Importance of Integrating Systems to Make Interactions More Efficient
Whether they know it or not, customers generally have four key attributes that they associate with outstanding service:
- Recognition: Recognize me and know my services and preferences
- Resolution: Address my issue during our first interaction
- Efficiency: Make the interaction as efficient and effective as possible, i.e., don’t waste my time and don’t make me provide information you should already have available
- Personalization: Gently offer suggestions that are consistent with my known preferences
The issue of systems and process integration becomes critical in addressing each of the four attributes above. Let’s think about how we could use integration capabilities to do so.
For a customer process to be effective and efficient, which are two of the three key elements of process, agents must have access to the right information at the right time. Often this information is located in various places throughout a company’s technology infrastructure. Therefore, the system used during customer interactions must communicate with other systems so they can share information before, during and after calls. The alternative is shifting between systems and manually retrieving the information while the customer waits, which is definitely not an efficient process.
To illustrate this concept, consider the example of an airline reservation line. With an integrated system, the conversation might go something like this:
Agent: Hello, Mr. Smith. Thanks for choosing ABC Airlines today. Would you like to book a trip out of O’Hare?
Bill: Why yes, that’s why I’m calling. I’ll be traveling to Boston from February 10 to the 13. Do you have any morning flights available?
Agent: We certainly do. There is a nonstop flight leaving at 8 a.m. on the 10th. I know that you prefer direct flights, but you can save $50 if you connect in New York. Which would you prefer?
Bill: The direct flight would be perfect. Thank you.
Agent: I will go ahead and book that for you. Would you like your usual window seat? You’ll also be automatically submitted for an upgrade based on your platinum status. You’ll get an email acknowledgment when the upgrade clears.
In the example, the agent had Bill’s preferences on file and quickly assessed his needs without requiring him to repeat information. Having that information at her fingertips, the agent was able to conduct a more efficient and effective – not to mention a more personal interaction.
This is just one example of how integration can improve the four attributes of customer service. Workflows can tie into any number of records to retrieve information. As you design a process, consider the types of preferences your customers have or information from past calls that would guide future interactions. Your company already has a lot of the information agents may need – it’s just a matter of making it accessible when the agents need it.
The importance of integration was a driving force in building integration capabilities into our flagship product, RiverStar Studio. Our philosophy is to make it easy to communicate with other systems so you can pull information into your processes. Therefore, Studio can pull information at the beginning of the call, send information back and forth during the call, and route information to other systems after the call ends. You can build logic into your applications so that it considers the customer’s history and builds offers that are attractive and consistent with how the customer generally likes to do things.The result is an interaction that addresses all of the key attributes of outstanding customer service and the result of that is increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Contact us today to learn more about how you can integrate your systems with RiverStar Studio.
