E-tailers who view their customer service staff as mere order takers are missing out on untold additional revenue. By using their existing resources – knowledgeable staff and enabling technology — brands can turn their sales teams into personal shoppers and kick the customer experience up several notches.

Let’s imagine a man shopping for a birthday gift for his wife. He might begin by browsing a product catalog. When he clicks on a live engagement button, he is signaling an interest in assistance. If he gets it, his sale is at least 3 times more likely to take place, and its value will almost certainly be greater than if he shopped unaided. Not least of all, his satisfaction – and his wife’s – is more probable, as is repeat business from this couple.

When this prospect clicks on the call button, the e-sales agent recognizes a need to enhance text chat with additional, multimedia applications. The agent, now acting as a personal shopper, can show and describe potential gifts using a host of tools, such as a live video feed, product videos, images, photographs and more.

Selecting a gift for a loved one can be extremely stressful. To ease anxiety and distinguish themselves, e-businesses should offer the assistance of a personal shopper or gift specialist. With the ability to create engagement sessions that incorporate text, voice and video, company reps can easily probe shoppers about their budgets and wish lists, helping them pick the right gifts and creating more profitable, long-lasting customer relationships.