Ask any top-performing agent in a contact center how they became good at their craft and they will mention several mentors that helped them along the way. Experience matters and there is no substitute for experience…or is there?
We are at a crossroads of AI & technology in the contact center, where experience still matters however experience doesn’t have to exist in a silo that no one else can learn from. Those mentors that top agents were fortunate to sit next to and learn from can now benefit anyone in any of your contact centers.
An agent in Denver could overcome an objection in a way that results in a sale and have that call cataloged in real time. Instantaneously your near-shore staff in Barbados can learn from that same experience and have guided scripting in front of them on screen. If you have ever wished that everyone can learn from your top agent or listen to them that wish has been granted and magnified across the globe.
AI & automation in the contact center may feel like buzzwords, and to some, they can be. However, our partnerships have been paving the way for elevating the customer experience today and well into the future. Here, we look at some common contact center KPIs and how to improve them through technology.
Time is money, and the reason AHT is a metric that has been top of mind for decades speaks to that age-old saying. If you can reduce AHT by 15 seconds per call in a contact center that takes 10,000 calls a day, you save 41 hours per day on average. That can reduce labor costs by 5 fewer full-time employees.
If we conservatively estimate the cost per employee at $50,000 per year, just this alone can save $250,000 or more. When you look at companies like Shelf that reduce AHT by up to 30% and have case studies to back it up, you can see how quickly the savings can add up. Every contact center leader knows their AHT. Reduce it by 15% and do the math, the ROI on technology that brings that number down is met quickly.
Knowledge Management, having the right answer at the right time every time proactively in front of your agent saves seconds and even minutes on calls. Additionally, these curb call escalations and reduce the time for higher-tiered agents or supervisors needing to be on calls. Integrating products like Shelf into Salesforce or your CRM marries customer and industry knowledge. There are more possibilities than limitations with Knowledge Management in the contact center, if you dream it, chances are it can become reality.
For years it was thought that customers wanted a live person, and that resulted in customer satisfaction. The reality is that customers want answers quickly. Innovations with Interactive Voice Response (IVR) have greatly improved CSAT in contact centers. Simply implementing a callback feature in addition to your IVR improves customer satisfaction.
Customers may enjoy Barry Manilow, however, hearing the music version of Copa Cabana can test even the best of nerves while on hold repeatedly. Solutions like Five9 Agent Assist that guide the agent naturally through a conversation not only reduces AHT, it increases CSAT as waiting for answers is a thing of the past.
Ask any Supervisor how staffing is going at your own risk, the past 2 years have been a challenge, to say the least. Having a Workforce Management solution in place to help maximize occupancy, reduce idle time & handle peak times helps ease some of the challenges contact center leaders face.
Factors outside the control of leaders play a part in high-volume days. Weather is a factor for insurance. Flu season or allergy season for healthcare. Tax season for the financial industry. The list of factors is endless, however with a proper WFM solution in your contact center those factors are anticipated.
AI enables contact center leaders to anticipate the needs of customers and prepare solutions in real time. Everything is seemingly backed by AI in some way and is learning at an exponential pace.
The options are endless and can seem overwhelming if researched alone. Partnering with an industry-leading contact center consultant like InflowCX brings clarity to what is needed for your organization. Because we listen. Contact us today so we can start listening, learning, and lending a hand to your company.
