How to Turn Your Customer Service Team Into a Profit-Driving Growth Engine – with eDesk’s Gareth Cummings (episode 582)
Gareth Cummings is the CEO at eDesk, the AI powered customer support helpdesk for eCommerce. Used by eCommerce stores around the world, their client CarParts.com has just been named in USA Today’s list of America’s Best Customer Service 2026.
In this episode, Gareth explains how eCommerce brands can use customer service, AI, and automation to increase conversion rates, improve retention, and turn support teams into profit-driving growth engines.
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Dive in:
[03:25] “From Customer Service to CTO”
[07:08] Pre-Sales Engagement Trends Expand
[12:31] “AI, Automation, and Customer Focus”
[13:11] Customer Loyalty Flywheel Impact
[16:28] “Prioritizing Customer Experience Transformation”
[20:41] “Automating and Enhancing Customer Support”
[22:40] “Customer Service Empathy Practice”
[24:19] Listen to Gareth’s Top Tips!
Fast customer service directly increases conversion rates
Speed is no longer a “nice to have” in eCommerce customer service. Gareth explains that answering pre-purchase questions within minutes can increase the likelihood of a sale by 50–60%. Fast replies remove friction at the exact moment a customer is ready to buy. They also signal that the brand is trustworthy and well run. If you miss that window, the customer often disappears for good.
Customer service has moved from post-purchase to pre-purchase
Many brands still think of customer service as something that happens after checkout. In reality, up to 30–40% of customer questions now happen before a purchase. These questions often come through chat, social, marketplaces, or messaging apps. They are high-intent moments where the customer is deciding whether to buy from you or a competitor. Treating these interactions as sales opportunities can unlock immediate revenue growth.
Always-on shopping requires always-on support
Customers browse and buy in the evenings, on weekends, and across time zones. Running ads 24/7 but staffing customer service 9–5 leaves revenue on the table. Gareth compares this to a shop that stays open but sends staff home early. AI and automation make it possible to offer 24/7 support without exploding costs. Brands that do this win more impulse purchases and build stronger trust.
AI should remove pressure, not replace your team
The smartest brands use AI to handle repetitive questions like delivery, returns, and order status. This can remove 50–60% of incoming queries from human agents. The payoff is not fewer people, but better people focus. Customer service teams gain time to handle complex issues, VIP customers, and emotional situations. That combination delivers better experiences and higher lifetime value.
Customer service is one of the most underused growth levers
Customer service teams hear customer feedback every single day. Yet that insight is often ignored by marketing, product, and leadership teams. Gareth explains how service data can reveal product issues, delivery problems, and hidden causes of returns. When that feedback loop is closed, brands improve conversion, retention, and profitability. This shift turns customer service from a cost line into a true profit creator.
eCommerce Book Top Tip
- How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
eCommerce Traffic Top Tip
- Clarity and consistency beat tactics. Clearly define what your brand stands for and repeat the same message consistently across all channels.
Tool Top Tip
- Adopt a clear operating system, not just more tools. Gareth recommends EOS (from the book Traction) as a structured way of working that improves ownership, execution, and focus.
Carbon Top Tip
- Reduce returns by improving pre-purchase support. Answering questions before checkout helps customers buy the right product first time.
Interview links
Related Episodes
- Equichoice’s Chantal Wellavize – balancing 2 business, great customer service tips and a 600% roi marketing method (episode 084)
- 40% year on year growth by focusing on customer service with Gary Amstutz of Sticker and Label (episode 168)
- Fashion replatforming, customer service and the impact of PR with Needle & Thread’s Mark Liddington (episode 262)
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