Customer Service

Generative artificial intelligence is making waves across the retail industry, from consumers using the technology to inspire purchasing decisions to retail brands employing chatbots to improve customer service and experience. While chatbots have been around for quite some time, with the advent of generative AI, there’s been a huge revolution over the last 18 months…

Customer service has crossed a threshold thanks to the rapid ascent of generative artificial intelligence. Retailers can tap the powers of generative AI to automate internal and external customer service processes, improve and personalize experiences, and elevate problem-solving. However, integrating generative AI into customer service processes requires careful planning and implementation. Decision-makers must develop a…

Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos said in 1999 that what matters most to him is providing the best experience he can to his customers. In the same interview, he added “If there’s one thing that Amazon.com is about, it’s obsessive attention to the customer experience end to end.” Decades later, Amazon never wavered from its commitment…

In the last few decades, the market has witnessed a gradual power shift between brands and consumers. Previously, brands would work on their ideas and develop a product or service that they believed would help customers. Now, brands are taking notes and working on innovating and devising products and services that customers believe in. By…

April marked 50 years since the first mobile phone call. Since then, mobile devices have matured to become the remote control for our lives, our primary point of digital interaction. Most desktop activity has moved to mobile, providing consumers the ability to instantaneously search the web, shop for goods and services, track online orders, find…

The holidays are filled with myths, misconceptions and half-truths. We’ve all heard them: “Santa is real,” “I love this heinous sweater,” or “I’m not sure where that last cookie went.” When it comes to the retail industry, myths about customer experience (CX) are some of the most pervasive. During the holiday season, it’s critical for…

Generative artificial intelligence isn't a trend, but rather a profound global paradigm shift in the conversational universe. The more than 100 million Open AI users signifies a record-breaking adoption rate in the tech industry. AI experts agree that while this isn't a technological revolution in its own right, it’s definitely an adoption one. For the…

In an increasingly omnichannel and digital landscape, shoppers expect quick and dynamic communication from brands they engage with. Unfortunately, a significant portion of retailers are falling short in meeting this basic expectation.  At my company, SOCi, we recently conducted our fifth annual audit of nearly 600 U.S. chain retailers. We found that 54 percent of all…

Small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are often called “the lifeblood of the American economy.” A 2022 GOBankingRates survey found multiple reasons consumers patronize SMBs: elevated employee-consumer interactions, niche product and service offerings, supporting the local community, and more. However, despite their love for SMBs, customers still expect these businesses to meet their evolving preferences, and…

Broadly speaking, a customer effort score measures how easy or difficult it is for a customer to resolve a given issue with a company’s customer service team. Have you ever waited your turn to speak to a customer service representative, only to be transferred to another agent? Have you ever waited on hold so long…