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December 13, 2019

Good morning, how many channels are you using to talk to customers? 

We’re in the thick of the holiday season, which means many e-commerce customer service teams are inundated with customer inquiries. Marketers want to meet consumers on whichever channel they prefer — the trick is bringing all of these channels together on one platform to manage customer engagement as efficiently as possible while keeping a single view of the customer experience. 

To help its users better communicate with their customers, LogMeIn has added WhatsApp and WeChat integrations to Bold360, the company’s AI-powered live chat customer engagement platform. The WhatsApp and WeChat integration further extends the platform’s capabilities which already included Facebook Messenger and SMS Text integrations. LogMeIn says it is also working to add Apple Business Chat, Google Business Messaging and Microsoft Teams integrations — efforts that will help it compete with solutions like LivePerson’s Maven, an AI-powered conversational bot platform. 

After launching its “Interpreter Mode” translation functionality on Google Home and smart displays in February, Google is now bringing it to Android devices and iPhones. The feature offers an elegant and enhanced presentation of Google’s underlying machine translation capabilities, making it possible for users to easily translate conversations in real-time. MarTech Today editor Greg Sterling notes, that while the new feature will likely reinforce usage and loyalty for Google’s Assistant technology, we still don’t know how frequently consumers are using the Assistant on smartphones. 

We’re not finished yet, keep reading for tips on creating effective calls-to-action and to find out who Google recruited from PayPal to lead commerce. 

Amy Gesenhues,
Senior Editor
 
 
 
Pro Tip
 

A compelling call to action makes all the difference

“It is no accident that many of the highest-performing e-commerce sites feature a clear call to action. CTAs, if done correctly, can dramatically increase conversion rates. But they must be visible, clear and compelling. Don’t make visitors work for the desired next action,” explains Sahil Saini of AKOS Digital. “One quick and simple way to increase site conversion is to put CTAs ‘above the fold’ so visitors don’t have to scroll down to see it. To realize an even bigger boost from your CTAs, personalize them. When visitors are met with tastefully done personalizations and specific product recommendations, it demonstrates you understand them, which helps build loyalty.”

Learn more »
 

2019 benchmark report: brand vs. non-brand traffic in Google Shopping

Sponsored Content by Smarter Ecommerce (smec)

New research suggests that splitting campaigns to bid separately for branded traffic is worthwhile in many industries.

For paid search managers, developing an effective branded keyword strategy is nothing new. When it comes to Shopping ads, however, the picture gets a lot murkier – Shopping is not keyword-based, and Google only offers negative keywording. Read more…

Register here »
 
On the Move
 

Google gets a new commerce president and C-level officers head to Talkdesk and Simon Data

Bill Ready, PayPal’s former COO, has been named the new head of commerce for Google, reports TechCrunch. Ready will start in January and report directly to Google’s SVP of Ads, Commerce and Payments Prabhakar Raghavan. He will focus on bringing “Google’s vision, strategy and delivery” to its commerce products, but will not be involved in payments, according to TechCrunch. “Bill’s exceptional track record building great experiences for consumers and deeply strategic partnerships makes him a powerful addition to our team. I couldn’t be more excited for the future of commerce at Google,” said Raghavan in a statement shared with TechCrunch. Ready had been with PayPal since 2013 when the company acquired his tech startup Braintree. 

The customer data platform Simon Data has named Diona Harris as its new chief product officer. In her new role, Harris will oversee product development, commercialization, strategy and finance and will work closely with CEO Jason Davis, President Josh Neckes and CTO Matt Walker. Part of Harris’ responsibilities will include advancing the company’s product roadmap and developing greater adoption in the marketplace. “Doina brings to Simon Data a unique and expansive skillset centered around a deep focus on customers and a strategic understanding of overall market trends, that will further define Simon Data’s offering and more broadly shape the CDP space as it evolves,” said Davis. Prior to joining Simon Data, Harris was head of analytics and finance at AppNexus. 

Talkdesk, a cloud contact center solution for enterprises, has hired Chad Gaydos to serve as chief customer officer, a newly created C-suite role for the company that will focus on creating and nurturing Talkdesk’s corporate culture. Gaydos will lead strategy and execution for customer experience and report to Talkdesk CEO Tiago Paiva. “Chad Gaydos has a remarkable track record in customer-facing roles across the globe and brings a comprehensive understanding of customer-centricity to the Talkdesk approach. His deep knowledge, vast experience and passion for customer excellence will be instrumental in deploying and aligning resources,” said Paiva. Gaydos has held a number of C-level roles throughout his career, including chief revenue officer for Skillsoft and chief operating officer for SAP’s Regulated Industries business.
 

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What We're Reading
 

We've curated our picks from across the web so you can retire your feed reader

Align People, Process and Technology for Data-Driven Marketing Success in 2020 – CMS Wire

ARF: Different approaches to data cause tension on marketing teams, limiting quality – Marketing Dive

Ecommerce 2020: Enabling new business models with IoT – Get Elastic

AI R&D is booming, but general intelligence is still out of reach – The Verge

As A New Decade Approaches, It’s Time To Double Down On Data Strategy – AdExchanger

20 Podcast Predictions for 2020 from Top Industry Leaders – Pacific Content
 
 

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