It’s always best to be two steps ahead, especially when it comes to customer service. Anticipating customer needs before issues arise helps you build customer loyalty and prevent problems that can impact your bottom line. So, how do you adopt this type of proactive customer service model? Learn how to implement proactive customer support strategies
The average worker receives 117 emails per day, according to Microsoft. With so much email delivered to inboxes, it’s easy to overlook the system that powers this communication. One key piece of that system is Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), the protocol that ensures messages are sent and delivered reliably. For marketers and businesses that
Markets move fast, meaning you always need to be one step ahead of the game so you’re ready to give your customers what they want. That’s where demand management comes into play. What does demand management look like? Take an ecommerce nail polish shop that’s optimizing its inventory levels. It might research trending styles and
When 20-year-old Haley Pavone kicked off her heels at a college formal, she didn’t realize she was stepping into a billion-dollar gap in the market. That night—when another guest’s stiletto pierced her bare foot—sparked the idea for Pashion Footwear, the world’s first fully convertible heel that transforms into a flat in seconds. What started as
Sarah Vachon was vacationing on the Greek island of Crete when family friends brought out olive oil from their farm to taste. It was grassy and complex—unrecognizable from supermarket varieties back in London. Sarah learned that these olive farmers, Maria and Dimitris Amargiotakis, sold their surplus to middlemen for commodity blends at prices that didn’t
Let’s compare two Google search terms: “furniture” and “walnut art deco furniture.” The Google search engine results page for the broad search term “furniture” turns up major brands like Ikea, West Elm, and World Market—strong competitors that make it hard for smaller furniture companies to rank high for the search term. Meanwhile, although not as
Curbside pickup lets your customers make an order online and pick it up at your store, warehouse, or designated pickup location. It’s similar to buy online, pickup in-store (BOPIS), except the customer never has to leave their vehicle. When they arrive, you or your sales staff bring the order out to their car. Due to
Like many retailers, you may plan on a strong Q4 to put a bow on your fiscal year. One means of support is to create a holiday gift guide that brings customers to your store and helps close sales. After all, every retailer knows the pressure: endless competition, shrinking attention spans, and customers who start
Every morning, Elle Liu, founder of the sustainable bedding company Eucalypso, checks her email—and then she checks QuickBooks. At a glance, she reviews the prior day’s expenses and revenue. “I feel like I could be an accountant myself,” she says on an episode of the Shopify Masters podcast, reflecting on all the accounting terms she’s
Having an excess of product can tie up valuable capital, but unexpected stockouts can send customers straight to a competitor. These are symptoms of a business operating without an understanding of its inventory. Inventory metrics are the difference between guessing and knowing—the essential key performance indicators (KPIs) that provide real-time knowledge of your inventory management.
