How a Call Center Can Eliminate Hold Time
By Gregory J. Robb
Call center “hold time” is dead time. It is the time when commerce sits in stasis while customer service representatives look after other clients. A contact center customer on-hold is a service deal headed for a dead end if call center agents leave him hanging for too long. Put simply, “hold time” is a toxic drain on contact center productivity and profit.
Contact Center Technology
Luckily, call center technology has evolved greatly. In fact, Call Recording software now comes equipped to assess key performance indicators (KPIs), including customer hold times. Yet, hold times can be reduced by enhancing contact center productivity across several KPIs: first-call resolution (FCR), average handling times (AHT) and average speed of answer (ASA). While many call center managers refer to KPIs as Quality Assurance measures, they can be assessed in order to reduce average customer hold times. The customer is holding less as contact center agents reduce AHT and increase ASA. In the modern era, Call Recording is a management tool with analytic powers to enhance call center productivity and profit.
The Power of Screen Recording
Screen Recording is a visual way to access real-time interactions between customer service representatives and their clients. As the world continues to do business at the touch of mobile devices, contact center personnel are engaging customers via instant messaging (IM), chat lines and email. Screen Recording is a crucial tool for monitoring screen navigation. The faster the navigation, the quicker the resolution. More calls, less wait time.
Call center managers and supervisors also use Screen Recording for training on-the-fly. Since call center technology allows for more efficient CSR training, it offers quicker return-on-investment (ROI) and propels contact center service providers towards productivity and profit. Whether for training, for Quality Assurance or for CSR efficiency, Screen Recording represents a sound investment in reduced customer hold times.
Speech Analytics and Macro-Management
Speech Analytics (SA) is the 21st-Century darling of contact center technology. Call Recording was once the domain of magnetic tape logs, but no longer. These days, call center supervisors and trainers utilize key word or phrases, as uttered by customers, to resolve callers’ wishes most swiftly and successfully. After the fact, call center managers build performance reports on all customer service representatives(CSRs) based using recorded Speech Analytics data. In the age of limitless digital data storage, Speech Analytics is a tool for pinpointing the performances which can reduce – if not eliminate – customer hold times.
Call center technology is the means of assuring that a stray caller hangs up on a contact center. Client patience wears thinner more quickly as expectations continues to rise. Luckily, Call Recording tools, such as Screen Recording and Speech Analytics, are the high-tech means of reaching every caller before contact turns to abandon.
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