I logged into a website today to buy something. After spending a few minutes on the site and looking for the best way to contact them about their services, a chat window popped up, announcing that Amy was ready to help me with any questions and asking me my name.
I told her who I was and what I was looking for and she asked me for my contact information in case we got disconnected. Then it happened. She said she would pass my info along and I should call to discuss the details. After following the near-hidden link announcing the company that provided this “chat software,” I was redirected to their site. Apparently they sell a software that imitates a real chat agent, designed to gather contact info and pass it along as a sales lead – a prospect ripe for the funnel.
I cannot emphasize this enough – do not lie to your customers. In any business, in any sales process, in any customer interaction, a little bit of trust is required. Trust that the person on the other end of the line will provide an adequate solution, that they are doing whatever they can to find a resolution, that they are being honest. The absolute worst way you can kick off an interaction with a customer is by lying to them.
At the end of the day, your customers would rather have an advocate who comes up a bit short than an enemy with a solution.
Taylor
taylorworth 