ICMI's Customer Management Insight - December 2007 - (Page 30) RECOMMENDED READING GREG LEVIN, CREATIVE PROJECTS COORDINATOR, ICMI FOCUS ON FIRST-CALL RESOLUTION (FCR) — AND MEASURE IT FROM THE CUSTOMER’S PERSPECTIVE. Recent research suggests that no single KPI has a bigger impact on customer satisfaction than does FCR. According to customer contact research and consulting firm Service Quality Measurement (SQM) Group, customer satisfaction drops an average of 15 percent with each callback a customer must make. SQM Group has also found that for every 1 percent improvement in FCR, you get a 1 percent improvement in customer satisfaction. Increased customer satisfaction isn’t the only big benefit realized by contact centers that achieve high FCR. According to SQM Group, these centers typically also enjoy lower operating costs (due to decreased callbacks and angry diatribes from customers); increased agent satisfaction (due to not being overloaded with repeat callers who are frustrated), and increased upselling and cross-selling opportunities (easier to make product suggestions when the initial issue has been fully resolved). Ideally, FCR should be measured from the customer’s perspective — which many centers do via IVR post-call surveys by including the question, “Was your issue fully resolved?” MAKE PROACTIVE, CUSTOMER-CENTRIC OUTBOUND CALLS TO NEW CUSTOMERS. I’ve spoken to a few the latest speech analytics tools, these centers are able to flag words and phrases like “cancel my order,” “close my account,” the name of a competitor or any obscenities that are directed toward the company, its products/services, or the agent handling the call. These “defection detection” tools immediately recognize the red-flag words and send an alert to a supervisor or manager, who can then listen to a digital recording of the entire agent interaction and, if necessary, call the would-be defector for a service recovery. In addition to flagging key “danger” words, some applications are able to gauge a customer’s emotional state based on his or her voice pitch and tone — and alert managers and supervisors whenever the customer sounds frustrated, angry or homicidal. And not all defection detection apps are speech-based. A few tools enable call centers to gauge the mood of customers who contact the center via text (i.e., email, chat). GET EXPERIENCED AGENTS INVOLVED IN HIRING, TRAINING — AND MORE. Numerous studies contact center managers who have formed an agent “welcome committee” that calls customers who have just signed up for a service, membership, etc., and welcomes them and asks if they have any questions or concerns. One center also has a “billing team” that calls customers after they have received their first bill — just to make sure that everything is clear and correct. These things are invaluable in establishing trust and building the foundation for lasting customer satisfaction and loyalty. UTILIZE “DEFECTION DETECTION” TOOLS. Some centers are doing good things with customers’ bad words and bad moods. Using icmi’s insight have shown that what agents want more than anything else is the opportunity to take on more challenges and to grow in their jobs. To meet agents’ needs, many call centers have created agent-led task forces that focus on a variety of key areas. For example, some centers let experienced agents help with hiring — where agents create an ideal agent profile, interview candidates and provide a realistic job preview for them. Other centers have created peer mentoring programs where experienced agents help new-hires with their questions and challenges. In some centers, agents also serve as subject-matter experts, training assistants, quality monitoring assistants and interdepartmental liaisons. Using agents in such ways has huge benefits — empowering existing staff, making learning more enjoyable for others, and fostering peer camaraderie in the contact center. www.icmi.com | DECEMBER 2007 30 http://www.icmi.com
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