| Buying on the Web can be as easy as a mouse click. But the decision-making process that precedes the purchase can get complicated. And online retailers that use only FAQ lists or canned e-mail responses risk frustrating their customers and losing sales.
In an effort to give consumers better answers, some e-businesses have added another help function to their sites: talking to a service representative directly via the Web.
By marrying voice with Web business — and by putting the combined technology in the simple form of a push-to-talk button on their sites — users hope to boost service levels, give customers information they need to follow through with online purchases and ultimately improve the bottom line.
IP telephony vendor eStara said its clients turn to such technology to keep customers from leaving their sites with unanswered questions. EStara relies on the public telephone network and the Internet to allow a potential buyer to click on a Web link to open a voice connection with a customer service representative.
“Voice really is the most simple form of communications and the easiest way to close sales,” said Tom Natelli, CEO of eStara. | 
