Did you know McDonald's is getting rid of the McRib?  Sadly, the sandwich is going on a farewell tour. But it's not too late to bring it back.  We're doing our part to save this wonderful sandwich.  Are you?  If you want to save the McRib, go to www.mcrib.com and click on "Play with your Food" in the top left hand corner of the page.  Then tell your friends by selecting the  "Send a McRib Message" on the notepaper.

 It's sort of like that Simpsons episode where Homer travels around the country hunting down Krusty Burger's rib sandwich only to find out that it was available for a limited time...except this time it's real.

D'oh!

We're going on the road.  We'll be attending a couple of shows in the next couple of months.  If you're going, be sure to look out for Cid and John.  First, we'll be attending the InfoCommerce Group Conference on November 6, where we'll be talking to database and online directory publishers about their call tracking needs. 

Later in November, we'll talking about the emergence of new media opportunities for SMBs with the Kelsey Group. 

We'll bring back some souvenirs. 

Again, we can't take credit for the fact that Chrysler Group "rang up its ninth-straight operating profit in the third quarter even as its Detroit counterparts bled billions of dollars in their North American operations."  But you have to admit, it's a strange coincidence that we announced this news on the same day!

A poll this week asks readers of destinationCRM the following question:

What Web support services will your organization implement in the next 12 months as part of its online self-service initiative?

To be fair to the poll, the question did ask what "self-service" tools were companies looking to implement.  But is self-service always the way to go?  We've always said that online commerce is evolving from a "self-service" transaction model to that of strategic customer engagement.  The reality is that self-service cannot always be acheived online...especially for complex sales.

Most people are just more comfortable talking to someone on the phone when they have a question and are about to spend their hard-earned money.  Jupiter Research estimates that a vast majority of online shoppers who spend more than $500 in a 6-month timeframe would rather speak to someone when they have a service issue.  

Of course, some transactions have low values and some companies have low lifetime values per customer.  In those cases FAQs, e-mail and text chat will suffice, but when it comes to big ticket items, companies must think about better ways to engage their customers before they lose the sale.

Internet Retailer reports that online sales are up 24 percent for the year and 21 percent over the last quarter.  And as the holiday season approaches, more growth is expected.  Will online retailers be prepared for the increase in customer inquiries?