The Rules of Engagement
18 MAY 2010 | BY KAREN JACKSON, COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR
How do the best contact centres stand out from the rest? The following article, written by CPM's Commercial Director, Karen Jackson, was published in Marketing magazine on 5 May. It shows how we at CPM define the rules for optimum customer engagement:
"To the brand custodian who is looking to outsource contact centre activity, the dilemma must be: "Who stands out from the crowd in the world of outsourced contact centres?" And the logical answer should be: "That all depends on your requirements". So you'd be surprised to learn that many external providers of contact centre services don't adopt that starting point with their clients. Instead they proffer a 'one size fits all' proposition, and expect the brand custodian to hand over their precious charge to this standard package.
But why would the requirements of a breakfast cereal manufacturer be in any way comparable to those of, say, a premium automotive brand? Should a utilities organisation be looking to provide the same type of customer responses as an international airline or a confectionary brand?
In one instance, typical callers will need a brief but personal response to a standard enquiry. In others, customers may require and expect high levels of emotional intelligence and product knowledge, communicated by someone who is empowered to solve their problem at the first point of contact.
CPM is a customer and sales focussed contact centre offering high performance sales and exceptional experience solutions for a wide range of household name brands.
Undoubtedly ROI is the key driver in defining the optimum level of customer engagement for any of our clients. And this is determined by carefully aligning the client's objectives with their customers' expectations.
What is the desired outcome from the brand's contact centre activity? Is it a high volume of brief, efficient and basic information exchanges, or is the role of the interaction to nurture valuable customer relationships through unhurried, in-depth conversations? What has that brand promised its customers? What do they have a right to expect in terms of customer experience?
In a sales context, we've adopted the term 'Transactional Engagement' to identify the most basic level of tele-sales interaction. This is likely to be suited to high volumes of brief calls. Our role may be that of a small cog in a large sales machine, perhaps seeking permission for follow-up sales calls to be subsequently made by an in-house sales manager.
At the opposite end of the engagement spectrum is what we call 'Empowered Sale' - in which agents can demonstrate in-depth industry and product insight, enabling them to educate, influence and potentially up- and cross- sell to the customer. The desired outcome of such an operation could be multi-faceted sales of a product carrying a high purchase value.
Between these two levels lies 'Interactive Sale', for which our agents will be working with a pre-defined portfolio of products and information and will have a clear brief on productivity and volume levels.
This framework works equally well for our inbound customer experience solution. 'Empowered Engagement' requires an in-depth level of knowledge, and authorisation for the agent to satisfy diverse and unforeseen customer needs. 'Interactive Engagement' involves a pre-defined response framework, within which agents call upon their training and experience to select appropriate pre-authorised responses, and 'Transactional Engagement is heavily-scripted, involving a narrow range of responses for calls such as brochure requests or FAQs.
So the appropriate solution level will be determined by these ROI considerations. If a customer is calling with a basic request for brochure or information etc resolution can be swift and uncomplicated. Conversely, if an agent is talking to a car owner who could potentially upgrade to a new model or boycott the brand permanently, then clearly the opportunity to positively influence that customer experience carries an enormous value.
CPM believe that one size can never fit all, and we are dedicated to tailoring the right solution for each individual client - to produce a level of service that is as seamless as if we were an integral part of their business.
If you would like to discuss how CPM can provide that seamless communication for your brand, please - just pick up the phone, we're great talkers!"
Karen Jackson
Commercial Director
CPM Contact Centre
01844 261777
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