Slack: The Backbone of Our Customer Experience

Committed to delivering exceptional customer experiences, we rely on Slack for quick and efficient responses. In this blog, we’ll share how we leverage Slack to improve our operations and customer satisfaction.

The Upgrade

We’ve been using Slack for years. Even in our previous business we used it for internal comms, after migrating from HipChat in 2014. At Farfill we started using Slack from inception in 2019 to communicate internally and manage parts of our customer service. Slack Connect launched in 2020 which was probably one of Slack's most powerful releases. Prior to Slack Connect we had to invite single channel guests to a customer specific room. With Slack Connect you can now connect with external organisations (on a paid Slack plan) and connect with a customer's complete team.  

Customer First

One of Farfill’s key strengths is aiming to delivering a solid customer experience. A core belief is being responsive to our customers, no matter the situation. Our team, spread across eight countries, manages country-specific operations channels to ensure smooth communication. When challenges arise, we quickly collaborate through calls to address the situation and find effective solutions for the future.

Ticket Taming

We also use emails, we manage our email inbox with HelpScout which we also used pre-Farfill days. It’s a great tool to manage tickets. We rely heavily on HelpScout to efficiently manage communication with our vendors, including shipping giants like Aramex, DHL, DPD, etc. These interactions often involve requests for additional details, such as customs clearance information, which is essential to ensure smooth logistical operations With over 10,000 emails handled in just the past two years, HelpScout has proven invaluable in resolving tickets, with approximately 29,000 since 2019 ensuring prompt responses and keeping both our customers and partners in the loop.

Keep it Casual

We much prefer it if a customer jumps on Slack, however we don’t push it if they’re more comfortable with emails - which a lot are. Slack makes communication so much easier and with our team dotted around multiple time zones customers can get responses fairly quickly regardless of what time a message has been sent in. Additionally, it allows for easy file sharing and message searching, ensuring we can always refer back to past conversations when needed.

Hub of Communication

Internally, we have three main operations channels for the UK, Ireland, and Dubai, with plans to add an Australian one soon. These are the most active channels, along with a general one where we’ve been sharing more updates, including photos of the teams and warehouses. Additionally, we have specific channels for teams like people operations, engineering, marketing, and sales. As the team expands, we recognise the importance of enhancing internal communication to ensure everything runs smoothly.

Streamlining Slack

We’ve been building out a few automations within Slack, using Google Sheets to manage different aspects of the business. One of our priorities was tracking issues in Slack and how long it took to resolve them. So, we came up with a pretty simple solution: clicking on an emoji (📝) would instantly send the issue into a Google Sheet, what we’ve officially (or unofficially) dubbed the Global Issue Tracker. This tool logs everything: the customer, the message, the team member who reported it, the Slack channel it appeared in, when it was posted, the URL, the client’s country, the status, and most importantly, how long it took to resolve. There are also additional fields for tracking the reason for the issue, the client, and any important notes.

Meet Filbert

We’ve also developed an internal tracking application that alerts customers if there are any issues with their shipments. The app sends notifications directly to Slack. We’ve begun testing it by pushing updates for shipments facing issues, like customs delays or exceptions, into our tracking feed channel. Meet our bot, Filbert. Whenever there’s an issue, Filbert forwards it to the appropriate customer channels, ensuring they’re always in the loop. We have started providing access to our tracking tool to some of our clients. It's version 1 so the UI is fairly raw.

Our Lifeline

So yes, Slack is very very useful for our business and we’d be lost without it. I would recommend any business that has a team that’s remote or internal to use Slack. Features that we've built, like the Global Issue Tracker and our tracking application, allow us to respond swiftly to customer inquiries and manage issues effectively. By fully leveraging Slack, we foster accountability and continuous improvement, making it a vital tool for any business aiming to elevate their customer service and operational efficiency.

Keep Slacking.