Telephony Convergence - something for everyone
For the best part of a decade businesses have been faced with with an ever increasing range of solutions which offer Computer Telephony Integration but are often dependant upon the type and age of the Telephony system which they have installed and have, in certain cases, led to the implementation of a CTI solution being so prolonged and complex that it has ceased to be viable. The issue has been further complicated by the development of IP telephony systems which is now seen in many areas as the only way forward for any business seeking to roll out a "world class" contact centre.
Add to this the fact that it is only in recent years that vendors have developed solutions which offer fully integrated multi media support and you can understand why the majority of IT and Customer Service managers have yet to see the true benefits of such an offering and why many businesses still have a wide range of "contact centre" type services such as ACD, IVR and Unified Messaging provided by different vendor technologies.
This "silo" effect naturally leads to a situation whereby reporting and management issues are complex and the total cost of ownership is far greater than the business has probably budgeted for in the first place. By bringing all of these pieces of the telephony puzzle onto one managed platform then the issues of management and integration are immediately marginalised.
However, simply providing a tightly integrated CTI solution may not be enough, because the customer interaction does not just stop when the call arrives at the agents desk; in fact it is here that the real value is generated, when the agent opens up the appropriate business application to provide the service that the caller is seeking. It is the integration between the multi-media contact centre platform and the business application which creates true value for both the caller looking for a quick and effective resolution to their problem and the business manager who is looking to increase the volume of callers that are dealt with whilst also protecting the integrity of that businesses Customer Satisfaction stats.
Solutions such as HEAT Plus Call Centre from FrontRange Solutions do exactly that; by ensuring that the customer, who is contacting the vendor by whatever means (phone, email or web) is immediately identified and directed to the appropriate customer service agent. Because the telephony system is integrated to the business application the agent will be presented with all of the appropriate customer details and, importantly, any historical data pertaining to their issue and its current status.
Put simply the telephony system has been re-enfranchised within the organisation and can now be considered to be a part of the IT infrastructure that is delivering real value rather than just the "grey box in the corner which makes the phones ring"!!
So who benefits? In short, everyone. End-users gain from having their enquiries dealt with quickly and efficiently, via the channel which suits them best. (And the room for improvement is huge: recent Infomatics research for example found that less than one in five calls get through to the right person first time.)
Companies also gain in flexibility by, say, adding new offices, or supporting homeworking through the creation of virtual contact centres. And, as a software-based solution, maintenance charges are reduced to no more than 20% of the license cost.
Growth in this area is huge, Phillips Infotech predict that 46% of call centre agent seats will be based on multi-platform technology by 2004. This is no surprise as companies recognise that, more than ever, investment in channels of interaction is the way to highlight differentiation and improve customer loyalty and retention levels.
After all, when times are tough, our customers are our most valuable asset.we should ensure that we are doing all we can to improve their experience of dealing with us.