Call Center Management Featured Article
Is Your Call Center Ready for Millennial Demands?
The customer base is changing – have you noticed the trends that continue to impact the way individuals interact with your call center, use your products and even share information? If you’ve also noticed an increase in business and activity, you might be tempted to simply expand your staff and your hours of operation to accommodate. One thing that call center management needs to know, however, is that today’s consumer is not interested in more of the same, but instead innovative ways of doing business.
A recent NLInews piece highlighted this trend as millennials are taking on a greater percentage of the customer base and changing the way we do business. They don’t want to see you offer longer hours; they want to see call center management put processes in place that reflect the complexity of the interactions required and the devices they are using, while also being efficient. That doesn’t mean you have to completely change everything you’re doing; instead, you need to think of how you might approach a hybrid of digital and traditional customer care.
In reality, customers of all ages in today’s markets want to interact automatically with whatever device they use for interactions. Even the Baby Boomer has a smartphone and they may want mobile support that is quick and easy. If millennials are setting the stage, the older generations are picking up some of the pieces. They are enjoying the changes they see in customer care and are following suit. Case in point – personalized approaches to the purchasing activity of any consumer. Amazon spoiled us and now everyone has to live up to the hype.
At the same time, millennials can be confusing. You know they want to use voice control on their phones for a variety of activities. They also want call center management to leave them alone and let them navigate through self-service channels with complete control over the steps they take and the time at which they complete the steps. But, as soon as something goes wrong or they get stuck, they want the informed, live agent ready and available to solve the issue without complication.
Fortune suggests that over the next five years, the millennial purchasing power will increase 133 percent to reach $1.4 trillion. This is significant for any company trying to compete in the market, regardless of their industry or offerings. This purchasing power is significant even as these millennials age and become a better part of other groups. As this happens, call center management will have a range of other channels to face. Implementing those changes now is critical to success tomorrow.
Edited by Stefania Viscusi