Call Center Management Featured Article
The Channels of Choice for the Near Future of Customer Interaction
While we may still refer to them as “call centers,” the truth is that the “call” has been bowing out of the “call center” more and more often today. Thanks to the rise of newer digital channels and touch points such as mobile apps and social media, customers have a greater spread of options to use when initiating contact with a company.
Of course, traditional telephone contact isn’t going to disappear entirely. It’s still customers’ channel of choice for truly complex problems. It will, however, become more of a secondary, or backup, mode of communication for when issues can’t be resolved through self-service channels, according to a recent article by Forbes’ Shep Hyken.
It’s not just any digital channels that will be customers’ voice of the future, however. Email – an “old” digital channel that simply isn’t used as frequently by younger consumers – will also see its fortunes fall, particularly as social media channels rise and more people expect two-way communications via vehicles such as Twitter (News - Alert) or Facebook. It helps that these social media companies have actually made it easier for customers to use their services to contact companies.
“Twitter is becoming a strong customer service channel and attracting more and more people because it offers a faster response time than email,” wrote Hyken. “It has even created tools for companies to help create a better customer service experience. Facebook (News - Alert) is a popular place to post comments, good and bad. Smart companies monitor all channels to read and respond to customer comments.”
The new trends won’t stop with social media, however. Hyken cites a recent report by Forrester Research (News - Alert) entitled, “Plan Now for Customer Service in 2021.” The report highlights some of the most up and coming trends for customer support, including virtual assistants (increasingly showing up as artificial intelligence-driven “chat bots” in places such as Facebook, and even two-way video between customers and agents. Customers will be invited to initiate video chat on their smart phones and tablets. It may not become the top channel of choice, but customers will appreciate its availability for more complex interactions.
“When the customer can see the customer service rep, the dynamic changes,” wrote Hyken. “It’s much more ‘personal’ than a just voice on the other end of a phone call. The CSR (News - Alert) [customer support rep] can see the facial expressions that accompany the customer’s words. If it’s a look of frustration, anger, disappointment, etc., the CSR can adapt and give a more personalized experience.”
While none of these ideas are brand-new as concepts, they are increasingly becoming accepted as the norm to come. With companies already making forays into support via chat bot (think Facebook Messenger, which is allowing companies to rebrand the technology for their own use) and two-way video (think Amazon and its “Mayday” button for Kindle customers), the future is already here. Companies that serve a lot of customers from younger demographics – the so-called “Millennials” – will need to research these customers’ preferences and ensure they’re ready to serve them via their channels of choice.
Edited by Stefania Viscusi