1. We are one
If maintaining the competitive edge is an art, then keeping abreast of what technology can do for the efficiency of the organisation can be viewed as the palette; lots of colours, heaps of choice. On close studies of the target audience, to anticipate its evolving needs and changing tastes, is the canvas. This is where everything comes together; comes to life. That’s why so much discussion is given over to the ‘consumer of the future’.
One school of thought (me) says this conundrum is easier to crack than may at first be assumed.
We are one. We’re all consumers of the future, particularly those of us who check in on Connected Thinking from time to time.
We all deploy a mix of technology and personal contact to get by in life, at work, at home, on the move or stuck stock still in the traffic.
We all usually want things done, or answers provided, fast; which is where the contact centre of the future comes in. It’s here now. That’s easy enough.
2. Balance
Kcom’s High-5 Connected Thoughts have previously explored Contact Centres from an operational perspective; the balance between enhancing customer care and controlling costs through automation and virtualisation. We’ve also touched on mobility in various guises; the seamless flow of connectivity to deliver non-stop excellence. There’s another sort of balance to consider- delivering fast and efficient service to the techno-capable caller, and a more traditional approach for the less than hot-wired customer.
The fact is, you can’t talk to all of the people all of the time.
Channel off the hard ones and the rest are easy.
3. Fit
What makes a hard one is someone who demands a human voice. Callers exist who will never adopt internet banking, never feel it necessary to have 6,000 downloaded books by their side at all times and never fully appreciate the convenience of automated responses.
Services should fit the needs of the caller and if they need to speak with an agent, they should be able to.
Chances are, they’ll have a complex request or they’ll be a traditionalist. Fit the service to their needs because every caller has a lifetime value and you might never quite know where they are in their own life cycle.
4. Choice
So, take advantage of the enormous choice sitting on the rich palette of technology (voice recognition, Unified Communications, Workforce Optimisation solutions to name but a few) to deliver choice. The organisation of the future is here now too. It’s subject to criticism and scrutiny all over the world, no matter where it operates from. Social CRM now has a well deserved seat on the business strategy agenda. Awareness of the potential damage that one less than precision-planned action can trigger is driven by business processes and customer care strategies that embrace all.
If you want to know where your next customer or your next critic could come from, look around; they can come from anywhere. All you have to do is be ready for them.
5. Change
As the contact centre continuously automates, to drive up efficiencies and drive down costs, so consumers continuously expand their choice, knowledge, options. Gaining their loyalty when you might actually be speaking with them less depends on merging in with their lifestyle. The organisation that doesn’t stand out is becoming the organisation that stands out.
Getting it right is easy.
Now you have to get it right for everybody.
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