Must Haves for Your Call Center
Traditional inbound and outbound call centers use a variety of technologies to communicate with existing and prospective customers it is these must have(s) which some change is required to compete.
Inbound ACD and IVR (PBX functions): provide queuing and call routing to ensure responses are timely and handled by the proper department. Most of our experiences though when calling a center result in attempting to enter in an account number or phone number to have the IVR not use the information. Then when we are connected to the CSR we are asked for the exact information we were requested to enter, then provide basic contact information to confirm identity. Once all that is accomplished, most times, another transfer is required starting the process all over again. Unfortunately this level of customer experience is very common and no longer acceptable to consumers. The concept is great, execution of the technology and information flow create road blocks to that great customer experience we seek.
Outbound dialing: there are various technologies for this task all with the same goal; contact existing and prospective customers to convey a message. The difficulty here can be once contact is made, having the ability to dynamically share this information internally. Also if the outbound contact is the is the first stage of a process; transferring the customer seamlessly to another department or stage may not be possible. This seamless interaction essential for heightened business development.
Auto Dialer: great tool for reconnecting with customers for a variety of reasons. There are limited capabilities at this time for recording dial results or reciprocal communication from the contact. Example: the customer entering keytones to provide feedback or additional information in an automated process, this information is not tied to main CRM.
Chat: great for answers to simple questions or quick inquires. Not easy to track the communication and tie into other forms of connecting.
Messaging: simple convenient form of conveying a message while lacking a way to add the communication to the client record.
CRM: must be an intuitive system allowing for easy review and updates. CRM programs traditionally are difficult to navigate with each department having their own "system" or individual CRM for recording information.
Call Centers already have access to all these technologies, which when run independently are somewhat effective and provided close to efficient communication. Unified Communication solutions bring all these must have technologies together providing a superior customer experience over the competition.
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