Software can't do everything (yet)
Imagine if you weren’t feeling all too hot and decided to google your symptoms on WebMD. Would you trust its diagnosis, or would you call your doctor to get their opinion? I’m going to go out on a limb here and say the severity of your ailment will dictate what you do; the more severe and complicated, the more likely you are to seek guidance from someone qualified like your doctor.
Your Google Life Coach is great and all, but it doesn’t give you every insight you need to make a complex or challenging decision. TechniArt built Product Advisor Plus with this construct in mind, embedding a series of tools to help customers as much as possible while backing the entire platform with live concierge support because we know that’s what customers expect and need.
Let’s unpack all of this.
Concierge support is most associated with the hospitality industry, where agents typically provide guests with insights and connections to local activities and experiences based on their interests. Through Product Advisor Plus, our concierge team applies this same level of service and support to customers shopping for heat pump water heaters or other efficient equipment. Their activities may include helping customers determine if they are the best fit for efficient equipment based on their home or business’s profile, connecting customers with contractors for installation, and assisting with all other last mile and post-installation/delivery nuances as they arise. In short, they are a living, breathing extension of the platform that customers can utilize as a trusted advisor to help them make crucial decisions.
We know that some customers won’t reach out to our concierge team by default. So, like any good software shop, we created an integrated series of tools to help these customers proactively if needed.
Our product advisor tool gives customers an objective way to qualify whether their home and installation conditions are ideal for a heat pump water heater. This tool is entirely configurable and does a great job in telling customers, “Nope, not for you,” based on their inputs (more on this later). We embedded intake forms, quote forms, and other “we’re here to help” tools into the site that are just there to help customers out if they need it.
Our concierge team has several direct engagement hooks enabled into the platform where they can interface with customers to gather information that will assist them with through their decision-making process while also enabling contractors to properly assess the upcoming project.
The most critical role our concierge team plays is telling customers “No.” The last thing we want to do is sell equipment to a customer that won’t work for their home or business. It’s an inconvenience for all who were involved in the transaction. Our goal is to provide adequate support and resources to negate any equipment returns from Product Advisor Plus, something we have experience doing already for heat pump water heaters through prior sales promotions.
The hybrid use of a live concierge service paired with digital tools is today’s gold standard in customer support. It gives customers the tools and information they need for making a complex decision while also providing access to a knowledgeable professional if they need it. Think of our team as a phone call, email, or chat away if the customer needs it, kind of like the doctor.