B2B Customer Service via Messaging App: How Transgourmet helps its clients via 1:1 Chat on WhatsApp
Case Study B2B Retail: Transgourmet , a wholesale grocer for large-scale consumers in hotel industry, gastronomy, company catering and social institutions is innovatively using WhatsApp for B2B communication.. As part of their customer service, the company offers its clients the ability to ask questions via WhatsApp 1: 1 chat requests, which are processed and answered immediately. Customers have responded very positively to the service and use it intuitively, as Lukas Ratschke, Head of Project & Innovation Management at Transgourmet, explains.
Challenge
In the dynamic B2B branch, Transgourmet’s customers often can’t accept communication delays. Within business hours, communication needs to be handled quickly. However, on the phone people are often trapped waiting on hold or have to take time to search for relevant information, such as ID numbers or invoice numbers. Because telephone conversations are exclusively real-time, this can prolong the entire process and slow down service.
WhatsApp is the Solution
Using messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Co. allows Transgourmet’s customer service employees to answer customer inquiries quickly and simply. Additionally, being able to send and receive photos is ideal for processing reclamations, saving a lot of time, especially in comparison to telephone and email. In addition to offering a great customer service on a channel that user’s already know and use daily, the closer B2B communication strengthens the relationship between the businesses and leads to higher customer loyalty.
“The tone is friendly and informal and we receive a lot of positive feedback when we can quickly and easily help our customers.”
Results
Transgourmet is able to raise customer satisfaction and as well as allowing employees to work more efficiently, thus giving them more capacity to engage with customers. If you’re interested in learning about Transgourmet’s KPIs and the details of their service, as well as more exclusive insights into the implementation, download the free case study here:
Interview: WhatsApp Customer Service
Please briefly introduce your company. Who are you and what do you do?
Transgourmet is a supply specialist for large-scale customers in the hotel industry, gastronomy, company catering and social institutions. As a provider for all supplies, we offer a comprehensive assortment of food, consumer goods and kitchen equipment, all from one single source. The Transgourmet Contact Center is the central contact point for all topics regarding customer service.
How does a B2B company reach the decision to offer customer service via WhatsApp and offer 1:1 chats for customer inquiries?
It was not only us who made this decision, but also primarily our customers. Constant inquiries and contact over our employees’ private mobile phone lines were a main factor in why we have put “more pressure” on this topic.
Our use cases, such as sending images in the event of a complaint, are also ideal for the use of a messenger like WhatsApp.
With what expectations did you start using WhatsApp and how is your 1: 1 customer service chat developing?
Our expectation is an increase in customer care efficiency and productivity through asynchronous communication with customers, as well as the possibility that we can manage two to three customers at the same time with one employee in customer service – without quality losses!
The type of question is very similar, users tend to ask the same questions in the 1:1 chat as on the phone. In our case, this means product information, availability requests, small re-orders, cancellations or even general service issues such as address changes or the like. These are all very easy to handle via WhatsApp.
Have a great idea for customer service via messaging apps and want to talk about it? Message us!
