplified for fast page loading.
• Revisit the site layout. Is it inviting and easy to navigate?
• Advertise discounts front-and-center.
• See to it that you have the right selection of merchandise.

Did you ask Santa for stellar customer care?

Servers, web content, and product availability should obviously be pretty high up on your holiday checklist. But one thing that many e-commerce retailers neglect is paramount to anything you offer online – great customer care. Unless you make it easy for your customers to shop with you, they will click their way to your competitors faster than you can say jingle bells. That’s why offering exceptional customer service at every stage of the shopping experience is hugely important. Bonus: it’ll also land you a coveted spot on the Nice List.

In some cases, customers’ needs can be addressed via live web chat. However, not everyone is comfortable with live chat. Some people need the personalized service that only a phone call can accomplish. With that idea in mind, many e-commerce companies outsource their customer support to an answering service. That’s where Specialty Answering Service comes in!

‘Tis the season for SAS.

In a flooded online marketplace, even one bad review can damage your reputation. And unhappy customers mean that you can all but forget about positive word-of-mouth advertising. So, while you focus on major e-commerce elements such as merchandise selection and site layout, Specialty’s e-commerce call center will give you a hand with order taking, answering questions, providing shipping info, and processing payments. Our well-trained, live agents are friendly, reliable, and available 24/7/365 – because the Internet never sleeps!

With SAS on your team, customers will always be connected to a real person, not an impersonal, automated answering queue. Our 14-day free trial gives you an opportunity to see how a skilled call center can help you raise revenue at the most critical time of year for all retailers – when your bottom line goes from red to black. And after the trial period ends, we can continue to grow with your business and adjust your call handling as your needs change.

Even the North Pole outsources.

A sure way to increase customer loyalty and build trust in your brand is to make customer service excellence a focal point of your business plan. That’s why Santa uses SAS. (Afterall, even magic Elves need a hot cocoa break…) With 30 years’ experience in the call center industry, Specialty Answering Service is a one-stop-shop for your sales, service, logistics, and customer care needs. We are known for our innovative call center solutions and client-friendly technology that will keep you up-to-speed as each call rolls in. So, what are you waiting for?

Get started on your free trial today, and let SAS make your holiday season bright. For those National Lampoon’s fans out there, we leave you with an uplifting quote from Cousin Eddie. SAS: “That’s the gift that keeps on giving the whole year.”