Virtual Contact Center

 

The contact center plays a vital role in the success of the organization as it is generally the only point of contact between the customer and the company. If the customer experiences anything less than stellar service by the contact center, he or she may decide their business could be more appreciated elsewhere and thus a customer is lost. While this may seem simplistic, recent research has proven that customer churn as a result of poor service in the contact center really is that simple.

 

Those organizations that are coming to terms with this realization are taking a closer look at the type of contact center operations they currently have in place. Instead of making the investment to significantly change current processes and expand to meet the demand, many organizations are turning to a virtual contact center model.

 

While such a set-up can bring tremendous benefit to the organization and to the customer, there are obstacles that could present themselves that will need to be overcome. These obstacles can exist both for the company developing a virtual contact center to complement the physical center and for those organizations whose foray into the virtual contact center is their first attempt at hosting customer service in-house.

 

The first obstacle that can rear its ugly head when trying to implement a virtual contact center is the resistance to change within the organization and/or the existing contact center. People don’t like change, whether it is within their department or not and without proper change management, resistance can cause a decline in moral, slow adoption of solutions and even increase attrition. Whether the virtual contact center implementation is an expansion or a new development, it is still a change that must be effectively managed.

 

The next challenge for the organization is to determine how the virtual contact center will look. Will the company use agents located around the world or in a specific geographic location? How many agents are necessary to support the forecasted lows and highs in call volume, while also keeping with the corporate strategy? How will these individuals be managed and what type of individual will best fit the virtual contact center agent persona? 

 

A third obstacle for the organization to consider is how their customer base will perceive the virtual contact center? Recent research has indicated that when a customer believes the contact center is offshore, their satisfaction declines by 26 points on a 100-point scale, according to CFI Group. While a virtual contact center does not need to include offshore agents, will it give the perception that it is not domestically located? Understanding how the virtual contact center will be received by the customer base is essential for its success.

 

While there are other challenges that the organization can face when considering the implementation of a virtual contact center, the three mentioned here are critical to overcome before action is taken. The vendors that the organization will rely on in this process can also help in addressing these issues. And, while each is indeed an obstacle to success, with proper understanding and management, they can be easily overcome.

 

 

 

Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMC (News - Alert) and has also written for eastbiz.com. To see more of her articles, please visit Susan J. Campbell’s columnist page.