The Next Route To Customers: Tele/Web
Integration
BY FRED FASSMAN, IBM.COM
For companies trying to win business on the Internet, the newest
wrinkle on the World Wide Web is real, live people.
Many e-business firms are moving fast to link their Web sites with
their customer support call centers -- what some call tele/Web
integration. This new route to market offers an opportunity for companies
to boost their e-commerce revenue, improve customer service and leverage
their existing call centers.
It's difficult to pin down how many companies have tele/Web capability
today, but it's safe to say the number is growing. According to the
California-based consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, there has been a
100 percent annual increase of call centers that are becoming integrated
with the Web.
For companies doing business on the Internet, the incentives to invest
in building a tele/Web capability are considerable. For starters, Internet
telephony can help overcome the low conversion rate of browsers to buyers
at retail Web sites. Although a large percentage of customers bail out of
transactions on the Web before they are completed, Forrester Research
reports that 63 percent of visitors would finish their purchase if they
had more information. With more interactive customer service options
available, companies are able to improve customer conversion rates and
even upsell buyers who engage in conversation with a knowledgeable sales
rep.
The other significant benefit for firms is the added efficiency the
tele/Web channel brings to the market coverage model. As customers use the
self-service capabilities of the Internet for presales reconnaissance work
and to complete simple, low-cost transactions, salespeople have more time
to spend closing transactions and focusing on complex, profitable
opportunities.
Dramatic Implications For Call Centers
Like many ramifications of the Internet, the explosion in Web-based
business has affected call centers in different ways than originally
assumed. The common expectation had been that as more customers used the
Web for e-commerce, call centers would experience a drop in call volumes
and transactions. That has not proven to be the case.
In fact, the rapid emergence of the Web as both a sales and services
channel for business customers and consumers is transforming the role of
traditional call centers. Early adopters of the tele/Web channel are
experiencing a significant change in both the type and volume of calls
coming into their centers.
As tele/Web takes hold, call center inquiries decrease at both ends of
the sales cycle. A bell curve emerges as the number of calls in the center
of the sales cycle spikes and the number of inquiries from customers
needing pre- or post-sales information decreases. Customers often find
self-service on the Web a more efficient means of finding answers to basic
questions, but research suggests that a firm's Web site can drive call
center volumes overall by up to 20 percent, thanks to the Web's ability to
generate demand.
This shift in call type represents a positive trend for companies
seeking to leverage their call center resources. It means reps can spend
more time where they should: upselling, cross-selling and closing orders
on qualified sales leads.
New Tools And Technologies
The implementation of the Web in call centers requires basic
technology investments. One is to Web-enable the telephone switches in
your call centers. Connecting a Web server with a call center's telephony
system is technically feasible and reasonably affordable.
Another vital technology in creating a tele/Web capability is Web
collaboration software. There are software products that allow telesales
agents to initiate collaborative activity with customers. They also allow
a company's agents to demo software products and escort customers through
presentations -- making collaborative notes as necessary -- while the rep
and customer talk on the phone. Use of these technologies increases
confidence in the Web site and helps companies develop online
relationships with their customers.
Lessons Learned From Tele/Web Pilots
Here at IBM, the tele/Web capability is being aggressively rolled out.
This year, we have been conducting pilots with call request buttons on
many sites in North America. Calls generated by the sites have been routed
to our sales centers in Toronto and Atlanta. We are in the process of
deploying similar pilots in Europe, where calls will be directed to IBM's
Dublin sales center.
Our initial pilots offer some early lessons in what will be required to
effectively develop this new channel.
This new channel must be marketed successfully to succeed. Tele/Web is
an ideal way to provide cost-efficient support to customers on simple
transactions. But customers need clear incentives to use this new channel
and it needs to be promoted. Selling in a global medium over the Internet
makes pricing very complex, but the goals are straightforward: no matter
what the product, pricing structures need to be as simple as possible and
currency valuations transparent.
Many companies will find they require new measurements. Linking
telesales and the Web together into a single channel requires the
development of a new management system to realign the objectives and
incentives driving performance in these two formerly distinct channels.
For example, in the telesales environment, telereps are measured on order
volumes and revenue. In a tele/Web role, telesales reps must be given
incentives to convince customers to use the Web for presales technical
support and post-sales service. To be successful in moving transactions to
the Web, a firm must reward its sales team for helping to make this
happen.
Common infrastructure is a big plus. For large, established
multinational firms with a multitude of sales and distribution call
centers and thousands of employees, a common set of systems and
applications across all call centers is important. It makes it possible to
assemble a treasure trove of customer information gleaned from tele/Web
transactions that can be stored in a common database.
Companies that integrate their call centers and Web functionality also
require highly skilled telesales agents. Often, Web site-generated
customer inquiries to the call center are more complex than typical
questions that come through a toll-free number published on direct
marketing materials. Tele/Web customers want more than the information
they can find on the Web site. They are looking for assistance from
knowledgeable, experienced professionals who can help them navigate their
choices on the Web and make intelligent buying decisions. The telesales
reps who field Web-generated calls need to be thoroughly schooled in the
Web sites their customers are surfing -- and be able to add value by
providing additional information and examples beyond what customers can
find on their own.
Tele/Web promotes teamwork. In IBM's initial tele/Web pilots, our
primary objective was to test how customers would respond to
"call-me" buttons. Going through the process of putting together
a workflow model to implement this capability turned out to be a strong
impetus for building teamwork across many new functions. Making the
technology appear seamless to customers requires cross-unit coordination
among the call centers, the Web management team and the offering product
divisions. To be effective, tele/Web requires continual integration of
processes and teamwork throughout a company. If that is not happening as
much as it should in your organization, the creation of a tele/Web
capability should help promote the sort of internal collaborations that
benefit customers.
Enormous Potential
For call centers, the emergence of the tele/Web channel is a
tremendous opportunity to drive large increases in revenue and customer
satisfaction. But it requires a strong commitment across a company to
create and nurture this new route to customers. For companies who can
marry the skilled people resources in their call centers with the dynamic
medium of the Internet, tele/Web holds enormous potential as a new way to
attract business and delight customers.
Fred Fassman is vice president, global call centers for IBM, the
predecessor of the current IBM.com organization. He is responsible for
leveraging IBM's investment in over thirty worldwide call centers and
integrating these with the company's Web site into a new sales channel.
IBM is a developer and manufacturer of advanced information technologies,
including computer systems, software networking systems, storage devices
and microelectronics.
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