We look at today’s society and we can see that customers want speed, convenience, and emotional understanding when they are put face-to-face with their favorite brand. It’s pretty clear that we’re looking at some expectations that challenge any contact center, from several points of view, aren’t we?
Let’s see how we win the battle for consumers’ attention by combining technology and the humanization of digital interactions.
But first, let's talk about figures
Approximately 57% of customers, regardless of which generation they belong to, prefer to interact with their favorite brands in a digital way.
The cloud is a solution loved by contact centers so 3/4 of them are already in the cloud. This allows orientation toward business and many better-developed strategies.
Companies prefer innovation brought by technological evolution, thus 75% of companies that have partnered with technology say that they have more confidence in new and innovative tools, such as AI.
At the same time, interaction analysis is in a winning position: about two-thirds of respondents consider interaction analysis to be “very interesting” for their contact center. Other attractive tools included predictive routing (56.5%), customer prediction models (52.7%), and insight generation (52.4%).
Let's go back to the origins. What are the Components of a Contact Center?
#1 Top-Notch Phone-Technology
Of course, the modern contact center is made up of much more than traditional phone systems—often encompassing a wide variety of communication channels, including instant messaging, social media management, in-app chat functionality, email marketing, and many others. This does not mean, however, that the importance of telephone communications should be underestimated. According to a press release from New Voice Media, 75% of consumers still prefer to speak with a live agent. Thus, VoIP technology integrated directly into the website can be a solution.
#2 Communication alternatives adapted for each generation
We know that the millennial generation prefers to communicate via text messages. Even email remains more popular than talking on the phone. And, because Millennials are the ones with the predominant purchasing power, every contact center should take this into account.
The most important thing to remember here is that the mode of communication must be adjusted according to the generation you intend to speak to.
#3: State of the art Technology: hardware, software, and security
Yesterday’s technology might be too old for today’s generation, so you need to be up to date with everything that is current. This can be challenging given the expense and expertise required.
#4: Experienced IT staff and customer-friendly agents
A team of IT experts can worry-free keep technological problems at bay. At the same time, a team of agents with expertise can keep customers happy.
#5: Data reporting and performance tracking
All the technical infrastructure in the center must also include the monitoring and reporting part. Without data and analyzed results, work can mean nothing.
A love-̶h̶a̶t̶e̶ relationship
With all that in mind, let’s see how you can humanize digital interactions with customers.
Bring the IT Team and Customer Data to the Same Place.
The reality is that many contact centers still have separate data systems from customer data. One of the technological challenges is the unification of data.
Furthermore, there needs to be more connection between the IT and contact center teams. Build omnichannel experiences, you’ll give agents the opportunity to have a 360° view of customers.
Automation. Automation. Automation.
Technology in contact centers changes from day to day. This brings more freedom and time for agents to invest in the most complex procedures, leaving the simple things in the hands of automation. Today there are solutions that help contact centers, but especially agents to be much more efficient and to be able to invest their resources in much more necessary places.
Take action through analytics.
Many organizations are aware of the importance of analysis tools and yet do not fully capitalize on their capabilities.
The most successful contact centers use analytics in meaningful ways. This includes real-time identification of where bottlenecks and friction points are impeding CX. It also means using valuable customer information to provide better, more intelligent, and more predictive service.
At the same time, technology allows contact centers to place their agents with certain skills in much more suitable places where they can bring added value.
In conclusion
As an organization, we encourage you to embrace your relationship with technology. This comes with enormous benefits for your contact center. In addition, there is no time to waste, because things are evolving enormously, and yesterday’s technology may no longer be sufficient for today’s generation.
Need help with this? Our technical team can advise and recommend what your contact center needs.
Help your teams focus on the right insights
The RepsMate team solution analyzes 100% of the agent, customer service, or customer support interactions. Then it turns them into useful information and automates the learning process.
