Contract centres critical to reach out to customers 

There are means to get to know customers better and contact centre is one of them. It is among the very first channels that make direct contact with customers. So far most contact centres have utilised voice-based systems. A phone call could be initiated by the customer expecting some proper customer services, or by a contact centre agent with an aim to inform the customer about new products and interesting programmes or promotions. Every time on the phone, it is the very good opportunity to receive valuable insights into customer concerns, trends, and so on, that can be integrated into business strategies.
Whether it is a contact centre with a few or over a hundred staff, it shall start with the right training, so that all agents acquire sufficient skill sets. They shall incorporate in-depth knowledge about the company’s products and services and develop comprehensive understanding of what customers need and how well their expectations are met. However, as technologies are changing so fast and the next generation of customers are now more sophisticated, more demanding, and less patient, having just well-trained agents might not be enough to sustain customer satisfaction.
That is why new digital channels for connecting with customers have emerged, such as email and web chat, followed by multiple social and mobile applications, as well as many other intelligent software. Customers have more choices to get in touch with companies, and in turn companies have more touch points and tools to manage expectations of customers with different styles and behaviours. Many companies, however, have found themselves struggling to manage too many channels/touchpoints effectively.
In this case, seamless integration into an effective omni-channel solution is one necessary play. Any of the agents stationed at any different channels are now at any time capable to communicate and provide proper services to the customers. This consistently increases customer interaction and allows companies to know better about their customers, improving customer satisfaction scores across all contact centre calls. This sounds like a perfect solution.
But still there are the questions that need answers. How many contact centre agents you have? Is it scaled up enough to serve all individual needs and pains? Are they spending too much time with a single customer? What is the most favourite IVR or self-service menu for each customer, and how do you plan to utilise such insights? Is it time to bring in automation to optimise the customer experience and at the same time effectively manage your costs? And many more.
The journey to understand the ever-changing customer needs and behaviours is surely a continuous and dynamic one. It is a complex interplay of multiple applications and business processes. Making use of other potential data such as location-based spatial information, customer voices retrieved from external social media sources, personalised behavioural data, and so on shall be put into consideration. To stay competitive in today’s marketplace, this journey needs to begin now.

TIPYADA SRICHAROEN is senior research manager, IDC Thailand