It’s understandable that companies would like to “get something” tangible from the new technologies they are investing in: something beyond simply “meeting customer expectations.” As companies realize the necessity of starting programs to monitor social media, offer and support mobile apps, and interact with customers in very new channels, they’d like to imagine that the time and effort they sink in here can come out of somewhere else, achieving a balancing act rather than higher overall expenditures.
“The industry is changing because of technology and consumer behavior: Consumers are increasingly going online or via social media, making answering the phones at traditional call centers a lot less vital for many businesses than even a few years ago,” according Pittsburgh Business Times’ Stephanie Novak, who apparently drew this curious opinion from what some analysts are saying and the fact that some companies such as Verizon (News - Alert) Wireless are closing U.S.-based contact centers.
“Now call center employees are dedicated to answering customer questions via email, live chat and social media,” PNC (News - Alert) Financial Services Group Inc. spokesman Fred Solomon told Novak.
The truth of the matter, however, is that the telephone still remains customers’ first choice for solving problems and issues with companies. Other channels are supplemental, but they are generally NOT replacing the telephone. If anything, the rise in customer expectations has meant that companies need to be investing heavily in both the basic telephone support function as well as new channels such as social media, m-commerce and others.
Thomas Donohoe, president of contact center services provider Level Interactive, confirmed this and noted to Pittsburgh Business Times that call centers are an integral part of his business.
“Donohoe said many companies who launch digital marketing campaigns struggle to handle the volume of new potential clients,” wrote Novak. “If you don’t have the capability to accommodate new customers quickly and efficiently, ‘you’re going to fumble at the five-yard line,’ Donohoe said.”
While it’s true that certain industries are likely to become less phone-intensive – those serving younger consumers, for example, or British consumers, who increasingly rely on email for customer contact – the idea that phone support is becoming unnecessary in this omnichannel age is major fallacy. For some companies banking on this non-existent phenomenon, it could become a damaging one. What many are seeing as proof of this phenomenon – the closing of some U.S. contact centers – is more likely a result of offshore outsourcing, increasing reliance on home-based agents or consolidations of call center facilities.
Edited by Rory J. Thompson