Altering health restrictions have caused a dynamic shift in the retail and services industry. Most notable, consumer buying behaviours and the technology and tools they use to facilitate these purchases. As a result, this is leading to an investment in retail Unified Communication solutions.  

Customers are more motivated than ever to move their buying and purchasing needs to a virtual platform and to reduce in-store visits. This can be achieved through pre-ordering over the phone or using eCommerce. 

According to Statista, worldwide retail footfall and in-store shopping were hit hard in 2020, highlighting the need for a virtual communication platform to keep customers connected and informed.

Since mid-March 2020, footfall in UK retail locations (including high streets, shopping centers and retail parks) fell the sharpest on April 12, coinciding with Easter, with a decline of 89.9 percent. – Statista.
Customer service is more vital than ever before. VoIP and Unified Communication ensures retailers can address customer challenges by providing a high-level response rate. Coupled with a safe service and human touch. 

Seamless cloud technology can offer modern-day shopping solutions with call and collect services and an always-on cloud phone solution for internal and external support requests. 

A Seamless and Safe Customer Experience

Packed stores were once an invitation to a popular product or service. However, now many consumers are now wary of entering stores lax social distancing. In 2017, the Retail Consumer Preference Study revealed that one-third of shoppers purchased via pre order and collect services. 

2020 saw an increase of over 554% in pre order and collect services.- Digital Commerce 360
‘Has my order arrived yet?‘ Many customers find the information flow from eCommerce purchases to be imprecise – particularly for small orders. Call and collect offers a clear and convenient option. Blueface’s cloud phone solution allows you to set up new phone numbers for specific campaigns. This can be a click and collect option – from the Unified Communications Portal.

All Blueface calls are encrypted with the option of adding TLS and SRTP layer security. Correspondingly, Blueface calls are PCI DSS Compliant so you can take payments securely over the phone.

IVR and Time of Day Routing

Missing calls would no doubt create a negative customer journey. Not to worry, as IVR (Virtual Receptionist) can make sure every customer is heard. Not to mention, customers can stay on top of wait times and guide themselves to an order line to order food or goods for delivery or collection.

You can add custom media before each branch of the virtual receptionist menu is reached. Moreover, if you have a dedicated voicemail mailbox, even missed calls can be designed for order taking.

Sample Message

Hi there, we are currently experiencing a high volume of calls and current wait times are up-to-30 minutes. Please leave your order and we will contact you when it is ready for collection.
 
Additionally, IVR can be helpful for sharing promotional messaging to a large number of customers, while offering store information such as opening hours, holiday closures and so on. 

As opening hours in every sector are non-standard at present, Time of Day Routing will help you automate your business phone line depending on availability. Businesses can set business hours by time of day, week, month, year and even local bank holidays. If a location is closed or unavailable, automatic rerouting keeps customers on the line to increase sales and revenue.

In the same way, if you work from a remote setting or a different shop location, calls can be easily forwarded to your mobile or another location with Multi Site Deployment. Multi Site can connect multiple staff, customers and locations on one account. 

Multi-site (or Federations) can make internal and external communications less costly, offering transparent, easy-to-understand billing that makes scaling locations simple. 

Costs and Improved Internal Knowledge 

Unified communications from Blueface, A Comcast Business Company can offer significant savings. By removing the cost of a traditional phone system through long-distance call costs, predictable billing and no maintenance or upgrade fees. 

We are saving around €300/400 on our monthly bills, and this is significant with the quality we are getting. – Retail Solutions. 
VoIP can boost employee capabilities and internal communications through high-level visibility and Call Reporting. The ability to analyse call data provides retailers with rich and informative knowledge. As a result, staff can make better business decisions, such as staffing needs, customer requirements and product demand. 

The UC Console delivers a unique, real-time level of visibility across teams, stores and different locations. Additionally, the Console reduces hold times and turns missed calls into sales opportunities.

The Virtual Shopping Experience

Retail and services are facing unprecedented change in how customers are engaging and their buying habits. Thankfully, technology such as Video Conferencing has made this transition from in-store to the online shop front. 

Retail and services are operating in a highly video-centric environment, with the adoption of video increasing dramatically over the last year. Brands who have implemented a virtual customer experience have reaped the benefits. 

Credo Beauty has seen up to a 21x increase in online conversions compared to shopping unassisted in just the last few months. – Shopify. 
Every size business – from bijou boutiques to colossal chains – can benefit from immersive video shopping experience, offering an in depth, discursive product tour. Moreover, retail customer support teams can use this software to work through product or service issues and resolve tickets faster. 

Personal Communication states a conversation is 55% body language, 38% tone of voice, and only 7% in the words we use. – Mehrabian’s 7-38-55 Rule. 
Other services can offer virtual consultations for customers, conducting a regular face-to-face meeting through effortless video conferencing. Nonverbal actions, also known as body language, is said to be more important than the spoken word.

Conclusion 

It’s clear to see that the customer and buyer experience has taken a dramatic shift towards the online and virtual world. Sudden restriction shifts meant that eCommerce and communication tools had to work side by side to create a safe experience for both staff and customers.

By implementing Blueface Unified Communications, retail and services can offer multiple customer touch points in a safe virtual space. Operational cost and in-store footfall are decreased, and sales are boosted through innovative communications and virtual shopping options.

Get in touch with one of our Unified Communication Experts today and start transforming your business and retail communications.