Business and Social Intelligence: Why You Need Both in Your Contact Center
Where do technology and empathy meet in the middle? In the contact center space—that is, a bit of both human compassion and hard hitting data is required to provide the best possible customer care and, in turn, contact center services ROI. If you’re ever stumped as to why you aren’t seeing a profitable return on your contact center services, then perhaps it might be time to investigate how well your organization is marrying business and social intelligence.
You see, the role of the Communicator and the role of data analytics must support each other. In fact, without a strong contact center support system comprised of business intelligence tools—like predictive analysis, market segmentation, and socially intuitive Communicators, then your customer churn rates are likely much higher than they ought to be.
For example, it’s one thing to employ a staff of exuberant contact center agents; however, if they can’t make use of important data derived from predictive analysis, they will most likely miss the mark with customer care—leading to continuous customer churn.
A Business Intelligence tool like predictive analysis aggregates customer history so as to remove unnecessary guesswork from a Communicators’ interaction, informing them of the likelihood of the customer’s inquiry before the agent even answers the phone. In doing so, Communicators are sufficiently prepared to solve the problem at hand so they can focus on demonstrating compassion while on the phone.
Conversely, making use of data can only take your agents so far if they aren’t innately equipped with the right set of interpersonal skills. For instance, say your contact center uses market segmentation to strategically group sets of customers based on personal characteristics and buying behaviors. Subsequently, you would assign a contact center agent who engenders the same characteristics and can therefore care for these customers in most knowledgeable and understanding way. But, imagine an agent who buckles under the pressure of addressing issues and struggles to remain calm when speaking with customers. It’s important to not only expertly train your agents but ensure they are confident and compassionate from day one.
In the contact center space, being analytical and emotional are equally important and directly related to your overall contact center services ROI. So ask yourself: “Is my contact center adequately balanced?” If you’re unsure of the answer, feel free to contact us to learn more about striking this balance.
Steve Brubaker began his career at InfoCision in 1985. In his current role as Chief of Staff and as a member of the Executive Team he is responsible for HR, internal and external communications, and manages the company’s legal and compliance departments. Brubaker is a member of a number of professional organizations, including the DMA and PACE. He also donates his time to serve on several University boards, including the Executive Advisory Board for The Taylor Institute for Direct Marketing at The University of Akron and The University of Akron Foundation Board. He has also been honored with a number of awards and recognitions for his contributions to the call center industry, including the ATA’s highest honor, the prestigious Fulcrum Award.