What’s the most valuable part of your business? Wouldn’t you say that it’s your customers? Without them, you have no buyers, no sales, no business at all! So, your ability to deliver outstanding customer service is one of the most important functions of your sales process. Your call center software plays a key role in that process… is it living up to your expectations?
Choosing the Right Call Center Software
When you can offer exceptional customer service, you make yourself a force to be reckoned with in today’s ultra-competitive business environment. In fact, the Temkin Group reports that “73% of companies with ‘above average’ Customer Experience maturity perform better financially than their competitors (compared to 44% of less mature companies).”
Your call center is the main intersection between your team and your customers. Often, your first impression occurs here. This means that your call center software needs to be a game changer!
As you seek out the right call center software for your business, here are some of the most important factors to watch for:
1. Is it a natural fit?
Just as you wouldn’t hike in stilettos or wear hiking boots for a formal occasion, your call center software should be appropriately selected according to the specific ways you communicate with your customers. Be aware of your most effective approach, whether inbound, outbound, social, emails, and voicemails. Select your call center software based on the features that are most essential to your business. Trying to manipulate software to do what you need it to do when it’s not designed to accomplish those things is a waste of time and money. For example, an outbound call center focuses on the efficiency and quantity of dialed-out calls. Therefore, a TCPA compliant auto dialer should be prioritized. If your call center handles large volumes of inbound calls, your needs would be completely different. Know what you need and find what fits for your business.
2. Does it provide seamless communications?
You want to make quality connections with your leads, and you also want to make the most of your time on the phone. Make sure that your call center software allows you to communicate via multiple communication channels which include phone calls, voicemails, and emails. Look for one-click voicemail options, easy follow-up email functions, and preview dialing services that ensure your prospects feel valued and well cared for. According to the McKinsey & Co.’s 2017 customer engagement study: “Companies that make a concerted effort to improve their customer experience also see employee engagement rates go up by an average of 20%.” Not only are customers happier, employees are too.
3. Are you and your customers protected?
Call centers store a huge amount of information that impacts hundreds of thousands of businesses. Security should be a big deal to you when choosing your call center software. Ask your software provider about the latest security measures that can help keep your data secure and your leads’ information safe. Part of customer service is trust. Your agents need to be able to assure wary customers that any personal data they provide will be well-guarded.
4. Can You Get All Your Information from Anywhere?
One of the most useful features of today’s call center software is the ability to store and access information in the Cloud. Using the Cloud, you avoid the hassle of purchasing, setting up, maintaining, updating, and replacing expensive, cumbersome hardware and telephones. Call center software in the Cloud is affordable, easy to use, and connects via the Internet, which allows your agents to connect and work from virtually anywhere in the world! As your business grows, your team of agents must also be ready to expand. A Forrester study reports, “As volumes of customer conversations balloon across an increasing number of channels, companies are increasing staff sizes: 46% of global contact center decision makers project 5%-10% growth in the next year and 14% project growth of more than 10%.” Cloud-based software is fully scalable and provides the option of offering hiring perks like remotely working from flexible geographic locations.
Using a cloud-based call center software can also reduce (or fully eliminate!) the risk of downtime due to location-specific power outages, natural disasters, fires, and more. In spite of weather issues, your system remains protected and accessible.
5. Do you know what you need to know (right when you need to know it)?
Not only should your cloud-based call center software compile and automatically produce customized reports regarding analytics, metrics, individual, and overall agents’ performance, but it should also allow you to record inbound and outbound calls. When you need to review a call for training or quality control, it shouldn’t take an act of Congress to access! Additionally, the interface of your software should provide a simple, straightforward dashboard that quickly provides your agents with the information they need, just at the tap of a finger.
Call Center Software That Fits
You know how important it is that your leads have positive interactions with your agents. The best way to accomplish this is with the right call center software. To see if Call Logic should be on your shortlist of options, schedule a FREE live demo today!
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