As we transition into autumn, it’s easy for us in customer service to lose the steam, energy, and focus we coveted during the rejuvenating days of summer. This is certainly not ideal given that the late fall and early winter months are some the busiest for call centers and contact centers in many the vertical: Black Friday, Super Saturday, and most of the days book-ending December 25th see a dramatic upsurge in customer support requests, which accompanies a similarly dramatic upsurge in shopping on these days.
Customers also use social media as a preferred communications channel at this high-octane time, a public, digital soapbox upon which to shout out about frustrating customer service experiences (anything from being put on hold to never reaching a customer service agent). But while social media can reflect the negative, it can alternatively offer positive viewpoints and inspiring wisdom, often in 280 characters or less. Specifically, Twitter and LinkedIn have sprinkled throughout its many vestiges a series of short, sweet, thought-provoking tidbits from insightful customer service professionals that can dig you out of the winter doldrums, and catapult your customer support strategies into action. If you want to be inspired, invigorated, and ready for anything, read on and soak in the quick’n’dirty advice from CS and CX professionals and enthusiasts.
Most marketing decisions today are driven by data. With CRMs, social analytics, Google analytics and e-commerce platforms readily available to most companies, marketing teams are able to pore over and analyze enormous amount of statistics, numbers, charts and trends. From product development to launch strategies and content planning, data is often behind many key decisions being made by company leaders.
The rise of digital commerce and the growth of social media have given consumers powerful tools to share their thoughts and feedback with brands. The ability for customers to tout their distinct opinions with far-reaching audiences is a new phenomenon that has shifted the way brands must think and operate. Excellent customer service must become a central component of companies’ strategies if they hope to survive and thrive in this digital age. 
Summer may be over, but the sun is rising on a busy 2018 fall trade show season. Fonolo has many events on the horizon, but is especially excited to be a first-time exhibitor at 
Ford started out with a dream: Build a horseless carriage affordable enough for every American household. He wanted Ford Motors to be special, not just another giant, aloof institution in the marketplace. Ford dreamed of an inspired business built upon customer-first principles and propelled by innovation. As history shows us with the Ford legacy, forward-thinking businesses with inspiration as a core part of their mandates yield inspired workforce, higher employee productivity, and increased customer loyalty.
As in any field, it’s important to be aware of key trends and best practices in customer service to ensure that you are delivering an experience that is on par with the best players in the game. From servicing customers on social media, to curating unique “real life” opportunities for consumers to interact with your brand, there are many emerging standards in the world of customer service that companies are striving to meet. 
When it comes to Artificial Intelligence (AI), there are many fear-mongering headlines in circulation. Recently, Elon Musk defined it as an “Immortal Dictator”, two words that reaffirm my mother’s belief that AI could mean the end of the human race. I can safely assume that you know someone who, like my mother, fears that AI is intimidatingly capable of taking over humans and their resources.
I just returned from the excellent Conversational Commerce Conference. It’s not a big event (just one track over two days), but it is very focused. I heard two excellent success stories on recent bot deployments. I think I need to revise downward my bot-skepticism a bit.
I’m sitting here in Canada, a vast country with an ever-debated culture. Part of that debate is our collective, 
