We can’t deny that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic boosted the e-commerce sector from different regions of the world.
With record sales in the first half of 2021, Brazilian e-commerce earned R$53.4 billion. This value represents a growth of 31% when compared to the same period last year, according to data from the 44th edition of Webshoppers, a report on e-commerce prepared by Ebit | Nielsen.
By the end of the year, the country already had 1,59 million online stores, according to data from PayPal and BigDataCorp. These numbers represent 6% of Brazilian retail and the trend is to grow even more in the coming years.
The fact is that during the pandemic, Brazilian e-commerce saw its potential being more than explored. Shopping online has become part of the Brazilian’s routines and migrating to digital has become essential for business survival.
Today, however, the challenge is not only adapting to the new reality to ensure businesses competitiveness. Now, the worry of main CEOs is to become CX (Customer Experience) leaders and retain customers through personalized and respectful experiences.
The big question is: how to align the respect for the customers via electronic commerce, where everything is carried out with greater distance and without physical touch?
E-commerce and CX: Creating respectful experiences at digital channels
According to experts, electronic commerce is the sales channel that most provides possibilities for companies to build a knowledge base on consumer behavior and, from that, technologies that offer personalized experiences at the individual level. In the end, once customers register to make an online purchase, its information is stored in a cloud database, which makes e-commerce an excellent source of data to obtain insights into consumer habits and tastes.
For these professionals, e-commerce and CX should walk side by side and, knowing how to analyze data stored by the sales channel, there are infinite action possibilities that provide unique experiences for the consumer to convert into a lead (potential customer). Some examples are, dynamic showcases with products offered in a unique way to a customer, email actions and digital marketing campaigns with behavioral automation.
In addition, even customer service has the possibility to use integrated (omnichannel) systems, thus generating conversations that are also closer, since they are born from a whole correlation in the service with your purchase or behavior history, especially in e-commerce.
When questioned about this retail vision in the practice, experts agree when claiming that to keep a respectful relation, the store should look to go beyond the commercial side and put themselves in the customer’s shoes.
It is strategic, for example, for a dermo cosmetics store to carry quality content, like videos, articles and tips from dermatologists, experts and professionals for their customers. The same concern must exist with the products and services provided. According to experts, it is necessary to explain the functionalities, the differentials and the ways to use every product. All this makes the customer more confident and secure to make a next purchase.
It is also fundamental to optimize customer’s service response time and inform the customer about all steps until the customer receives the purchase. Because of that, these professionals consider it is essential to invest in solutions that can optimize this service and maintain this relationship of respect and trust with the consumer.
Digital experience is a trend during and after the pandemic
The pandemic has accelerated the digital transformation process in many businesses, mostly from the closing of physical sales channels during the quarantine period.
However, even with the gradual reopening, some businesses still deal with the preference of a portion of customers to remain in the virtual shopping experience, to the detriment of the shopping experience in physical stores.
During the pandemic outbreak, where the digital showed itself fundamental for the business survival, experts have concluded that, generally, a small portion of the companies was already ready to sustain the business via digital and the other was still getting ready for it. What draws attention is the fact that a significant portion suffered the most pressure, as they were unprepared to convert their businesses to the virtual environment.
Thus, this bigger part of companies presented great immaturity to provide the best experience for customers. Projects were unpacked and put to work on the fly.
However, even in the most chaotic scenario, many companies showed a great adaptation capacity, showing that flexibility for business digitization must continue even after the pandemic period.
For these professionals, digitalizing is not only about a punctual action, but above all, a movement of corporate culture, about the way one thinks about the business itself, which takes time to improve and gain maturity.
Obviously, there were many companies already prepared to serve the customers that migrated in great amounts to digital channels.
Experts explain that even them needed to do structural adaptations in its operations to be able to handle the exponential increase in sales in these channels.
Digitization expands the need for integration between digital channels, say experts
Since digital has presented a great growth, providing a satisfactory, unforgettable and mostly respectful experience is essential for a company to stand out from its competitors.
Generally, migrating for digital was the ideal solution for many businesses to stay alive during the pandemic. Sales teams with closed stores learned to relate and also sell through instant messaging channels, such as WhatsApp.
But the problem was not just about technology: the main challenge, in any movement of this type, it is more related to cultural issues of the business, which causes changes in the mentality and behavior of all teams, that are gradually adjusting not only to the reality of e-commerce, but also to a more omnichannel vision.
In this context, professionals claim that the digital channel not only can, but also should be respectful. To that, once again, investing in an integrated and omnichannel service is extremely important.
Omnichannel makes the way of thinking about the customer go beyond the walls of a store or the channel in which they are served. According to experts, it involves a series of experiences that are provided by each digital channel, but that do not compete with each other. On the contrary, these channels are complementary and can act in synergy (for example, buy on the website and pick up at the nearest store).
“Digitalization, more than expanding sales and customer service channels, creates a huge synergy between service teams and allows an increasingly agile and personalized service – and, consequently, will provide an incredible experience for the customer. Understanding these principles and applying them is the secret for success”, claims Antimo Gentile, CEO of DNK Infotelecom.
According to Gentile, systems integration is fundamental for any company that wishes to be referenced in CX. But, to do that, the systems need to communicate to each other to identify the same customer migrating from channels or experiences, as well as obtain relevant data about their behavior and history, so that the company can offer the best service to this customer.
To him, integrating smart technologies inside call centers and contact centers, like chatbots, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, is an excellent strategy to provide a personalized and humanized service for increasingly multi-connected customers.
E-commerce and CX: How to retain customers in such a volatile environment?
In the expert’s opinion, loyalty is born from the high value construction, coming from meaningful experiences that the brand builds for its consumers. From them, the memory of these positive experiences will make them return, promote and defend the brand naturally.
These professionals still highlight that in the construction of the best experience, three big “gears” are essential and, together, they need to turn in the correct rhythm.
Success
Having success means that all processes previously thought, happened according to expectations.
Of course, there are exceptions, unforeseen circumstances and third-party actions that can compromise the success of operations. However, it is necessary to have in mind that these unforeseen events should not be the rule, but lessons for a process of continuous improvement.
Emotion
It is fundamental that we add emotion in all moments, creating a more deep connection with the customer.
Calling the customer by its name – and even personalizing automated emails with the customers name, showing gratitude, including in the box that he received something that connects him with the brand, talking about the way he prefers to be treated, among other humanization actions, makes this gear spin very well.
Effort
Since e-commerce and CX should walk side by side for successful digital sales, making efforts to decrease frictions and solving problems as quickly as possible is essential for the customer to feel important and come back to look for your business.
The best experience is to act to reduce all possible friction, always asking ourselves when we observe our processes: ‘can I do this for the client instead of him having to do it?’. If the answer is yes, adjust your process to that and then, offer the simplest and most fluid relation that you can. The keyword for reducing service effort is anticipation.
DNK is number one in solutions focused in CX for call centers and contact centers
Aligned with the market trends and needs, DNK offers the best solutions for Call Center and Contact Center, being specialized in the development of high-performance products, solutions and services for companies in the area.
The use of last generation technologies together with a team of experienced professionals, took DNK to constantly innovate to transform the experience of customers and partners with their consumers.
DNK cherishes excellence in customer service, providing their partners with tools and platforms with innovative and customizable functions in order to guarantee a satisfactory and unforgettable Customer Experience.
DNK’s solutions are smart and provide performance reports in real-time, which helps leaders and operators to analyze KPIs and identify possible optimizations in customer service.
In addition, DNK constantly conducts satisfaction surveys to increasingly improve its service, based on the opinion of its customers.
With DNK’s products and services, customer service is made through an integrated omnichannel platform, which connects all service channels (WhatsApp, voice, web, chat, among others) with fast customer’s data and information recovery, in order to provide a complete and satisfactory management of customer journey with differentiated results, maximum security and in compliance with the standards required by the LGPD.
The company is recognized by the market and awarded by its solutions and successful cases. Winner of the “Best Self-service Solution” category in the XXI Modern Customer Award and champion of the silver trophy at the 2020 Cliente SA Award, in the “Leader in Innovation Strategy” category, in partnership with a customer, DNK understands that a well-served consumer is the secret to successful service.
