Faire Customer Service: Practical, Expert Guide for Retailers and Brands

Contents

1 Faire Customer Service: Practical, Expert Guide for Retailers and Brands

Introduction — purpose and scope

This document explains how to design and operate high-performance customer service (CS) for a B2B marketplace or wholesale platform such as Faire, or for any brand selling through Faire. It focuses on measurable service levels, channel strategy, staffing, escalation, tech selection, and sample SLAs and templates you can adapt. The recommendations are based on industry best practices and real operational ranges used by mid-market e-commerce support teams (50–500 seats) in 2019–2024.

Read this as a pragmatic playbook: each section includes targets, concrete metrics, and example configurations you can implement in 30–90 days. Where numbers are shown they are realistic operational targets (not marketing promises) and are intended as benchmarks to tune to your own customer base and product price points.

Core metrics and service-level targets

To run reliable customer service you must instrument a small set of KPIs and guardrails. Start with these five operational targets: First Response Time (FRT), Average Handle Time (AHT), First Contact Resolution (FCR), Customer Satisfaction (CSAT), and Net Promoter Score (NPS). Typical target ranges for a healthy B2B wholesale support team are: FRT — live chat <1 minute, phone <30 seconds, email <12–24 hours; AHT — 4–12 minutes per interaction; FCR — 70–85%; CSAT — 85%+; NPS — 20–50 depending on maturity.

Measure cost efficiency too. Expect cost-per-contact to vary from $2–$25 depending on channel: automated/self-serve $0.10–$2, chat $2–$8, email $3–$12, phone $8–$25. Use these ranges to build staffing models: for example, 1 full-time agent can handle ~60–120 written tickets per day or ~20–40 phone calls, assuming an 8-hour shift and time for wrap-up and breaks.

Essential KPIs

First Response Time (by channel): live chat <1 min, email <24 hrs, social <2 hrs.

First Contact Resolution: target 70–85% for simple orders; escalate complex claims.

CSAT: aim for 85%+, measure by short 2-question surveys after resolution.

Operational: backlog <48 hours, agent occupancy 70–80%, schedule adherence ≥90%.

Channels, tools, and pricing examples

Choose tools that centralize conversations, automate common tasks, and provide searchable knowledge. Common toolset: a helpdesk (Zendesk, Freshdesk, Gorgias), a messaging layer (Intercom, Drift), order & returns management (returns portal + Shopify/Magento plugins), and analytics (Looker, Metabase). Integrations are critical — connect order data, inventory, and CRM so agents can resolve issues in a single pane.

Example commercial pricing ranges (2024 reference): Zendesk Suite from $19–$99/agent/month for basic to professional tiers; Intercom starts around $39/month plus per-seat costs; Gorgias targets e-commerce with plans from ~$10–$60/agent/month depending on ticket volume. Expect to budget $600–$2,000 per agent/month total when including software, training, and overhead for teams of 5–50 agents.

Processes: triage, escalation, refunds, and SLA examples

Define a triage matrix that classifies contacts into: (A) order status & tracking, (B) returns & refunds, (C) product defects/damaged, (D) account/billing, (E) partnership/wholesale inquiries. For each class define: expected owner, allowable resolution time, refund policy thresholds, and escalation path. Example SLA: order-tracking and account questions — respond within 12 hours, resolve within 72 hours; defective product claims — respond within 4 hours, resolve within 7 business days with evidence-based audit.

Refund and return policies should be explicit: a common wholesale-friendly policy is 30-day return window for defects, free return shipping for orders over $150, and credit/replace option within 7–10 business days after claim approval. Track returns by RMA number, document photos, and store a claims maturity log with timestamps for audit and fraud detection.

Staffing, hiring, and training playbook

Recruit agents with mixed skills: 60% product knowledge, 30% problem-solving, 10% technical/ESL capability. For a scaling operation, build a training curriculum that includes 12 hours of product training, 8 hours of system/tool training, and ongoing coaching with weekly QA review. Use a checklist-based certification: new hires should handle 10 supervised tickets and pass a CSAT threshold before independent handling.

Use workforce planning to forecast load: convert sales forecasts to expected contacts (use contact rate 1–3% of orders as a baseline). For example, at 10,000 monthly orders and a 2% contact rate = 200 tickets/month; with average handling 20 tickets/day per agent you need ~2 agents plus 30% coverage for peaks and PTO.

Reporting, continuous improvement, and escalation governance

Publish a weekly dashboard with FRT, FCR, CSAT, backlog, top 10 ticket reasons, and top 5 SKUs generating complaints. Hold a 30–60 day RCA (root cause analysis) cadence on recurring issues; map fixes to product, logistics, or content (e.g., 40% of “wrong size” complaints are solved by improving product pages). Use quarterly NPS surveys and follow up with detractors within 72 hours.

Create a formal escalation matrix with names, phone numbers, and SLA penalties where appropriate. Example escalation path: Level 1 agent → Team Lead (within 4 hours) → Ops Manager (within 24 hours) → Director/Legal for high-value claims over $5,000 or regulatory matters. Store contact points centrally (e.g., [email protected], +1 (800) 555-1234 for urgent escalations) and test escalation drills semi-annually.

Operational checklist to implement in first 90 days

In the first 30 days: centralize channels into one helpdesk, create knowledge base articles for top 20 issues, and set baseline KPIs. Days 31–60: recruit and train agents, publish SLAs, and implement a returns workflow with RMA tracking. Days 61–90: enable automation (canned responses, routing), launch CSAT surveys, and run the first RCA on highest volume ticket type.

By month 3 you should have measurable baselines for FRT, FCR, and CSAT and be ready to optimize staffing by +/-20% depending on demand. Keep governance lightweight but data-driven: iterate monthly on top-5 friction points and track cost per contact to ensure profitability alongside customer happiness.

How do I talk to customer service?

7 Tips for Getting Better Customer Service

7 AM is the Best Time to Call. The best time of day to call customer service is in the morning.
Wednesdays and Thursdays are the Best Days to Call.
Talk to a Real Person.
Come Prepared.
Be Polite.
Use the Power of Empathy.
Ask for the same agent.
Ask for a Manager (If You Must)

How do I contact Farfetch customer service?

We ask that you contact our Customer Service department on [email protected] or feel free to call (EU: +44 (0) 20 3962 2362 or US: +1 646 791 3768) for further assistance.

Can you refund on Faire?

Refunding, returning, and canceling Faire orders
You can refund, return, or cancel your Faire orders the same way as you do for your other orders in your Shopify admin. However, you can’t initiate a refund request for an order on Faire yourself, only your retailer can request a refund.

How to contact Wayfair customer service by phone?

If you have questions about your order status, you can reach Wayfair Customer Service at 1-844-263-4868.

How do I speak to someone at Faire?

Contact Faire Support via the Help Center:

In the Help Center, select Contact Us.
Provide more details about your issue.
Follow the prompts and choose from the available options listed in the Contact Us section: Live Chat – Available during operating hours for verified customers.

What is the deal with Faire?

It doesn’t cost anything for the maker to join, but Faire takes a percentage from orders placed on the site. First time store orders have a steep 25% commission (Updated in May 2023 to 15% + $10 fee), while all reorders have a 15% commission. In addition, there is a 3% credit card fee on all orders.