Functionality implemented in modern Call and Contact Centers solutions along with an array of additional applications (e.g. text to speech) enable to handle a large number of calls in utterly automatic way. Thanks to that, customer care services can be carried out 24/7/365. It is worth mentioning that customer care service is not only based on incoming calls. It is often necessary for the company to initiate the contact with the customer. The Outbound function is a set of several modes designated to realize outbound campaigns, which complement the function of receiving the incoming calls by Call Center. The campaigns can be carried out in various modes which, in connection with incoming calls services, create a kind of blended solution. The consultants may service only incoming or outgoing calls or blended calls to ensure even better utilization of Contact Center resources.
The fact that the part of outgoing calls initiated by the consultants reach the line that is busy or answering machine or fax is a serious problem, as it causes significant decrease of productivity of the consultants because they need to recognize whether it is a real customer or a machine on the line. In such cases, the systems that can actively detect if the outgoing connection has been picked up by human or machine help the consultants. This solution allows initiating hundreds of calls in a relatively short time and transferring to the consultant only those calls that have been picked up by the customer. Using this type of solutions improves effectiveness of consultant’s work and creates the possibility to adapt the way of communicating information to a given situation. For example, in case of detecting the answering machine the system can use IVR to leave the message concerning issued invoice, new offers, etc.
Flexible management
An important aspect of Call Center solutions is the possibility to manage the configuration flexibly including functions of delegating entitlements to adequate persons, which is particularly important for a big scale solutions. To asses the work of the system and its scalability, the advanced reporting mechanisms are indispensable. Supervision over consultant’s work as well as over some IT-related elements of the service system is realized by the special users – supervisors. For supervisor’s terminal, Call Centers enable full insight into consultants statuses and information about current connections with reference to a single consultant, the group of consultants and the system as a whole. For the fullest cooperation, there are available functions that allow the supervisor to join a call currently handled by a consultant or take it over. The chat function turns out to be particularly useful for call Centers’ operation. Through application of other communication channel than a phone call the supervisor has the possibility to give support to the consultant without necessity to hold the call.
Additionally, depending on the used applications and needs there is a possibility to record chosen connections, voice and using other contact channels alike. Recordings of the calls are particularly helpful in situation when the problem put forth by the customer is complicated and needs to be transferred to the service department in order to be solved. Service agent, who receives the recording, gains access to the information about the problem reported to consultant by the customer. Thanks to that there is no need to contact the customer again and ask him the same questions. What is more, it usually shortens the time needed to solve the problem and facilitates better utilization of the service agents working time.
Reports
Reporting mechanisms are a crucial part of the customer care Centers operations. We can divide reports into two basic groups – real time reports depicting status of the system and historical reports based on aggregated data collected in a given period of time. Using those mechanisms, Call Center managers can make a decision concerning service procedures, technological investments or organizing the system in a way ensuring the highest level of customer care.
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