The Contact Center Blog

What Makes a Contact Center Agent Unique

Would your hiring requirements be the same for an agent in a sales queue, versus a customer care queue?  No, and it doesn’t make sense to have the same criteria for an agent who will be in a call center answering phones, as one that will be engaging customers in online chat.  

Beyond the obvious requirements of a contact center (chat) agent to have a certain typing speed and superior knowledge of the written word.  There is a need for these agents to have a particular acumen for reading between the lines in a chat conversation in order to determine the tone, demeanor, and current disposition of the person being engaged in the chat.

For example, the ever-prominent ellipsis in online conversations... what does it mean?  As I just used it, the ellipsis is a textual means into a further point or question. But more often than not in an online chat, it means an uncertainty by the person using it.  If a customer, for example says “okay….” It most likely means he/she requires a little more reassurance or guidance in making their purchase or trouble-shooting their problem, and it is the agent’s responsibility to recognize this in order to meet that customer’s needs.

Then there’s endless short-forms used in chat, and while an agent shouldn’t be employing the use of these short forms, he/she must possess a secure knowledge of their meanings, at risk of otherwise being unable to understand the customer’s meaning. IDK why so many ppl need short forms, but FYI many do use them, AKA as acronyms.  B4 you LOL at me for pointing this out, plz visit any chat room for proof and an “OIC” moment.  Did you get that? 

These are just a couple things that new chat agents should be trained for before going live.  What are others that are trained in your contact center?  What do you train your contact center agents for?

Texting the New Calling?

I’ve never been one for texting.  It’s effective for the quick message of where to meet and what time, but a full-on conversation texting has always seemed arduous to me – although maybe that’s because until a couple weeks ago I had an old cell phone with the traditional word pad.  Now with my BlackBerry, I see how efficient and easy it can be to type.

 

Having joined the new age of Smartphones, I now see just how easy it is to text and type into the device.  Maybe this is why I’m not surprised to hear that there is now a call center that is accepting text messages.

 

The center is located in Iowa, and the text messages are for 911 emergencies.  While this is a very specific and localized practice for the time being, it is also a huge leap forward in an ever-evolving world of communications.

 

You can email, Tweet, Facebook, MySpace and blog through your Smartphone.  You also have the option to call, chat or email companies today for assistance.  Therefore, it is a logical, progressional step to be able to text to receive help – especially from 911.

 

So, how long will it be until you can BBM or chat with a representative from your phone?  Only time will tell, but that time is coming. 

 

Tell us what you think – is texting in the near future to be included in call center services?

Mobile Live Chat?

We're already used to seeing this - business workers, teenagers, and college students alike fiddling away with their mobile phones checking emails, playing games, text messaging, or just acting like they're busy! I see this everywhere too, on the the streets, public transit, airports, malls, etc. I'm guilty of most of these things.

Earlier this week, I saw the release of the new iPhone 3GS. There are so many applications the phone already has on top of some of the new features. You can do anything and practically everything on it. For Blackberry users, they can "pin" each other for free. These smart phones save people time, and almost become a remote for everything they need.

In North America, we're finally starting to see some of these 3G/4G technologies in action. Social media applications are compatible with mobiles. As we move closer to this being the norm, is it a far stretch to see a successful Live Chat application or gateway users can access on their phones? People already try to maximize their time while traveling, being able to communicate with stores, banks, companies, etc. on the go would definitely make things more convenient. At the same time, you do it without disturbing those around you.

I personally can see it easily. Next time you're on a train, airplane or even mall - look around and see how many people are casually fumbling around with their mobiles. Despite this, the obvious obstacle will always be consumer adoption. Theoretically though, it makes sense. Maybe a new feature for the next iPhone - you never know. 

2 Online Customer Service Tips for Retail Holiday Season | ACCM

As discussed in the blog post "180 Days Until Christmas", here are the first two tips from Barry Lamm (LivePeson) and Greg Fettes (24-7 INtouch).

180 Days Until Christmas! Are You Ready?

Calling all retailers! Are you ready for this holiday season? Is your online customer service strategy geared up for one of the biggest sales seasons of the year?

Last week at the ACCM show in New Orleans, Greg Fettes, president & CEO of contact center services provider 24-7 INtouch, and Barry Lamm, director of account management and training for live chat software provider LivePerson discussed the importance of a true customer service strategy, that is planned well in advance for the 2009 holiday season.

In 2008, the New York Times reporting that "Online shopping is gaining at a time when simply filing up a gas tank to head to the mall can seem like a spending spree." This quote highlights the importance of a successful sales season for retailers in 2009, to help pull them through these tough economic times.

Multi-Channel Merchant Magazine reported on the presentation and summed up the following Holiday Customer Service Tips from Fettes' and Lamm's presentation.

Use customer service to drive ROI. You spend thousands of dollars to drive traffic to your Website. Quality customer service through multiple channels is proven to increase sales conversions and enhance the customer experience.

It’s not over on Dec. 25. Don’t forget about the post-holiday sales rush! Gift card purchases are on the rise, giving you an opportunity to exceed your first-quarter sales targets. For returns and exchanges, a seamless process will create high brand loyalty and repeat businesses.

Get more out of what you got. With fewer consumers spending, average order value is an important metric for ROI and reduced cost per contact. Use technology analytics and reporting to identify visitors who are most likely to buy and focus on upsells and cross-sells to increase the average order value.

Know your options. Don’t sacrifice sales and service because your headcount budget is frozen. Consider short-term contract work for your after-hours coverage or seasonal overflow contacts.

Lead, don’t follow. Competition is growing each year, and 2009 will be a fight to win consumer dollars. When it comes to service, lead—don’t follow your competition. Make the investment to provide a great experience and leave a lasting positive impression with your customers.

Will Internet Savvy Web 2.0'ers Lead to the Demise of the Traditional Call Center Model?

Recently, I have read that Twitter of all things is apparently the cause of significant call center layoffs. It was stated that more people than ever are taking advantage of corporate Twitter sites to ask customer service questions, which means less traditional phone call inquiries (you can read the article here ).

And what is this I am hearing about 'super users'? -people that enjoy products so much that they surf the web and online corporate communities, jumping at the chance to help their fellow users by answering customer service questions. From a recent tmcnet.com article:

Since last summer, Verizon has transferred much of the responsibility in certain divisions that require high levels of customer service to volunteers - people who have a passion for the wireless, Internet and TV technologies that Verizon peddles, and who like to feel useful. Sound strange? It is. But it's also true. They're called "super-users," and they work through online forums that are gradually developing into self-sustaining databases where customers can go to answer all their questions.

Does this all mean that the end of the traditional customer service call center is near?

I don’t think so.

Don’t get me wrong, there are great self-service companies out there like Bazaarvoiceand Lithium, and they have a place in this ecosystem, but I think people are forgetting to examine the other side of the spectrum and companies like Zappos.com- the reigning King of the customer service experience.

How does one explain Zappos.com’s success in this new self-help world? For gosh sakes they don't even set limits for how long their agents can talk to callers, and I believe the longest service call they ever had was over 5 hours.....

My current thought is that there is a middle ground, and that appropriate and tempered call deflection is the key to success.

What I mean by this is:

Companies should take advantage of these new technologies, incorporating items like robust self-help sections to their websites, and they should also use communication channels like Twitter, live chat and email (which are usually more cost effective than voice support to deploy because of concurrency). But as is the case with Zappos, there is no replacement for the service that can be achieved through voice support. The experience is unparalleled, and for more complicated support issues it is the only viable channel that can be used to adequately understand and address a customers needs.

Although a lot of startups are finding the initial cost savings of self-service tools appealing, as these companies mature, if they hope to develop a long term and re-occurring customer base they are going to have to invest in multi-channel customer service which is anchored by traditional phone support. Simply put, customer’s expectations are higher than ever, and consumers expect a multitude of contact options so they can interact in the way they feel most comfortable with a company.

To conclude, I think self-service is here to stay, and I think it works amazingly well for simple customer services issues. In these challenging economic times, the technologies discussed will also help businesses to reduce their overall customer service expenditures. With that being said, call deflection can only be taken so far. For companies that care about their brand and their overall customer experience, there will always be a need and a role for the kind and caring customer service representative who is available to speak with consumers by phone.                         

-Tim Peters

Google Latitude- New Mobile Phone Based Social Network

I installed Google Latitude today on my BlackBerry. This is a very impressive social networking application that integrates with Google Maps and lets you see the location of your friends and interact with them. Latitude looks to be a building block for more targeted location based mobile advertising. From MediaPost.com:

 “And while the service clearly aims to focus on social networking--connecting friends and family by sharing their whereabouts--the application could easily adopt mobile marketing applications that target users with special deals and ads at specific locations such as in front of Starbucks or McDonald's as they drive or walk down the street.”

I can definitely see a role for call centers to play with this new type of advertising. Anyone clicking on a mobile ad would clearly be a demographic a business would want to target and give the most attention possible.  A great feature would be to have a call center live chat agent discuss  promotions a store was having, and give a potential customer a call to action like an additional 10% off item x if they made their purchase within a certain time frame.

Read more here:  http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=99727

Virtual Customer Service

I recently  visited an online virtual tradeshow hosted by eTailXpo. This was the first time I attended such an event, and although there were some glitches I needed to get over, I was pleasantly surprised. It reminded me of the concept Second Life uses, which is an online virtual world you can explore and network in.

The virtual tradeshow resembled an actual venue, with customized vendor booths. Each vendor had representatives available via chat or email, and when stepping into a virtual booth you can communicate to any one of them. I visited the Google booth to test it out, and communicated with a rep using live chat.

Overall, I thought it was responsive and a great idea. I'm not sure how popular and successful a format like this can become, but just thinking about it brings up ideas of virtual contact centers and the possibility of adding something to the customer experience. Just a thought ...

- JU

Web 2.0 - Does It Affect Contact Centers?

The concept of Web 2.0 has been floating around for a few years now, but recently I've been hearing and seeing it more often. It seems to be a focus of many websites, where there are more interactive and intuitive applications for users.

In today's Web 2.0 world, information is more dynamic, easily being created and shared. This Blog is an example, allowing me to express my opinions. If you're a feed subscriber, you've been notified the moment this post was published. The point is that websites are more interactive and have information that more effectively caters to visitors, allowing them to better personalized experiences.

I just came back from a tradeshow, IRCE, where they had some speakers and sessions surrounding Web 2.0. A large majority of the attendees were online retailers.

How do you think Web 2.0 affects or relates to contact centers?

To start off, in my short opinion I feel the increase in interactivity for website visitors increases the expectations for finding information and answers almost instantaneously. As a result, services such as Live Chat and effective Email Response fits into this structure. Customer support via telephone is also still important, but service levels in this case need to be as dynamic as the websites. What do the rest of you think?

- JU

Smiling Over Live Chat

The one tip I really stress to new Call Center agents here at 24-7 INtouch is to remember to “smile” over the phone. Of course, no one on the other end can actually see the agent smiling, but they really can hear it in the tone of voice.

Which brings us to Live Chat. Almost every perspective client inevitably questions the human touch aspect of it. They’re right to ask. The truth is it’s much harder to communicate effectively via a written medium than it is verbally. Professor Albert Mehrabian theorized that in a face-to-face conversation, only 7% of the actual communication happening comes from the words.

So how do your create the right tone over Live Chat? These are some tips I offer to agents:

• Convey warmth by being extra polite throughout. Add a “please” or “thank-you” wherever possible to create the proper a tone.
• Always try to personalize pre-written or “canned” answers to make them feel spontaneous and to make the customer feel like you are talking to them. Stating the customer's name a few times during the chat might help.
• Pay close attention to the customer’s questions, ensure that they are not having to repeat themselves as this gives a highly impersonal feel.
• Skim the text you are about to send and avoid using statements that may be misunderstood or interpreted more than one way. Expressions or one-liners that may work in person or over the phone often fall into this category.

These are the ways we can “smile” over chat in the same way we “smile” on the phone. Well done Live Chat can be an extremely powerful tool in customer communications. It has emerged as what will probably be the future of website support and it has a number of advantages that a well organized contact center company could help you achieve.

-Jeff Fettes