Scaling.
WHAT BREAKS FIRST
One person handling everything Conversations on a personal device No record of what was said
WHAT TO DO AS VOLUME GROWS
Separate business communication from personal Record enquiries centrally Prepare standard replies Allocate responsibility clearly
WHAT TO ADD
A shared system, so more than one person can see conversations A record of customers and their history
WHAT NOT TO DO
Add channels faster than you can answer them Automate the relationship
WHAT TO AUTOMATE
Acknowledgements Confirmations Reminders
WHAT NOT TO AUTOMATE
Substantive replies Complaints
WHAT TO PROTECT
The personal contact that made customers choose you.
Larger competitors cannot offer it.
WHAT TO MEASURE
Response times, as volume grows.
If they lengthen, that is the signal to add capacity.
WHAT TO REVIEW
Whether anything is being missed.