Managing call center operations can be a challenging role in today’s highly social and digital environment. Comments, downvotes, unlikes, and there are many other trends for showing dissatisfaction with a company.
Unfortunately, most traditional call center operations are not equipped to handle the growing and evolving criticisms from social media platforms and networks. However, to be effective in this current cultural climate, it is more necessary now than ever before to adapt to the times and grow with your customer base. Therefore, the days of being closed off with only a toll-free number for customer contact are over. Your business must embrace these new platforms, even if only through your contact center operations. There are at least six ways that your call operations will benefit from adopting social networks, and the millions of people using those platforms.
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Easy Customer Interaction
When a company has a social media presence, it allows consumers multiple ways to contact them, which is necessary for creating an approachable brand. More often than not, consumers approach companies on these platforms to express their praise for them. While this praise is nice, it is not the most critical factor to consider when creating the social media presence for your business. By providing multiple avenues for contact, you are demonstrating an eagerness to interact with your consumer base, which ultimately increases brand loyalty.
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Mobile Capabilities
While call center operations have traditionally focused on telecommunications, now it is equally important to focus on mobile capabilities and accessibility. Consumers want businesses to think about the convenience to the customer. Therefore, having chats and email support are crucial to contact center solutions. Also, when companies embrace mobile and technological capabilities, it becomes easier for call center team members to perform their daily duties. For example, when a bot can sort through communications to find those items that require immediate attention, it saves time for the professionals.
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Open Dialogue
People working in call center operations are well-aware of the bad calls. They know the calls that leave the adrenaline pumping and the tears flowing. Many customers become agitated when forced to wait on hold, especially when they feel that their purchase or service is not meeting expectations. While aggravation is no excuse to blow up and blame the call center representative, consumers do lose their tempers from time to time. By using a social media strategy, contact centers can use a preemptive customer care approach, which can help to reduce consumer frustration and team members’ stress levels. Mostly, when a team member notices a negative complaint online on a social media platform, they can then reach out to the customer in a reply offering an apology, if necessary, and a possible solution. If no resolution is clear, then the representative can recommend the customer to call the appropriate help desk. This form of customer care is two-fold. On the one hand, the angry or disgruntled client is addressed and provided an explanation or assistance. On the other hand, the hundreds or thousands of people that might come across the complaint see that the business cared enough about this one individual to offer help, which means a potential win-win for the company.
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Improved Customer Satisfaction
In addition to basic call center operations, a company can improve customer satisfaction by showing their appreciation for loyalty. For example, your contact center can have a team devoted to social media work, and part of their job can be saying thank you or retweeting positive customer stories and posts. Consumers want to feel like they are a part of the brand culture, and by acknowledging them, even in a simple retweet, companies can improve customer satisfaction. Also, it is worth it to note that improved satisfaction leads to fewer complaints and higher team retention.
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Versatile Communications
If social media and mobile platforms are ignored, then call centers might be overworked, which leads to stress. However, if a company embraces a versatile communications strategy by implementing mobile apps, chatbots, and automated email responses, then the team can focus on the clients that need real and actionable support. These communications strategies can even be as simple as using alerts on social media platforms for when your company name is used, allowing representatives to take notice and engage the consumer through dialogue.
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Reduced Training
Last, call center operations through social media does not require a significant amount of additional training. Most platforms are similar enough, and most team members are familiar enough with the technology to begin work on day one.
Call center operations are integral and can be complicated for businesses. Etech Global Services has over 20 years of experience in call center solutions. Contact us to find out what we can do for your business.
