Inbound Sales Calls in the Retail World: Where they come from and what to do with them
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Retail Todays The vast world of retail can range from a big-box merchant, to an e-commerce company to a small local business. It can be extremely competitive and is ever-changing due to the applicable dynamic market and constant advances in product design. Customer service is a top notch priority and managing a workforce comes with its own tribulations. Not to mention, the increasing presence of technology in retail today. The latest trend retailers are focusing on is how to best balance the physical and digital retail channels and how to utilize them to drive inbound sales traffic. There are a number of forecasters predicting the end of the retail platform as we know it. Cynics are practically painting pictures of wrecking balls charging forward to have their way with brick-and-mortar stores. The concept of showrooming was posing a threat to physical retail locations. This refers to shoppers visiting a store to test or try on a product to eventually purchase it online for a lower price. Two years ago, 50 percent of online purchases were made using this method and last year it was down to 30 percent. Retailers accomplished this by boosting the in-store customer experience as well as doing a better job aligning their in-store and online offerings. This also proves that the average consumer is gaining more confidence in the online shopping process. While it's apparent the industry is evolving, we take a less radical stance. Research shows that US annual retail growth is at 4 percent and expected to continue in that pattern. In addition, despite the e-commerce boom, brick-and-mortar stores should still account for approximately 85 percent of the US retail sales in the year 2025. The ability to touch, smell, and feel the product at local retailer locations will remain valuable to consumers. However, the industry is expected to transform more in the next five years than it has over the past century. Here are some incumbent trends to watch for:
US e-commerce has grown at 18 percent a year accounting for 8 percent of total retail sales 44 percent of retail marketers spend more than half of their marketing budgets on digital media vs. print media Use of mobile phones accounts for 24 percent of retail e-commerce sales and will cover every aspect of the sales process from personalized promotions to checkout options beyond the waiting line Consumers have increasing expectations of simpler and more efficient sales processes in cluding less waiting time, shipping and return methods, unique business models, and com petitive pricing
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IBM-January 2014 (http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/42903.wss) NRF-February 2014 (https://nrf.com/media/press-releases/nrf-forecasts-41-increase-retail-sales-2014) 3 McKinsey & Company-October 2013 (http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/consumer_and_retail/how_retailers_can_keep_up_with_consumers) 4 McKinsey & Company-October 2013 (http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/consumer_and_retail/how_retailers_can_keep_up_with_consumers) 5 Forrester Research-March 2013 (https://www.forrester.com/US+Online+Retail+For cast+2012+To+2017/fulltext/-/E-RES93281) 2
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Retail space is being utilized for "customer experience" rather than holding space for products to be sold Retailers converting available data into analytical informa tion used to make forward-thinking business decisions
Retail Marketing As a retailer, the importance of promoting to attract business is a no-brainer. You must have a strong following and a clearly defined target market. A marketing plan should be put into place, including a budget reflecting all means necessary for your target market to know you exist. Taking it a step further, retailers are realizing that they need to connect with users through multiple channels to provide seamless transition between physical and digital stores. Gone are the days that consumers shop at a retailer simply because it happens to be where a product is distributed. This cross-channel shopper engagement is known as the omnichannel. A customer can research and price-check a product on their phone, order it via the computer and pick it up in the store if they choose. For example, some e-commerce fashion companies are opening physical locations or hosting events to add to their marketing mix. Not only are marketing efforts reaching via multiple channels from the same source, but the marketing messages are also being personalized. For instance, I see via social media that my favorite band is coming into town. I purchase concert tickets online, pick them up in a store and then start receiving notifications via email when similar bands come to town. Personalized marketing has become more common, and may be necessary to generate customers to support your brand. Taking it a step further, mobile optimization might be the most pressing priority in the omnichannel presence. 58 percent of consumers have used the smart phone for store-related shopping, 63 percent of people expect to do more shopping on mobile devices over the next couple years. A company not focusing on mobile optimization is not only missing out on growth opportunity to capitalize on, but they could also be losing guaranteed sales once the customer is already on your website! For example, 57 percent of mobile users will abandon 6
DataXu-June 2012 (http://www.marketingcharts.com/uncategorized/marketers-shifting-ad-spend-mix-to-digital-media-22369/) 7 eMarketer-April 2013 (http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Smartphones-Tablets-Drive-Faster-Growth-Ecommerce-Sales/1009835) 8 Deloitte Digital-March 2012 (http://www.deloitte.com/assets/Dcom-UnitedStates/Losets/Dments/RetailDistribution/us_retail_MobileInfluence-Factor_062712.pdf)
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your website if it takes more than 3 seconds to load and 30 percent will abandon a purchase transaction if the shopping cart isn’t optimized for mobile devices. A majority of mobile purchases are impulse-driven, and consumers are more likely to purchase from a brand with a mobile experience that is engaging. It is important to increase your multi-channel presence. Here are some ways retailers are getting their name out there: Loyalty programs Mobile apps Peer recommendations through social networks User reviews Vanity phone numbers Google AdWords or PPC Print media Email marketing
Profitablity of Marketing Efforts We all know advertising and promotion are important, but so is documenting the profitability of your efforts. Budgeting is an enormous portion of a marketing plan. As a rule of thumb, 5 percent of a company's total revenue is allocated towards marketing just to maintain a customer base. If a company is looking to grow revenue, it's more like 10 percent. Did I mention that's only applicable to B2B companies? Retail companies focused on consumer goods should be more in the 15-20 percent range. To put it into perspective, a $5 million company in the consumer product industry with the intention to grow should be spending around $1 million in marketing efforts. $1 million can seem like a lot to put back into the market after establishing a customer base with nothing but good faith that it will return profitable gains. Luckily, there are tools out there that can ensure you’re maximizing your return on your advertising spend. They can give you a clear view into which advertising mediums are generating phone calls and which aren’t. That way you know which basket to put your eggs in and in addition, how many eggs in each basket. Determining a budget that works for your business will be a key element to a successful and growing retail business.
Mobify-January 2014 (http://resources.mobify.com/50-mobile-commerce-stats.html) Gartner- March 2013 (http://www.gartner.com/technology/research/digital-marketing/digital-marketing-spend-report.jsp)
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Call Tracking & Data Analytics Call tracking is an example of a technology that can be a primary source of the data necessary to discover the truth behind your advertising spend. It monitors inbound sales calls and traces them back to any offline, online or mobile service. Also, it’s a relatively inexpensive investment and is easy to set up. Regardless of our society’s trend towards communication via technology, customers still call. They may have questions before they buy or prefer to perform transaction over the phone. As a business owner, you should know where the calls are coming from. 64 percent of local businesses say that phone calls are the most valuable leads they receive. In a B2B situation, inbound calls are found to be three times more valuable than web leads. Now that you’re representing your brand through an omnichannel, it becomes necessary to track each mode of marketing to one resource in a readable and useful format. Similarly, companies committed to improving their SEO need this tool to validate the performance of their targeted keywords. This is accomplished by assigning a unique phone number to each element of your marketing campaign (direct mail ads, radio commercials, etc.). Then you’ll have the exact results of how many phone calls are generated through each marketing mode. For example, once your website has been completely optimized for mobile use, you can assign a phone number to the website to be forwarded to your business. The consumer can use the click to call feature from their smart phone to reach your business for questions or with the intent to purchase. Then you’ll know what portion of your inbound sales calls are coming from your mobile site. There are other services that go along with call tracking such as call recording, caller locations, call date/time, and call duration. Once the data is captured it can be put directly into analytical form. You’ll need a system that will centralize customer data and pull together transactions to obtain useful business intelligence. Specifically, retailers should use advanced analytics to make offers and decisions that are targeted and localized, as well as delivered in real time. Cutting-edge retailers are using them to tailor assortments at the store level and to anticipate changes in customer traffic patterns. Large companies use call tracking at the corporate level to determine if specific locations are producing results. Analytics are also be helpful in gauging new product introduction performance in real-time in order to make future inventory decisions based on actual consumer demand. What steps are your company taking to turn data into actions to increase revenues, reduce costs, or free up capital?
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Inbound Phone Calls So now your phone is ringing with endless inbound sales calls. Who do you have answering your phones? What type of processes do you have in place once a prospective customer is calling in? The phone is still the primary form of communication with customers for most businesses. Inbound customer service can determine whether the customer has a positive or negative experience within the first few seconds of the call. Customer service representatives are the voice and first impression of your brand. They should be fully trained and understand the magnitude of impact they can have on the business. We've all been the frustrated customer on the other end of the line. What types of things annoy you when on the phone with a bad customer service rep? Has it ever kept you from buying from the company again?
Answering the Phone Our first impression is determined by the time the phone is answered. Again, we've been on the other side of the phone countless times. Whether we admit it or not, we already have a pretty good idea about what to expect from the call as a whole within the first 5 seconds. Think about the companies that you don't dread calling. What do they do differently than others? Chances are they are applying some of these phone etiquette tips: • • • • • • •
Answer calls within 3 rings Sound warm and enthusiastic, be positive Open with a message that informs callers they've reached the correct business The message should be uniform and consistent across all customer service representatives Answer or return all calls within one business day Show that you are listening by repeating back what you heard them say Minimize waiting time
If you were to call in to your own business at this moment what would you hear? If your answer isn't ideal, then your representatives may need to be put through some training. Once you're comfortable with the answering message, have them practice. Record their calls so they can listen to themselves. Perform some role playing exercises. Most importantly, continue the training so that your there is a never-ending emphasis on the importance of answering the phone in a professional manner.
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5 Customer Service Best Practices So you’ve got them on the phone and they haven’t hung up and have confirmed they’ve called the correct number. What happens next? I don’t need to tell you that the content of the call can make or break your customer retention. Here are some best practices performed by successful companies when it comes to customer service:
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Patience & Attentiveness
Take the time to discover what the customer needs and to resolve the issue. When customers are calling in, often times it's because they are confused or frustrated. It may be easy to take their uneasy tone personally, take the initiative to turn their frustration into graciousness or relief. Thinking about customer service in that perspective can single-handedly create a loyal customer.
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Excellent Communication Skills
How many times have your spoken with a mumbler on the other line? Or ones that use a lot of filler words like "uuh" or "umm"? Or one that sounds like they hate their job? How quickly does that deduct credibility points for the company? This may sound like a no-brainer, but amazingly enough it remains a wide-spread issue. Customer service representatives should enunciate and convey themselves in a positive manner at all times which will simultaneously enhance the customer experience.
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Familiarity with Products & Services
Also may sound like a given, it’s not! As previously mentioned, your customer service representatives are the front line of your company. They are the point of contact for the customer and sometimes the only one. They should be up to speed on all products and services offered by your company. If they get stumped by a customer’s question, it’s okay to admit it! A customer would much rather hear, “I don’t have the answer to that question, but I can certainly find out. Would you mind holding or would you like me to contact you once I have the answer?” than be given inaccurate information in order to maintain a competent presence.
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Customer Intuition
It takes a specific personality and/or lots of practice to master this skill. Customers are sometimes difficult to read, especially via the phone. Inbound calling customers provide a number of clues whether it be their tone, content, or pauses. Be able to pinpoint these so your approach can be more personalized for each individual customer. Know how much time to spend on an issue before moving on, when a customer could use some clarification on a subject, or when you’re getting signals from the customer and take your opportunity to close.
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Have a Goal
Goal-oriented organizations produce results. Whether the phone call is being made for informational purposes or for problem resolution, the representative should have a goal in mind. If a customer is calling in to learn more about a product or service, maybe he or she focuses on closing the sale. If a customer calls in with an issue with one of your products, assist them and have them clarify that they got what they wanted.
Conclusion The retail industry continues to thrive in the US. By adapting to the times, retailers have only gotten more creative when it comes to reaching their ideal customers. However, marketing remains a must, and requires more focus as well as constant updates and improvements than ever. Once an ideal marketing mix has been determined, it will be necessary to continue analyzing its results and make