The next time you're frustrated for being on hold for 30+ minutes waiting to talk to customer service, imagine having to travel to the next town just to talk to a shop owner and hope that they would honor your purchase and help you with what you needed.
Since the invention of the telephone, and with the addition of email, live chat, and social media companies have tried to integrate existing technology with the newest contact channels available to deliver a better customer service experience. As we become more connected and eliminate more of the communication barriers between customers and companies, it’s critical that we evaluate the new technology and determine its ability to help achieve the real purpose of customer service: to make helping customers as painless as possible.
