Organizations have representatives available when customers reach out for service or support, providing much-needed assistance on an ongoing basis.
Certain companies are unable to manage the amount of phone calls, therefore they use a call centre for customer service outsourcing.
For quite a long time the sole tool utilized by call center operators was the conventional telephone line that streamlined the process of calling outbound as well as inbound.
Since the advent of the Internet there were a variety of different channels came into the ecosystem of customer service like live chat, email, as well as social channels to mention a few.
Technology’s ultimate goal is to increase the effectiveness of communication in business.
It’s possible to deliver first-rate customer service while cutting down on expenses and minimizing human error, loss of productivity, and slow response times if you use the right technology.
Many call center technologies are available today, each with advantages and disadvantages. At present, more advanced technology solutions are deployed to get the job done.
Practical knowledge will ultimately create a stellar end-to-end satisfactory customer experience for your organization.
As customer service is becoming increasingly digital, numerous technology trends are emerging, such as:
Omnichannel Integration
Consumers use three or more channels for customer service as this type of support allows them to remain connected to the company.
They interact with brands through mobile, web, phone, online messaging platforms, and so on. Therefore, to meet expectations, multiple engagement channels must be offered, ensuring a cohesive experience across their preferred channels.
A call center must handle high volumes of communications with customers, prospects, and other audiences in a way that allows people to switch back and forth across channels.
Usually deployed as a cloud-based call center, multichannel provides support and sales agents to interact through digital channels, going above and beyond the standard call center.
Interactive Voice Response
Call centers have been using Interactive Voice Response (IVR) for some time to increase customer satisfaction and enhance operations and KPIs.
IVR is an automated telephone system with call routing capabilities, answering incoming calls and prompting customers to interact with a pre-recorded message (or series of messages), then taking them to the appropriate business department.
It’s basically a self-service channel that reduces wait times. IVR is typically used together with automatic call distribution (ACD) – the ACD uses the data collected by means of the IVR, not to mention available metadata, to place callers in line and prioritize their call before routing them to the next available agent.
When call volume is high, wait times increase, and customer satisfaction drops. Well-designed IVR software can help avoid hold time by helping people find answers and perform tasks themselves.
By integrating computer and telephony technology, IVR lets the company build a reputation for customer focus.
An inefficient IVR system can create scenarios where customers end up on hold. Regardless of resources, there will always be times when a customer must be placed on hold.
According to the experts at Melody Loops, people tend to hang up if their hold time is spent in silence, so music is preferable.
Conversational AI
Conversational AI is a capability-based type of artificial intelligence that can simulate human-like conversation.
It’s the “brain” that powers virtual assistants or chatbots, enabling them to understand, process, and generate human language.
Automated customer service is provided via a website or app. Virtual assistants and chatbots can provide 24/7 customer service, delivering consistent, easy, personalized conversations across every channel.
Despite its advancement in recent years, conversational AI is still used alongside human agents rather than instead of human agents because displaying compassion and kindness towards the customer leaves a positive impression.
Voice Authentication
Artificial intelligence is now capable of understanding the countless nuances in human speech to identify the person talking without manual intervention.
Voice authentication is a program that works by scanning people’s unique voiceprints, so it’s a necessary bridge to keep up with the market.
From email to bank logins, many organizations have implemented two-factor authentication to make their services more secure.
Voice biometrics provide a much-needed security layer, authenticating genuine callers.
As opposed to knowledge-based and token-based authentication, voice authentication relies on biological markers to verify the identity of the caller.
Analytics and Reporting
Analytics can help you monitor and improve call center performance, not to mention the customer experience.
It’s, therefore, recommended to connect call center systems to analytics tools to get a complete view of the customer journey. Different types of information can be collected for analysis, such as call recordings, customer satisfaction surveys, and the net promoted score, so decide what data you want to gather from the very get-go.
With the right knowledge, you can offer a proactive service, addressing the problem before it even becomes a problem.
The terms analytics and reporting are frequently used interchangeably, even if they make reference to two different approaches.
Reporting entails gathering data and presenting it in a structured way – in other words, it tells you what’s happening so you can make strategic decisions. Benefits include but aren’t limited to optimizing operations, improving efficiency, reducing costs, and delivering better customer experiences.
Owing to technology, it’s possible to turn quantitative and qualitative data into actionable insights that can quicken reporting.
The more information you have, the better outcomes you can ensure (and provide premium customer support).
Concluding Thoughts
It’s necessary to get a grasp of the evolution of call centers to fully appreciate modern-day customer service specialists.
Interactive voice response and analytics continue to be standard while emerging technologies like conversational AI and voice authentication have just started to be integrated into existing systems. New technology requires a supportive infrastructure and the allocation of resources for preparing implementation.
More often than not, managers are responsible for driving technical innovation, so they must be equipped with knowledge and experience to guide implementation.
The debate over what technology tool is the best is subjective, meaning it all depends on the needs of your business.
It’s imperative to carefully decide on your approach and apply it consistently because only the right solutions drive efficiency and excellence in customer service operations.