Using Unified Communications solutions in Call Center can ensure the increased quality of interaction with end customers and lower internal costs. In order to move from possibility to certainty, you need not only the technology that generates more operational efficiency, but also a partner to manage this process.

Replacing classic TDM systems from call centers with unified communications solutions provides real revenue for companies but also for their end-customers. This is an issue many organizations can no longer afford to ignore, as improving customer interaction is “Priority 0” for 72% of them (according to Forrester Research).

Another study (from Aberdeen Group) argues that Unified Communications contributes decisively to:

• Increasing by up to 300%  the customer satisfaction level;
• Halving the number of customer complaints;
• Improving, up to 3 times, agents’ effectiveness;
• Tripling the number of first-call solved requests (First Contact Resolution- FCR).

The benefits listed above sound attractive to any organization interested in improving customer relationships. For a Contact Center that wants to put this approach into practice, Datanet Systems specialists recommend:

 

Effective multichannel communication with call center clients

First of all, as its name implies, Unified Communications systems enable companies to unify communication channels and homogeneously manage Call Center customer interaction. By applying the same procedures, regardless of the channel used: mail, chat, audio or video call, social media, etc, communication coherence improves, demand processing time decreases, and call center agent efficiency increases. Therefore, the assumption of solid operational gains is created.

On the other hand, the fact that a client has more means to interact with a company, allowing him/herself to choose (depending on preferences, means of communication available, degree of channel loading, etc.) contributes to improving his/her level of satisfaction. In addition, the use of a Unified Communications solution offers certainty for the client that its request will be professionally processed regardless of the communication channel.

 

Increasing the number of swiftly solved requests

First Contact Resolution is a vital metric in “customer experience” strategies. The reason is obvious – as soon as a customer’s request is solved, without having to wait or return with another call, the better the post-interaction impression will be.

Unified communications solutions allow agents to eliminate (or reduce) call transfers and put the client on hold until another interlocutor with appropriate competencies is identified. This is done by quickly identifying agents who can provide the required answers, assigning calls according to their availability, competency, load level, etc.

An essential feature of the Unified Communications systems is that they integrate not only multichannel communication solutions but also team collaboration tools that simplify teamwork for Call Center employees. This results in internal efficiency gains as well as benefits for end-users.

For example, when a call is transferred to a second agent, the client no longer has to resume all the information originally provided, the first interlocutor being able to transmit them quickly through the instant messaging application or the sharing desktop tools. Moreover, collaborative tools allow a second agent to participate and intervene directly in a call, thus exempting the client of the transfer procedure, waiting in a queue, or resuming the information.

 

Ensuring business continuity

Another implied advantage of Unified Communications systems is that they use an IP architecture. Therefore, they are no longer strictly related to the physical infrastructure of a given location, allowing agents to work from wherever they are and from almost any type of equipment they have at their disposal (provided there is a wide lane Internet connection). This makes it possible for customer support operations to be continuously assured, without their operation being affected by problems that may arise (unfavorable weather conditions, traffic jams, natural disasters, etc.)

There are clear benefits for the client and the company, but also internally at the Contact Center’s level, a series of advantages are obtained. For example, the fact that an agent can work, in certain situations, from home, ensures not only a decrease in absenteeism but also helps to increase staff retention level by providing more flexible working conditions. Workforce fluctuation is a problem faced by almost all Contact Centers and the possibility of remote work improves the chances of staff retention, with a corresponding reduction in recruitment and training costs.

On the other hand, activating the “remote” option allows Contact Centers to use highly advanced and hardly accessible resources. For example, not many Contact Centers can afford to hire niche specialists because of the high payroll costs and reduced frequency of complex requests that they can solve. Underutilization also costs, however, with the help of integrated collaborative working tools, the respective specialists can be contacted only in the situations that require their competencies.

Such use scenarios are facilitated by the fact that Unified Communications systems integrate tools for monitoring and measuring employee performance, no matter where they are. These include the many automation capabilities that allow call allocation based on availability levels and competency areas, optimization of waiting queues, simplified use of IVR and voice recognition systems, etc.

If you are interested in voice recognition, we encourage you to read the article “What advantages bring Speech Voice Recognition?” implemented by Datanet generate and how are they capitalized by financial institutions.

 

Access highly skilled resources for call center projects

All of these earnings not only contribute to improving the relationship with the end customer but also to increase performance across the Call Center, ensuring a consistent cost reduction. But in order to benefit from them, solutions need to be integrated and personalized – a real problem for almost half of the Contact Center operators (49%, according to Ventana Research).

Datanet has developed over time numerous integration projects (applications and databases) and personalized solutions that automate and align Contact Center workflows to customer engagement strategies specific to each organization.

You can find some of several applications developed by Datanet to respond to specific business scenarios and needs in the following article:

”How can you increase contact center agents efficiency” 

The company has not only an extensive portfolio of call center IT infrastructure solutions but also the experience and skills necessary for their implementation, integration, and development.

Therefore, if you are looking to increase the effectiveness of your Contact Center and bring your clients’ experience at a higher level, please contact us at office@datanets.ro.