1to1 - Spring 2009 - (Page 44) hot topics DATABASE/ANALYTICS | SALES | CUSTOMER SERVICE | MARKETING a 40 percent increase in first-contact resolution by using a knowledge management system (see sidebar). Even with these benefits, without proper communication agents’ perception may be that Big Brother is watching, and telling them what to do. “People could feel like they’re being spied on,” Petouhoff says. “You need to introduce it in a way that allows them to see the benefits: ‘We feel that providing cues is a way to help you in your work.’ It’s not about finding who’s bad or not performing well, but instead it’s a tool to help you do a better job.” > Kevin Zimmerman Next Generation L Today managing leads means collaboration As marketers, it’s time to throw out the notion of simply throwing leads over the wall to sales. No one wins in that situation—marketing gets a bad reputation for generating poor leads, and sales has to devote too much time just discerning who a good person is to contact. The cycle continues, and sales and marketing grow further apart. “I think the most popular lead management tool in the world right now is still Microsoft Excel,” says Jim Dickie, managing partner of CSO Insights. But he and other experts agree that marketers must move beyond spreadsheets and take a more strategic approach to lead generation. MARKETING Playboy.com Increases (Customer) Satisfaction Prior to 2005, Playboy.com relied on a standard contact center strategy when it came to incoming emails—a situation that Jeff Gross, customer service manager at Playboy Enterprises, says became untenable. Many emails needed manual intervention from an administrator, which was inefficient and time consuming, resulting in a poor customer experience. With a recent eGain knowledge management implementation, Playboy.com now uses real-time prompts to create specific workflows, as well as autosuggestions and automated routing tools, and further supports agents with real-time access to a knowledge base. “We found we were able to make more effective use of our resources in converting prospects to customers and customers to long-term members of our subscription websites,” Gross says. Another significant improvement was a reduction in training costs. “Because of the autosuggestion feature, the product relies on less back-and-forth between template libraries, which currently adds time for the agent to formulate email responses,” Gross says. “The software is customizable so that we can set up our own exclusive rules that will extract data and allow searches and reporting on topics. For example, if marketing inquires how many emails we have received dedicated to a particular campaign, we would set up a rule to pull data on key words, like ‘Cyber Girl of the Year,’ and we would have the ability to report on our findings.” Another area of improvement for Playboy has been the processing of emails regarding problems with its websites, including snafus with its video-playing feature. “Previously, the message would have been routed to a general queue, tied to the email address, where the next available agent would pull the message,” Gross says. “Now, we have designated queues according to keywords found in either the subject line or message body. So, if the customer sends an email containing words like ‘error,’ ‘video,’ ‘not loading,’ and so on, they will be routed to a queue set up specifically for solving these types of issues. Then, the message will be forwarded to the agent who is most adept at handling that type of situation.” “You want to remain top of mind with prospects, as a thought leader and trusted adviser.” New strategies in lead generation must involve collaboration, information sharing, and interaction among sales and marketing. “Marketing has to be the evangelist, the advocate, the end-to-end responsibility across the customer lifecycle,” says Laura Ramos, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research. “Sales’ job is to close sales.” For marketers, it’s about managing leads, not just generating them. Next generation lead generation comprises three basic phases: creating a common definition of a lead; scoring each lead; and nurturing leads as they move along the purchase lifecycle. Ian Michiels, senior research analyst at Aberdeen Group, says that it all starts with sales and marketing coming together. “[Sales and marketing alignment] is the number one key to success,” he says. “It drives accountability on both sides.” He recommends that the two departments collaboratively define what a “good lead” is, then measure small wins and low-hanging fruit. Also, he recommends that marketing employees sit in on sales update “We found we were able to make more effective use of our resources in converting prospects to customers and customers to long-term members of our subscription websites.” 44 1to1 magazine www.1to1media.com http://www.Playboy.com http://www.Playboy.com http://www.Playboy.com http://www.1to1media.com
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