Business can no longer rely on brand loyalty; it is no longer a consumer driver. Consumers today  understand their requirements and know about the options available to them.

<a href=<a href=

Simon Cranswick" />Assisted by internet-based services, consumers compare feature to price, and procure in a discerning  manner. Yet product features and a company’s ability to provide exceptional service trumps price. Transformational investments have become a priority. These are in the areas of personalised service;  proactive communication; customer service flexibility; customer expectation management; and  context-led interaction, which drive both customer experience and further potential in revenue  generation.

IT enablers must operate within a business model which provides for a reduction of the cost of service,  while maintaining quality and responsiveness in each interaction. How does today’s organisation “do  more with less”? The way in which processes are automated and communications are streamlined is  key to the sustainability and growth of organisations. It is imperative to drive concurrently lower overall cost structures, great effi ciency and consumer service.

SIMON CRANSWICK, GENERAL MANAGER OF CUSTOMER INTERACTIVE SOLUTIONS AT DIMENSION DATA’S WESTERN CAPE REGION, OUTLINES SIX STEPS TO GAIN ADVANTAGE:

  1. Extend the service interaction architecture to the enterprise for efficiency gains. Apply principles of  sound contact centre management best practice. Distribute work intelligently, measure  productivity, and create visible performance monitoring.
  2. Anticipate customer needs and action them Embark on proactive contact campaigns that  have clearly defi ned outcomes. Use your knowledge of the customer for discreet cross- and  up-sell revenue generation opportunities.
  3. Develop an eCollaboration capability Use Web Services 2.0 and Session Initiated Protocol  (SIP) architectures to develop intuitive dialogue that drives convenience. SMS, e-mail, websites  and kiosks can offer multi-modal communication capability, with service integrity between modes.  Agents should have all details of any interaction history in any channel populating their screen.
  4. Implement operational dashboards Include the capability to deal with peaks and troughs  across services and across inbound and outbound activities. Well-supported intuitive operational dashboards, with clearly visible “traffic light” alarms that highlight potential or current breaches of  service metrics. With built-in real-time measurement of performance across geographies, a benchmark can be set and maintained.
  5. Optimise the workforce Gain a grasp of what affects your business and what resources are  available. Factors include traffic volume cycles, the impact of events, contact centre overfl ow to enterprise and outsourcers, employee model mix (permanent and fl exi-time, and at-home agents), and skills profi ciencies. Ensure all modes of communication (web chat, social media, e-mail, SMS) are considered with productivity measurements. Transform the way quality  assessments are performed by only studying relevant interactions (poor and excellent) – these will  allow for true learning within the organisation.
  6. Present a friendly and inviting “face” Regardless of the point of entry, re-examine the first  impression your company presents. Quickly determine why customers have made contact, don’t offer anything out of context, and ensure options are offered dynamically. Most importantly, ensure  the “front door” is integrated to a routing engine that connects to the most appropriately skilled and available resource.
BE DISCERNING

In choosing your partner and enabling tools, be discerning in three regards:
  • Your partner’s experience and credentials
  • Best of breed versus “in vogue” best of suite solution sets
  • Outsourcing this domain, which can even be rendered through a software and platform as service cloud model.