“Shopping” used to aptly describe a process in which one hopped in the car (or on other means of transportation) and physically wandered a store or a mall. Today, though, it can signify a variety of in-person or virtual processes, or even a combination of them. Shoppers in a retail store may seek live assistance by chat while they’re browsing products. They may watch video reviews or compare prices to those in a competitive store. Whatever the journey the customer chooses, retailers must be prepared to support them.
Cloud contact center and unified communications solutions provider 8x8, Inc. recently announced 8x8 Sales Assist for retailers. Combining components of 8x8 Contact Center, 8x8 CPaaS and 8x8 Work, the retail solution provides connected journeys across self- and assisted-service use cases while enabling retailers to improve customer satisfaction, according to the company.
Reflecting the multichannel shopping experience that is preferred by so many consumers, 8x8 Sales Assist allows retailers‘ customers to engage through their channel of choice, including web chat, bot, social media, SMS, email, or voice, for faster, easier shopping experiences and more convenient support resolution. The goal of the solution, according to 8x8, is to reduce long call/contact queues; minimize missed or dropped calls; provide agents with access to up-to-date customer information; increase first contact resolution rates; escalate customer support issues to video for faster, more efficient resolution; and retain the best contact center talent, reducing staff churn and recruitment costs.
“Ensuring customers can find and purchase items easily and employees can efficiently and quickly resolve customer issues is a top priority for retailers,” said Hunter Middleton, Chief Product Officer at 8x8, Inc., in a statement. “8x8 Sales Assist provides a seamless experience for a connected workforce, delivering agents the information they need to service customers, all through a single interface, to improve first contact resolution. Ultimately, this is about maximizing every interaction, both for the customer and the retailer – every missed interaction is a missed opportunity.”
The components of 8x8 Sales Assist are delivered through the 8x8 XCaaS (Experience Communications as a Service) integrated cloud contact center and unified communications platform, which includes cloud contact center, business phone, video meetings, team chat, and SMS capabilities.
Edited by
Alex Passett
