Swarovski is crystal-clear on the value of managing customer service online

Shane Schick tells stories that help people innovate, and to…
Jewelry is one of the most precious gifts you can give, but the pandemic has taught Swarovski that having the ability to manage the customer experience online is priceless.
Headquartered in Wattens, Austria and family run since its founding in the late 1800s, Swarovski has become known as a premier brand for necklaces, watches and many other accessories that are often made out of crystal.
That means having to shut down stores following the outbreak of COVID-19 could have been devastating, given the company’s tradition in physical retail, according to Isabella Kosch, Swarovski’s head of GBS Service management.
“Crystal is a material that people would like to touch, to feel in a shop, especially as you’re selling jewelry and watches,” Kosch said during a session this week at ServiceNow’s virtual summit, Knowledge 2021.
Even so, customers proved more than willing to pivot to online orders in order to continue to buy accessories and gifts, Kosch said. The downside was that
Shane Schick tells stories that help people innovate, and to manage the change innovation brings. He is the former Editor-in-Chief of Marketing magazine and has also been Vice-President, Content & Community (Editor-in-Chief), at IT World Canada, a technology columnist with the Globe and Mail and Yahoo Canada and is the founding editor of ITBusiness.ca. Shane has been recognized for journalistic excellence by the Canadian Advanced Technology Alliance and the Canadian Online Publishing Awards.