Customers expect and demand a lot from the brands they engage with. First, they want good products and services. And, there is also the expectation of quick handling of issues with high efficiency. It places a challenge on brands to hire people whose specific role is to manage customers.
That explains why call centers have become critical for good customer support. The team should be available 24/7 because you can never know when someone will need help. Yet, their role extends far beyond ensuring that customers are happy.
Call centers are also critical for marketing. The teams’ direct interaction with customers makes them a fantastic way for information sharing.
A 2022 report on call centers shares some interesting statistics. The global call center market value will be as high as $496 billion by 2027. Up to 35% of customers need support agents to help them resolve issues.
Dealing with customers can be very difficult. 87% of call center employees report high-stress levels. One way to ease or help with this is by investing in the right resources and tools.
Our article looks at some tools that can help in improving call center efficiency.
1. Call Center Omnichannel Software
Omni channel marketing may sound the same as multi-channel marketing, but it is not. In the latter case, a brand uses as many platforms as possible to reach customers. These include analog media, social media, websites, and more.
The focus is on the number of channels that can be standalone. That means what you have on social media does not have to be the same as on the website.
Omni channel marketing is about the customer experience on different platforms. It should allow for a seamless transition from channel to channel. Let’s take the example of buyers shopping on your social media platform. But, at some point, they decide to move to your website.
The customer should pick up from where they left off without restarting the process. And if they need the help of a call center agent, it should be the same. All the interaction history will be in a central location.
The agent can, at a glance, know what the customer needs. All that and more is possible with the right call center Omnichannel software. These tools help with:-
- Providing exceptional customer experiences across many platforms
- Better personalization of customer experiences
- Easy tracking of the customer journey with the Omni-channel contact center software
- Quality management is easy with the best Omni-channel contact center software
- More connection points for agents to customers, and more.
The best call center omnichannel software incorporates artificial intelligence. Smart bots use machine learning and language processing to learn customer behavior. It helps with product or service recommendations and more.
Further, the AI-enable tools help with a proactive approach to managing customers. Predictive analytics, for example, will let you know what customers expect. The AI can detect a shift in trends. The company can then stock inventory with that in mind.
Investing in the right contact center software is like slaying many dragons simultaneously. You get many other tools we will highlight below as inbuilt features. It frees you from buying standalone pieces that could be too expensive.
2. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Tools
CRM software collects all customer information in one central location. The best call center omni channel software should have a CRM as an inbuilt feature. If not, it should allow for third-party CRM integrations.
The advantage is the call center agents get quick access to information on the dashboard. Cloud software means remote access to information. The agents can work from anywhere, thus higher efficiency.
Further, resolving customer issues should go on no matter who takes over the shift. The recorded history of the customer interactions should be clear to see. It removes the frustration of customers having to repeat pertinent information. Imagine how frustrating it would be for every agent to change.
3. Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
It would be great to have a working contact center team all the time. But, issues like financial restrictions can make it impossible, especially for smaller companies. Yet, a good customer experience demands that you never leave any call unanswered.
There may also be times when the volume of calls may increase. This is typical during promotions and campaigns at specific times of the year. Interactive voice response in the call center omnichannel software provides a fantastic solution.
The IVR takes calls and re-routes them to the right agent. Customers never have to wait to get support.
4. Automatic Call Distribution (ACD)
Automatic call distribution has a lot of similarities with interactive voice response. But in this case, it reroutes the call to team members with specific expertise.
So, tech guys would get tech-related questions, and so on. Like in the case of the CRM, your contact software should have the ACD as an inbuilt feature.
5. Real-Time Analytics and Reporting Tools
It would be hard to provide a good customer experience if all you depend on is past data. Real-time analytics and reporting allow you to take quick action when necessary.
Such tools are also critical for quality management. As we said, you get analytics and real-time reporting with the right show contact center software.
Management can get information on how an agent is, for example, handling customers. It provides an opportunity to improve the level of service. That is a sure step to improving customer satisfaction.
Also, remember that data provides the basis for decision-making. By developing metrics, the teams will know what is working and needs changing. Relevant analytic metrics include call times, connection rates, conversion and hold times.
The management can also use the insights to measure agent performance. It will be clear for the agents to know what the management expects.
Final Thoughts
We have looked at some critical tools for the call center. The best advice we can give is to invest in the best call center omnichannel software. You will find features like the CRM, ACD, and many dialing modes as in-built features.
Your contact center software should also allow for third-party integrations. You can add other tools for higher efficiency if you wish.