Whether it is to add capacity in specific areas, helping expansion into new markets or bringing down costs, outsourcing is a central part of customer service. According to the Everest Group, nearly a quarter of contact center activities across the globe are outsourced, meaning the market is worth $75-78 billion every year.
Whatever sector they are in businesses are embracing digital transformation, implementing new technologies and ways of working in a bid to differentiate against increasing competition and to get ahead of rivals. However, too often these digital projects can fail to improve the customer experience...
Customer experience has been front of mind for marketing and customer service professionals for a number of years, but does it really have a big impact on the bottom line?
When customers deal with your organization, they don’t care which department they are communicating with – they simply want the best possible experience and service. They expect to receive high quality, joined-up service and get a consistent, accurate answer to any question that they might have.
Organizations today receive a growing number of incoming emails and social media messages from consumers. At the same time the range and scope of these interactions is also expanding – essentially consumers today want to be able to have conversations with brands, on their channel of choice, in order to find out information, solve problems and to give feedback.
Good customer service leads to happier, more loyal customers who stay with you longer, spend more and are more likely to recommend your business to family and friends. However, it can be difficult to measure the exact impact of individual customer service interactions on these metrics, leading to the contact center being seen as a cost, rather than a department that boosts the bottom line.
In a multichannel world, the telephone is no longer the default choice of consumers. However, it is still vital, particularly for more involved conversations. Yet new research from consumer group Which? shows that telephone customer service is failing to keep pace with customer needs.
New figures from the National Retail Federation point to sales increasing by 3.6% over the course of 2016 holiday shopping season in the US, hitting $655.8 billion. Ecommerce should grow between 7-10%, totaling as much as $117 billion. In the UK, retailers will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2015 festive season where heavy discounting hit margins in many parts of the sector.
Like many industries, insurance is being disrupted by digital technology. Nearly 80% of consumers want to use digital channels such as the web, email, social media and chat to interact with insurers – yet under a quarter of businesses say they are fully digital, according to Accenture. Traditional insurers face major challenges...
National Customer Service Week (NCSW) will soon be celebrated on both sides of the Atlantic. Running between October 3-7, it highlights the importance of customer service to every organization, and provides the opportunity to learn from best practice and to celebrate success across the sector.