Page 10 - AeM_November_2020

RESEARCH
ANALYSIS
TRENDS

When information and answers aren’t

readily to hand, customers walk away

from purchases

Singapore has a long-standing love affair with shop- A standout finding is that online experiences, especially
ping. Many of the country’s malls built in the 1970s and around service options at checkout, have been letting
80s were pioneering in their day, and today the island retailers down noted Wee Tee Lim, Regional Manager
state has more malls per square mile than any other at LivePerson.
country in the world. Recent years have seen a dra-
matic shift from in-person shopping to online retail with “Online-shopping is increasing, but often customer ex-
giants such as Shopee and Lazada becoming house- pectations aren’t met,” he said. “Many times, this is be-
hold names and COVID-19 lockdowns sending more cause brands are not offering support to customers in
people to the Internet for their purchases. However, a the way they want. We found that many retailers are
new report notes that while shoppers are moving in- lagging when it comes to using modern technology
creasingly online, many remain unhappy with the level such as AI to improve customer service. People are far
of customer service they receive there. more comfortable engaging with brands through new
channels than many retailers think. They want answers
In the latest LivePerson Customer Conversation Report to their questions in real time, wherever they are, and
87% of Singaporean shoppers said they have aban- through whatever channel they prefer.”
doned an online shopping cart in the last 12 months
because the right customer service option was not Addressing customer needs now
available. For online retailers, this is problematic; with
the estimated cost of these lost sales a whopping $1.56 The findings of the report show the importance of a well
billion. -functioning online customer service: While 79% of Sin-
gaporean respondents said that they have missed retail
The LivePerson Customer Conversation Report sur- shopping either ‘a lot’ or ‘a little’ during the COVID-19
veyed more than 3,000 consumers in Asia-Pacific, in- pandemic, less than one third of shoppers want in-
cluding 502 in Singapore who were asked about their person support when they have a question. It seems
customer service experiences in 2020 including what that even though people still enjoy instore shopping,
has changed for them, and what they would like to see online customer service is the preferred option.
companies do differently or better.

November 2020: Voice Commerce: voice search & digital voice assistants as storyteller 10