User needs, be they explicit conscious needs or more subtle undisclosed needs, when interacting with a service supplier vary according to the context of that interaction. Suppliers need to blend all aspects of their customer contact strategy to meet context-specific requirements of their customer. But site owners should see this as an opportunity rather than a threat.

In financial services for example, the challenge of meeting these requirements gives the bank/broker/lender a rare opportunity to differentiate themselves in a market place where products are essentially generic. Mikael Runhem recently discussed the possibilities the Warm Web Initiative represents in a sales context in this excellent piece. The same flexible, responsive approach can be used to create an online servicing environment which delivers a far richer experience and in doing so helps to build real brand value. Of course this approach must also cross channel boundaries (imperceptible or at least irrelevant to the customer) with a cohesive multi-channel comms strategy; but the same principles can be implemented on site, understanding context-specific needs and catering for them.

Take as an example online banking. Some customers will want to conduct all their banking online, semi-anonymously, with no human interaction; others will prefer to do all their banking in a branch, just possibly using an ATM to withdraw cash.  However, between these two extremes we see a lot of customers who are happy to self-serve in some circumstances but would prefer (or at least are open to) more personal help with others. It stands to reason that customers are more likely to be responsive to assistance when they need it; for example, when they’re trying to conduct a complex transaction for the first time, or applying for a new product. In such circumstances users are being asked to make decisions and choices without being fully confident of the answer, or the implications of their decision. Aspects of the WWI can be used to respond to these ‘anxiety points’, for example subtly introducing advice & support content, or inviting the user to ask for help.

There's real merit here in thinking of your online serving site as a ‘virtual branch’. If a customer in an (offline) branch, is confidently carrying out routine business, there’s a good chance he/she doesn’t want or need any help. However if there’s a new branch layout, or you’ve installed a new ATM which offers more functionality, or the customer is looking at brochures for more complex products (pensions or investments for example), then there’s more opportunity to interact; simultaneously increasing the chances of closing the sale and capitalising on the opportunity to enhance the customer's perception of your brand. Back in the virtual branch, when as a site owner, we can identify characteristics of an ‘anxiety point’ either generic for new/anonymous users (typically based on known behavioural data such onsite or upstream activity, or other profiling information) or specific for known users (utilising any number of information sources including previous activity on the site, current product holding, etc.) we can introduce intervention methods to respond accordingly.

Executed well and intelligently the ability to react in this way should improve your closing rate or conversion ratio, and as such is a compelling enough reason in itself. But the willingness to understand and respond speaks volumes about your brand, how much your organisation cares for the business, and makes your brand stand out against an otherwise grey landscape.

The key to success lies in accurate identification of when and how the customer wants you to respond and in developing subtle intervention tactics. Intervene too early and your offer of help is too common, it loses impact and the user becomes blind to the device (omnipresent bland FAQs anyone?). Don’t intervene soon enough and the moment has passed, the user has drifted away to a competitor, to a more expensive channel, or just drifted away from making the decision altogether (or worse still made the wrong decision) – the anxiety lingers and you did nothing to ameliorate it. The right balance must also be struck in judging the tone and method of intervention; introducing an assistant, or launching a live chat session could be too strong. Introducing louder invitations to ask for help, introducing advice content, or simply changing the tone of that content could be the help your customer is looking for.

Any good retailer will tell you the benefit of well judged, well timed intervention – it’s not enough just to have a helpdesk and expect customers to come to you, and it’s not enough to ask every customer the same question, at the same time. In a market where each store sells almost identical products at almost identical prices, the way your site responds when your customer wants or needs you to respond can make all the difference.