“The program allows Powerfront’s clients to treat shoppers as if they were in a bricks‑and‑ mortar store….It has a God’s eye view of how consumers interact with many luxury brands.” –The New York Times
Recently, the New York Times, Women’s World Daily, the Wall Street Journal, Refinery 29, and many other notable publications released articles about Gucci‘s fabulous new customer service center, Gucci 9, just across the Hudson River from Manhattan. Fashion United reports, “The aim of the call centres is to provide shoppers the same level of service as can be found in store.” Many of these publications also took note of Gucci’s high-end customer data visualization and live chat and messaging service, INSIDE by Powerfront. The New York Times in particular focused on the INSIDE platform and how luxury brands utilize the service to offer in-store customer experiences online.
Gucci has always led the way in putting the customer first. Never shy of exploring innovative and non-traditional approaches to reach new demographics, they understand the value of investing in their customer. This time, they have spared no expense to build a gorgeous customer service center in Jersey City, designed by their Creative Director Alessandro Michele. The facility is gilded with lush carpeting, psychedelic wallpaper, and Gucci displays and products, mirroring the in-store experience for their employees as well. “We really believe that if you are surrounded by beauty, then you will react by consequence,” CEO Marco Bizzarri told Refinery 29. “To be surrounded by beauty and beautiful things and beautiful minds, I think, is going to help a lot in terms of interaction with the customers,” he explained. “That’s exactly what we want when they enter in our shops in any brick and mortar shops in the world.”
This reflects Powerfront’s shared value with Gucci – they will spare no expense to make their customer and employees feel like royalty. “We are not in the cost business.” Bizzarri told the Wall Street Journal, “We chose to stand with differentiation, which is more expensive than believing in cost.” Although live chat reduces handling times and increases agent concurrency, like Gucci, Powerfront believe that brands should take the time to forge a personal connection to their customers. This human touch is what creates a lasting impression that encourages brand loyalty. Echoing the ethos of Powerfront’s INSIDE, Marco Bizzarri told Fashionista, “The kind of experience that you like to give to the customers is going to be more and more centered to the human touch of the person-to-person clients.” Gucci encourages their call center employees to develop one-on-one relationships with their customers.
“All of this, Powerfront said, allows brands to provide the kind of service that luxury customers deserve, even if customers don’t fully realize that’s what’s happening.” –The New York Times
Gucci doesn’t hire customer service agents, they hire “online sales associates.” They encourage their agents to take their time to make real connections with the customer they’re speaking to, just like an in-store sales associate or personal shopper would. This speaks to Forrester analyst Kate Leggett’s recent report, “The Future of Work: You Must Change How You Hire Customer Service Associates.” She discusses how in the future, the role of the agent must evolve from a less-skilled entry-level position to a more refined, focused “knowledge worker.” Agents must be trained to have interactions that are less robotic and more empathetic and friendly.
“No one sees the faces of the people so we try to understand what kind of empathy could have come through the telephone, through email. We believe that a smile has a sound.” As Bizzarri told the Wall Street Journal, “We want to create joy.”
