Who is Molly?

Meet Molly Wallace Kerrigan, Senior Director of Retention & CX at Shinesty!

About Shinesty

The Shinesty brand was created for one reason only: to force the world not to take itself too seriously. We’re talking pre/post-coital party kimonos, ball hammock boxer briefs, denim-print swimwear, neon ski suits, the original Christmas Suit, and a cornucopia filled with oh, so much more. Stay weird and shine on.

Shinesty’s mission is to encourage the world to take itself a little less seriously. They’re best known for their Ball Hammock® Pouch Underwear, which gives men’s family jewels next-level support, and their women’s underwear, which combines incredible softness with playful designs. Shinesty creates a wide range of basics that are dangerously comfortable and anything but ordinary.

Molly’s CX Journey

Molly started her career in Marketing in 2015. With over 6 years in the field under her belt, she joined Shinesty in 2021 as Senior Director of Retention. The role has allowed her to expand her professional skill set and she says, “I really started diving into the CX space, which has become a major pillar of my career.”.

For an E-Commerce brand with a strong customer base like Shinesty, marketing and CX are lockstep. Managing both teams puts Molly in a unique position to observe this “push-pull” relationship.  “Whatever we are doing on the marketing side is quickly passed to CX,” she explains. “I’m able to make changes on my end in terms of a marketing message or product feedback because I’m seeing those tickets and talking to those agents on a daily basis.”

The CX Philosophy at Shinesty

Molly points out that Shinesty’s goal is to treat every customer with the same high-level service, rather than focusing only on VIPs While Shinesty takes CX very seriously, you don’t have to spend long browsing its products to see this is a brand that likes to have fun. “We have some funny agents. And we like to talk to our customers as friends,” Molly says, noting that brand humor is incorporated into CX interactions (when appropriate). Even their AI agent is in on the joke at times. 

Utilizing ‘Boots on the Ground’ Insight from CX

To better understand the impact of marketing, Molly relies on feedback from CX agents who are ‘boots on the ground’ in customer interactions. In fact, the brand looks to CX to gauge performance across departments. “I’m seeing and reporting on these interactions, it’s easy to pass off information to the correct teams,” Molly explains. “We’re definitely using those insights from one-on-one conversation to apply to future growth.” She goes on to say that unlike some companies that reduce CX to repetitive tasks, Shinesty respects her team and understands its importance to the brand.

Utilizing AI in CX

From the end of 2023 through 2024, Shinesty worked on setting up a solid foundation for CX, which entailed incorporating AI into its strategies. AI and automation handle a high volume of tickets, Molly reveals, and has freed up live agents to devote more time to driving revenue. “Now, we can focus more on conversion, handling those instant chat tickets, and driving conversions through presale conversations.”.

CX as a Revenue Driver

Asked if CX is being used to drive revenue, Molly says they have experienced great success with a subscription program, which started with underwear and has now expanded to include socks, laundry sheets, and t-shirts. “It’s a growing part of our business,” she adds. Promoted to first-time and repeat purchasers alike, the program is a low-risk commitment, and customers can cancel at any time. 

Building a Subscription Program for Apparel

Subscription offers are not common among apparel brands. Molly believes the success of Shinesty’s program stems from taking an everyday product and making it fun and unique. “We launch 4 to 5 new prints each month, so you can look forward to getting new artwork in each monthly order,” she notes. In fact, all of Shinesty’s new product launches are created with the subscriber in mind. And something that many people don’t know is that underwear is supposed to be replenished every 6 months. Molly admits this is a hard message to market, so, they hope the appealing designs, savings, and early access perks lure customers to follow ‘rule of thumb’ advice.

Optimizing AI in CX Strategies

Ticket Response Rate

Incorporating the Gorgias Beta program into CX has allowed Shinesty to automate 50% of tickets. “This includes flows, article recommendations, and picking up on intents and sending the correct article recommendation,” Molly reveals. They’ve also added an AI agent, which now automates 18% of email tickets and has replaced auto responders to give a more personalized message. “It’s been great,” she exclaims. “Sometimes I look at the response and think, ‘Wow, that’s better than I could have done.’” Additionally, successful implementation of AI enabled the company to restructure its CX Team - now an automation process lead is devoted to optimizing AI and workflows.

Leveraging Automate During Peak Season

Shinesty’s peak season is the holidays and in 2022, they hired 12 agents to provide additional support during the busy period. After introducing automation in 2023, they were able to provide full support in Q4 with just 5 members – the company plans on keeping to this number for the 2024 peak season. “They’ll be able to focus on the more specialized tickets during the holidays,” Molly says. “Automate has cut down tremendously on the number of agents we need to hire.” Additionally, the efficiency of automation and AI in CX strategies allowed Shinesty to extend its live chat hours from 9-5 to 7-9 pm.

Looking Ahead: Priorities and Goals for CX

Continuing to Elevate the Customer Experience

Moving forward, Molly’s main initiative is retention and CX is improving the brand’s subscription program. She asks, “How do you make those customers, those VIP customers, truly feel special?” The best answer, she maintains, requires a holistic approach encompassing all aspects of CX from revamping benefits to making sure the customer always feels they have ‘control’ over their subscription.

Affiliate and Influencer Marketing

Shinesty knows partnerships are key to growing their brands reach, visibility, and engagement. Consequently, the company is prioritizing affiliate and influencer marketing. “We’re getting those initiatives more organized and putting into place more refined processes,” Molly reveals. “As they continue to grow, we’re looking into the opportunities that are presented.”

The Future of AI in E-Commerce

Shinesty has had quantifiable gains incorporating AI into CX strategies - the company also uses AI tools to assist with writing help articles. Viewing AI as “just getting off the ground,” Molly is open to further exploring its use in E-Commerce, particularly in marketing. “We’re in the really interesting, beginning stages of AI, and I think there are a lot of great ideas in the work,” she says.