More than one-third of small-business owners staffing up this holiday season

Survey illustrates small businesses expand customer support to enhance reputation management

Needham, Mass. - October 22, 2008 - Approximately 40 percent of small-business owners say they are hiring up to five new employees for customer support over the holidays to help manage customer inquiries, orders and returns, according to a recent RatePoint customer survey.

For many small-business owners the holidays represent their highest-volume selling time, and in a volatile economy, business owners are more anxious than ever to attract and retain customers within the short window between Black Friday and the end of the year. The same survey conducted by RatePoint noted that small-business owners of both online and brick-and-mortar stores are more concerned than ever about their reputation and they see reputation and customer support as vital to achieving holiday sales.

“The holidays are a pivotal time for small-business owners to have their customer support processes operating efficiently,” said Neal Creighton, CEO of RatePoint. “A common-sense approach to customer service can increase repeat customer transactions and boost new sales, which is ultimately what small-business owners want when targeting the bottom line.”

More than 80 percent of the business owners surveyed said that business reputation, in addition to solid customer support, impacts their ability to attract and retain customers. The majority said they will spend up to 10 hours this holiday season monitoring their reputation to safe guard against any possible early warning signs of customer issues.

 “It’s the little things customers remember that go along way,” said Creighton. “Answering their questions, embracing feedback and posting praise from satisfied customers illustrates a well-rounded and reputable business that is ripe for long-term growth.”

More than 50 percent said positive customer reviews aid customer perceptions. A combination of proactive customer contact measures deployed this holiday shopping season such as email marketing campaigns and seeking customer reviews in addition to close attention to customer support can help businesses increase consumer trust at a time when they are more choosy with where to spend a stretched budget.

About RatePoint, Inc.

RatePoint, Inc., the leading provider of customer feedback and online reputation management services, helps businesses protect and build their online reputation, allowing businesses to harness the power of credible customer feedback and leverage it into a sales, marketing and customer service asset.

RatePoint’s easy-to-use, web-based communication services include feedback tools, email marketing, survey and dispute resolution capabilities to provide small- and medium-sized businesses with the ability to collect, manage and promote customer feedback directly from their website. For more information, contact us at: 888-777-1636 or visit: www.ratepoint.com