A shortage of pharmacists hampers grocery chains' dispensary plans. 14 Apr 2008
Handling online complaints about customer service can be tricky. You want to address the issue and assure people you're responsive to their needs, but you don't want it to appear as if you're bullying customers. It's a delicate balance, and sometimes the best answer is to hire a professional. 14 Apr 2008
This year the awards focus has moved away from the 16-year tradition of awarding brands and now recognises the dedication and contribution individuals have made to the South African travel industry. 9 Apr 2008
It's easy to forget the things that turn customers into loyal customers, such as a quick phone call or e-mail just to maintain contact. Little things can make a big difference in a tough environment. 7 Apr 2008
There is a big difference between active and passive customer communities. For an example of a passive community, take a look at Starbucks' new MyStarbucksIdea.com community site. These sites are useful ways to gather customer input, and I have referred to them as automating the suggestion box. There's nothing wrong with that, but a suggestion box is not a community. 3 Apr 2008
For small business online retailers, an e-commerce solution that quickly produces results is essential to survival. That's why FastCommerce recently launched a product submission service to Google Shopping, also known as Google Product Search. 27 Mar 2008
Having your customers comment on your policies, products or employment practices is one thing. Having them suggest ideas for improving said policies and products - in a public forum where participants can vote on these ideas, no less - is an entirely different matter. 26 Mar 2008
Virtual printer technology is driving an electronic invoicing rebirth within many industries. It's a new, innovative approach to on-boarding vendors. Vendors simply download the virtual printer off the Web. This takes about 30 minutes. Unlike electronic data interchange, there is no upfront cost or IT resource requirement. 19 Mar 2008
One of the great things about the Internet is the way people post reviews on just about anything you're considering trying, whether it's a movie, a new restaurant or the local florist. 18 Mar 2008
As a business process aided by technology, CRM is growing up. Most small businesses realise customer relationship management is about more than simply tracking customer contacts, and most CRM vendors now know a "one-size-fits-all" CRM system usually doesn't deliver what businesses need. 13 Mar 2008
Report reveals the firms that have proven themselves to be among the leaders in providing contact centre outsourcing services. 13 Mar 2008
"Buying made-to-measure clothing online is quite popular worldwide today. In the near future, we will also be able to give women the option of tailoring items to ensure a perfect fit according to their specific body measurements, rather than just ordering according to one uniform size," said Iris Ben-David, CEO and founder of StyleShake. 11 Mar 2008
Contact consolidation is not for the lighthearted. For years, contact centre management has been attempting to control costs by reducing the number of agents, physical sites and consolidating software and hardware solutions. Often these attempts are in conflict with customer and corporate demands. So, how do we increase contact centre availability? Improve customer satisfaction? Reduce operational costs? 11 Mar 2008
E-commerce suppliers face a difficult challenge. They must cultivate loyal customers, but that is becoming more difficult as the Internet enables consumers to roam freely from retailer to retailer. Now more than ever, the customer is in control, and that change is forcing many e-tailers to turn to customised shopping experiences to build brand loyalty. 10 Mar 2008
In travel, it is important to recruit good talent, develop it, retain it and recognise it. 6 Mar 2008
Service-oriented architecture (SOA) is not just a technical approach to building, integrating and delivering software systems. It's an initiative that will have impacts on IT processes (planning, project management, design, development, deployment, operations, and change management) and on the IT organization (bodies that have responsibility and authority to drive service reuse, manage quality issues and collaborate with business teams). 5 Mar 2008
Late 2005 saw the first malls in South Africa go live with Bluetooth as location-based marketing communication medium. The idea is to use Bluetooth to communicate relevant retail and mall communications to accepting customers' cellphones. 5 Mar 2008
After reading the book Mindset: The Psychology of Success by Dr. Carol S. Dweck, I began to wonder if her concepts of fixed versus growth mindsets were either accentuated or diminished when it came to customer relationship strategies enabled with SaaS-based applications. 3 Mar 2008
I am not proud to say that my health insurance company probably hates me - more specifically, the poor customer service representative who happened to answer the phone when I called with a problem. She probably wishes she was on break at that time. Why? Because I was one of those "difficult" customers. One of those customers we have all had and wished we didn't have to deal with. The kind that sometimes we just want to put on hold, or allow to hear us bang our phones against the desk because we just can't deal with their complaints. 15 Feb 2008
USA - The truth is that call centres are expensive, and they don't usually show positive returns except for the fractional payback you get when you can boost productivity by handling more calls. Also, with so many moving parts, it really is easy to believe that the system you've nursed along for years is as good as anything out there - or certainly good enough. 11 Feb 2008
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