The retail industry is undergoing a lot of change with online and mobile becoming key channels for shopping in addition to physical stores.  It is a challenge for retail brands to ensure that they deliver according to customer expectations regardless of the point of interaction.

Co-browsing is a form of collaborative browsing where two or more people can simultaneously navigate a website. This technology in combination with video chat can be used to create a significantly more enriched online shopping experience, making it more personal and effectively match in-person interactions. By using this innovative solution, retailers can improve their conversion rate by almost 50%.

Here are 6 revolutionary benefits for retail industry from using video chat and co-browsing:
  1. Enables instantaneous face-to-face engagement: Co-browsing can help retail stores bring an in-store experience to their customers. Many customers prefer the convenience of buying online but would like the added comfort of having real-time interaction with the store sales people to clarify doubts, get help in navigation of the site or sort out problems. By using video chat with co-browsing, customers can see and talk to store agents who can then help with their issues and deliver personalized service similar to what customers experience when they visit stores. With video chatting, agents understand customer needs better and can recommend products or services that are specifically suited to them.
  1. Helps Improve customer trust with proactive service: According to research studies, live chat is the most preferred channel for customer service. In a Video chat the customer can easily explain his problems to the customer service agents who can provide instant solutions. When used with co-browsing, agents can quickly understand resolve any issue faced on the site, reducing frustration levels of the customer. Video chats thus enable a high level of direct visual interaction which results in improved levels of customer trust and satisfaction.
  1. Plays vital role in reducing cart abandon rates: With the average rate of abandonment being 68.3%, shopping cart abandonment is a significant problem for many online retailers. Customers often stop shopping when they run into a problem on the site or find that they aren’t able to find something they need. Once they decide to abandon their shopping process, it becomes very difficult and also expensive to bring the customer back. Video chats and co-browsing can bring a dramatic improvement in this problem, as agents can act as hosts and personally guide the customer through the process, clarifying any doubts they have through a video chat session. This instantaneous engagement, no different from a regular in-person interaction, reassures the customer, ensuring that he proceeds with his purchase and closes the transaction.
  1. Allows leveraging of past customer history to improve quality of customer interaction: Stores are able to offer personalized service more effectively when they have information about the customer’s past behavior and shopping preferences. Smart applications built into co-browsing helps agents capture and store relevant information which can be used in future interactions.
  1. Easily deployable in both online and mobile format: The technology of co-browsing is easily integrated into both mobile and web channels which are both critical channels today. Deploying these tools makes it an effective way to empower employees, enabling easy and immediate discussion between store agents and customers and improving the quality of interaction regardless of the channel.
  1. Helps physical stores to maximize productivity of store space: Co-browsing combined with video chat is not just limited to online stores. Physical stores can use the technology through in-store kiosks where customers can interact with call center agents to do any number of transactions like gathering information or filling in forms. The productivity of the store increases because the in-store kiosk, which features video chats, can act just like a regular store executive.