Business VoIP Featured Article

A Majority of Call Center Software Falls Short on Mobile Support

May 21, 2015

By Laura Stotler, Business VoIP Contributing Editor

Mobility is one of, if not the hottest, trends happening in the tech sector right now. Juniper Research says mobile application revenue is expected to reach $99 billion by 2019 and mobility is consistently named as one of the top enterprise technology trends.


Surprisingly, the call center market has not jumped on the mobility bandwagon, and in most cases has actually shunned it. According to research from GetApp, an independent cloud apps marketplace, only five of the top 25 call center applications feature iOS and Android options. Nearly every application in the CRM and customer service realm has a mobile app, however, pointing to a serious disconnect when it comes to the call center.

Nextiva, which offers a comprehensive call center solution, supports a full array of access options including mobility. The company’s hosted cloud contact center is accessible from regular phones, PCs and Mac OSX as well as the iOS and Android platforms. It offers standard call center functionality including intelligent call routing and distribution, reporting and web-based agent and supervisor clients. But the mobile applications are a massive bonus, enabling agents to access all the features of the phone system via mobile devices, enabling them to do their jobs virtually anywhere. Agents may also use the mobile apps to make video calls, instant message colleagues, and modify call settings like call forwarding, do-not-disturb and simultaneous ring options.

These types of mobile features are important as call centers continue to evolve and expand. Off premises and virtual call centers are becoming an increasingly popular alternative to the traditional large brick and mortar shops, and have vastly different technology requirements. These contact centers need to provide flexibility to employees, who will often work remotely from their own homes and using their own devices. Support for mobility is an absolute requirement in these cases, since agents are working in different time zones and are using a wide range of devices to conduct business.

Similarly, the trend in customer support is toward serving the omni-channel customer. Today’s customers and prospects are on the go, and expect a wide range of customer service extending well beyond brick and mortar and even phone support. These omni-channel buyers want to get a full range of support, through whatever type of device they happen to fancy. Having mobile agents with a variety of communication options is not only desirable, it’s necessary to meet the needs of this growing segment of customers.

Call center mobility enables agents to meet the needs of the omni-channel customer, whether it be a video chat, a collaborative shopping experience or pushing location-specific information to a customer or prospect.

With the broader spectrum of CRM and customer service apps supporting mobility, the call center market needs to catch up and catch up fast. And those vendors who are already offering mobile apps are a step ahead in the game, giving them an important advantage as the contact center realm moves toward mobility and support for the omni-channel.




Edited by Maurice Nagle

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