Omni-Channel Customer Engagement Article

The customer service agent may be very good at her job, but she can only deliver satisfaction to the extent of the tools available to her. The customer who had to connect the live call because he couldn’t find what he needed on the website may already be frustrated. If she has to ask him for information he’s already shared, the omni-channel customer experience is lost and time is wasted.

This is unfortunate as the agent may be very talented at handling customer interactions, especially for frustrated customers. But if she can’t meet his expectations where technology and streamlined information are concerned, it may not matter when the metrics are reviewed. Such a scenario isn’t fair to her, robs the customer of the right experience and has the potential to push the customer to the competition.

Consumers today expect so much more from the contact center or company interaction that the lack of omni-channel customer engagement priority is no longer acceptable. A recent TechTarget piece highlighted the importance of this experience. Consumers use a variety of tools and channels to interact and they expect companies to be able to respond in kind, seamlessly. The service should be high quality, regardless of the channel selected, and the channels must integrate.

For the agent trying to operate in this new climate, old technology doesn’t fit the demand. For instance, the consumer may be able to seamlessly move from one channel to another, with his information intact. But if the agent doesn’t have a single view of the customer and his activities and accounts, the experience falls short. She can’t easily meet his needs and he becomes frustrated. Regardless of the brand, consumers expect omni-channel engagement and they expect it to be pain-free.

And while customer expectations should be a priority, so too should employee expectations. The employee experience matters as all leading companies understand the value of the engaged and effective employee. Incentives that help motivate are key, but so too is the necessary technology to empower employees to meet the expectations of the job.

If the excellent agent becomes frustrated with the lack of tools to be effective in her position, she’ll look to another company that can meet the need. The former employer then has the expense of replacing her with another agent likely to fall short of her experience and skills.

The point is the bar has been set high and continues to rise. Companies hoping to stand out from the competition, satisfy the customer and keep quality agents need to invest in robust solutions that support the omni-channel customer engagement experience.

Aspect (News - Alert) Software is one company helping the contact center meet the higher standard. If yours isn’t there yet, it’s time to develop your strategy and get to work. Any further delay and your customers may get to the competition and then, it’s too late.