Self-Service: Putting Customers First Makes You a Winner

Self-Service: Putting Customers First
Makes You a Winner
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Self-Service: Putting Customers First Makes You a Winner
Senior executives, call center leaders and IT and operations managers are now paying a great deal of attention to self-service applications because of their ability to drive enterprise and call center effectiveness. Investments in self-service technologies have skyrocketed during the past two years, as companies large and small have built or enhanced their Web and Interactive Voice Response (IVR) self-service applications. More than one company has recently contacted me to ask for assistance in building a zero-footprint call center. This is an interesting concept where an organization uses self-service automation to replace live agents. While the overall value of zero-footprint service centers is debatable, the need to reduce operating expenses is clear. Enterprises are looking for ways to cut costs. Self-service applications are a proven method for achieving this essential corporate goal. A well executed self-service strategy that prioritizes customer needs can enhance the customer experience and speed problem resolution and order placement while reducing costs. Web and IVR self-service applications are essential for most call centers. Leading call centers use self-service applications to handle anywhere from 20% to 90% of customer service interactions. (The percentage varies by call center purpose and geography.) As the demand for customer service continues to grow, self-service is not an option but a necessity.
Business and Call Center Trends Driving Automation Four business trends are driving companies to invest in self-service automation to eliminate or minimize the need to employ live agents to assist customers. These trends are: 1. The need to reduce call center operating expenses in order to improve the company's margins and bottom line 2. The desire to automate as many servicing tasks as possible prior to moving call center activities offshore 3. Existing self-service applications are reaching their end-of-life and are in need of replacement; in some situations it is less expensive to replace a solution than to continue to maintain an old platform 4. The current generation of self-service Web and voice portal technologies and solutions can deliver high-value applications not previously available
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Self-Service: Putting Customers First Makes You a Winner
Five additional call center departmental trends are pushing even the most quality-conscious managers to consider using self-service to eliminate or dramatically reduce their need for live agents. These call center trends include: 1. Pressure to improve departmental productivity 2. The ongoing agent attrition problem 3. The challenge of finding qualified agents 4. Increasing cost of agents 5. Poor service quality and bad public relations associated with offshore outsourcers While all of these enterprise and call center-centric issues need to be addressed, there are offsetting factors and situations that require executives and call center managers to maintain some live agent support. At the highest level, a customer-centric organization must use service as a strategic differentiator throughout the customer life cycle. Live agents with appropriate skills are uniquely capable of leveraging a service call to sell more products, retain customers and build loyalty. Enterprises must find the right balance between live service and automated self-service. It is absolutely more costly to have a live agent handle a call than to automate the interaction via the Web or on an IVR, easily 300% to 500% more expensive. A typical Web self-service transaction costs less than $0.25 and an inbound IVR transaction less than $0.40, versus $5 to $7 for a call. However, in most situations, it is much more costly for a company to lose a customer than to use a live agent to respond to inquiries that require the human touch. Unfortunately, many companies are repeating an industry-wide mistake from back in the ... [download for more]