Menswear retailer Bonobos is adding a to-do task to store associates: serve as online chat support.
The move is aimed at boosting both customer support and customer engagement, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
The company, a Walmart Inc. subsidiary, was initially launched as a pure online retailer and now operates dozens of brick-and-mortar locations. The decision to have store associates begin handling online customer support was due to not having enough customer support staff. The employees, which Bonobos calls ‘guides,’ are asked to hit chat support in downtime and not without having another employee in the store.
The effort actually began three years ago as a pilot experience and the brand said having guides involved makes good sense as they know answers to clothing and style often asked by customers.
“It has been a positive shift,” David Meir Sasson, operations and finance leader, told the Journal.
