3rd Party Remote Call Monitoring Feature
April 27, 2016
Insight: Automation, Internal Chat Can Elevate Contact Center Efficiency
By Paula Bernier, Executive Editor, TMC
What we used to refer to as call centers are now morphing into contact centers as businesses leverage not only voice, but also other mediums such as chat, email, text, and even social media to reach out and touch their customers – and to respond to customers who reach out to them. Whether these interactions take place over the phone, using other channels, or some combination thereof, customers still expect friendly service and quick resolution to their requests. Delivering on those expectations, and perhaps even exceeding them, requires a combination of selecting the right contact center agents, providing them with the appropriate training, and outfitting them with the tools they need to get the job done.
As Mckay Bird writes in a recent article on the Customer Think website, efficient contact centers produce higher customer satisfaction, and the right technology can help the businesses that run contact centers both build customer loyalty and grow their own profits, while lowering costs. Automating tasks and streamlining workflows, leveraging internal chat, and mapping efficiency measures to key performance indicators are a few of the things contact centers can do to allow for more efficient contact centers, adds Bird.
Internal chat features allow agents and managers to interact in real time for faster results, Bird notes. That’s more efficient than email, which might entail searching through old email threads, the author adds.
Automating tasks and streamlining workflows, meanwhile, allow agents to put their time and efforts to the best use, Bird suggests. It also helps to avoid agent fatigue, he adds.
Efficiency, of course, needs to tie into key performance indicators such as first call resolution, which involves addressing customer needs during the agents’ first interactions with them, Bird says.
“An efficient FCR rate means the customer’s need is being taken care of and addressed immediately, which alleviates any potential frustration from a customer perspective and adds to an overall positive customer experience,” he says.