CRM company Kustomer has released a new report on customer experience for the upcoming holiday shopping period.
Kustomer said Prepping for the Holiday Season was developed in response to increasing customer expectations for immediate and omni-channel customer service. It cited data saying that $789.4 billion spent during last year’s holiday shopping season, despite the impact of the pandemic leading to limited staff, complex inquiries and other shopping issues.
Among the report’s key findings were that 68% of CX organisations said they saw a greater increase in inquiries during the 2020 holiday season as opposed to 2019. The report also found that:
- 85% of consumers that shopped more often in the past year plan on continuing to do so post-COVID-19, which customer said potentially heralded a bumper holiday shopping season
- At the same time, 46% said they were “heavily impacted” by returns – with 64% saying they saw more return inquiries compared to the previous year.
“Customer service is increasingly being thought of as a revenue driver and not a cost centre, especially during the holiday season, a time when even one negative customer interaction can have serious consequences for brands,” said Brad Birnbaum, founder and CEO of Kustomer. “We are pleased to offer today’s retailers the insights and best-in-class technology they need to meet, and hopefully exceed, the full spectrum of customer needs during the holiday shopping rush in a cost-effective manner.
Kustomer offers a CRM platform intended to give a single view of customer journeys and enable omni-channel communications. Conversation automation is a large part of its offering, building in tools such as AI and sentiment analysis. Its customers include the likes of Ring and Glossier.
“In particular, consultative support during gift giving season is essential to minimising returns, and delivering proactive messaging is key to informing customers of shipping delays and other logistical issues, preventing a deluge of service inquiries,” said Brad Birnbaum.
