Beyond Philosophy

JULY 17, 2017

In our customer experience consultancy, we spend a lot of time educating people about the components of a great customer experience. Some companies get it and they’re creating an emotional connection that brings them loyal fans. But many others look to technology. If customers just had a gadget that could do more or electronic kiosks they could play with in the store, or a virtual reality app – well, then the customer experience would be great.

Technology 331

Technology Consulting Consulting Customer emotions 331

ShepHyken

JULY 19, 2017

I just returned from Influence 2017 , the annual conference put on by the National Speakers Association. My friend and one of the world’s authorities on trust, David Horsager was one of the amazing keynote speakers. He shared an excellent customer service example that can be summed up this way: Trust your customers and they will trust you. The quick version of the story is this: A farmer owns a fruit and vegetable stand where his customers pay on the honor system.

Customer Service 291

Customer Service Management Customer Experience 291

Contact Center Pipeline

JULY 12, 2017

David Merrill, renowned educator and coauthor of Reclaiming Instructional Design, defines instructional design as a “technology that incorporates known and verified learning strategies into instructional experiences which make the acquisition of knowledge and skill more efficient, effective and appealing.” We all want our employees to receive the most effective training, and to apply their new […].

Best practices 247

Best practices Education Technology Contact Center 247

Myra Golden Media

JULY 9, 2017

I remember being a new manager preparing to deliver bad news to a group of executives. I was nervous, fearing I would get questions I couldn’t answer and thinking I’d get slammed in the meeting. My boss, the executive vice president of the company, helped me prepare for the meeting. “Here’s the strategy you use. You go in there and answer their every question, before they even have a chance to ask you anything.

Customer Care 196

Customer Care Management Call Center Customer Experience 196

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Sales

HGS

JULY 12, 2017

Posted by Andrew Kokes, HGS Senior Vice President, Global Marketing In June 2017, HGS partnerships found golden success—receiving first-place recognition for Best Outsourcing Partnership and [.]. The post HGS Harvests Gold at CCW Awards Ceremony appeared first on Team HGS Blog.

outsourcing 188

outsourcing Marketing Self service Contact Center 188

Beyond Philosophy

JULY 5, 2017

I was shopping for a graduation card the other day, and all of them seemed to say something like this: “Dream big and reach for the stars, your goals are within reach and you are on your way to an amazing future.”. If I was just getting out of school I would find this rather terrifying. I think I’d much prefer a hearty “Congratulations – well done!” instead of a bunch of vaguely inspirational words reminding me how far I had yet to go.

Morale 324

Morale Consulting Consulting Employee engagement 324

ShepHyken

JULY 5, 2017

I will always remember my first marketing class in college when we learned about the 4 P’s – Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. Well, now there is a fifth P. Before I go any further, as a customer service and experience expert, I believe that service and experience are all about marketing. The first P is about Product. It is assumed that the product is going to do whatever it is supposed to do.

Personalization 263

Personalization Marketing CRM Sales 263

Contact Center Pipeline

JULY 13, 2017

There is no doubt that technology has accelerated the pace of change in contact centers. Yet when it comes to the human element, some things have remained the same for decades. Agent turnover has been and remains a top challenge in centers. The repetitive nature of the job and limited potential for career advancement create […].

Contact Center 230

Contact Center Technology Chatbots Call Center 230

Callminer

JULY 25, 2017

Algorithms matter little to the average consumer, working behind the scenes of the technology and social platforms they use every day

Marketing 182

Marketing Technology 182

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Contact Center

HGS

JULY 12, 2017

HGS Harvests Gold at CCW Awards Ceremony. Posted by Andrew Kokes, HGS Senior Vice President, Global Marketing. In June 2017, HGS partnerships found golden success—receiving first-place recognition for Best Outsourcing Partnership and Best Use of Self-Service Technology at the 2017 Contact Center World Awards. “We are honored to be recognized by one of the world’s largest contact center associations as a trailblazer in outsourcing partnerships and self-service technology,” said Chris Lord, Global

outsourcing 187

outsourcing contact center associations Self service industry standards 187

Convoso

JULY 5, 2017

Building a call center culture that breeds motivated and empowered agents is a lot easier said than done. With so much at stake in every customer interaction, call center managers tend to be too reliant on old redundant policies that simply breed frustrated customers or a lack of sales. In 2017, it is now more important than ever to focus in on making sure your call center agents are focused and goal-orientated.

Call Center 0

Call Center Sales Management call center solutions 0

Beyond Philosophy

JULY 10, 2017

Retailers are using technology used in espionage efforts to remain relevant in today’s online shopping world. Throughout Europe and the U.S., brick and mortar retailers are employing high-tech spy techniques to obtain information about a shopper’s in-store experience—and using it to improve their Customer Experience. Spy Tech and the Customer Experience.

Airlines 313

Airlines Consulting Consulting Technology 313

ShepHyken

JULY 12, 2017

My brother, Rusty Hyken, was on a trip to Utah with his wife and two dogs. It’s a leisurely three-day drive for them. He made their hotel reservations, and for each hotel they planned to stop at on the way to Utah he asked, “Is your hotel dog-friendly?” All of them said, “Yes.” But to his surprise, while checking into one of the hotels he was told there would be a $120 charge for the dogs to stay in his room.

Customer Service 261

Customer Service Management Customer Experience 261

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Customer Service

Contact Center Pipeline

JULY 26, 2017

There is no such thing as, “just an address change” or a “simple customer question.” Every interaction is a loyalty situation: How that interaction is handled can either generate customer commitment or drive that customer away. For example, I called my phone company to request a business calling card. I had to navigate a painful […].

Coaching 334

Coaching Customer retention Contact Center Call Center 334

Callminer

JULY 18, 2017

Database serves as the central, shared source of customer and prospect information which can be used for a variety of business purpose.

Metrics 182

Metrics Marketing 182

Peter Lavers

JULY 14, 2017

I had the pleasure this week of being invited to Wimbledon by IBM to see for myself how their systems, artificial intelligence, and cognitive tools (Watson) underpin the customer experience. What?! Isn’t Wimbledon all about ‘being there’? The atmosphere; the proximity to the athletes and pundits; the strawberries! Doesn’t the world divide for two weeks in July between those who are there and those who would like to be there?

Customer Experience 164

Customer Experience Management B2B Analytics 164

Convoso

JULY 24, 2017

Agent training is a huge part of call center life. In fact, in an industry that suffers the most from agent turnover, agent training should be viewed as everything.

Call Center 169

Call Center call center solutions 169

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Customer Experience

Beyond Philosophy

JULY 12, 2017

If you haven’t read Jeff Bezos’ latest letter to his shareholders, put it on your to-do list pronto. There are many takeaways from his letter, but one that stands out to me most is this: “ Obsess over customers, not competitors.”. Most companies are obsessed with their competitors. Their mission statements might suggest that they are dedicated to their customers, but in reality, all they do is constantly check up on what their rivals in business are up to and try to emulate them.

Advertising 302

Advertising Marketing Sales Consulting 302

ShepHyken

JULY 26, 2017

There’s an old joke that goes something like this: A guy goes to the doctor. He raises his arm and complains, “It hurts when I do this.” The doc says, “Then don’t do that.”. In other words, “Stop it!”. That reminds me of a very funny video I saw on YouTube that features comedian Bob Newhart. It’s called “Stop It!”. In the video, Bob Newhart is a therapist and his patient is complaining about a problem she is having.

Customer Service 251

Customer Service Customer Experience 251

Contact Center Pipeline

JULY 11, 2017

In May 2017, the International Customer Management Institute (ICMI) recognized Bob Furniss, VP, Global Service Cloud Practice, Bluewolf, an IBM Company, with its Lifetime Achievement Award. According to ICMI, the recipient is “a person who embodies the spirit of customer service and has contributed to all aspects of the contact center industry—the people, the organizations, […].

Contact Center 213

Contact Center Personalization Management Customer Service 213

Callminer

JULY 12, 2017

What happens when a customer contacts your business expecting answers and the only thing they hear is silence?

Call Center 182

Call Center 182

Speaker: Tim Buteyn, President of ThinkingKap Learning Solutions

Join this brand new webinar with Tim Buteyn to learn how you can master the art of remote onboarding! By the end of this session, you'll understand how to: Craft a Tailored Onboarding Checklist 📝 Develop a comprehensive, customized checklist that ensures every new hire has a smooth transition into your company, no matter where they are in the world.

Technology

CX Global Media

JULY 26, 2017

There are too many times when it seems like the fog has rolled in and it’s hard to see where you need to go. When it comes to trying to figure out the contact center communications cloud landscape, the fog began to lift for me somewhat at Call Center Week. End Finger Pointing in the Contact Center Communication Cloud Click to Tweet. I was helped to see a little more clearly by Matt McGinnis of 8×8.

Contact Center 159

Contact Center SaaS Call Center Technical Support 159

Victor Midgley

JULY 7, 2017

My primary objective of this article, is to warn and guide call centers through the shark infested “call center technology” waters. This article may not make me popular among technology providers however, I would hope that technology provides will take note and consider what I am sharing in this article in regard to call center … Continue reading "SWIMMING WITH THE TECH SHARKS".

Call Center 149

Call Center Technology call center professionals 149

Beyond Philosophy

JULY 26, 2017

When you realize that something you buy often has gone up in price, how do you feel? For many of us, my guess is annoyed, which is the type of emotion that isn’t doing the Customer Experience any favors. However, without checking the package (or Googling) do you have any idea how many sheets of tissue are on a toilet roll? Me neither. That is what manufacturers are banking on with their strategy to reduce the amount included in your purchase price.

Consulting 300

Consulting Consulting Banking Customer Experience 300

ShepHyken

JULY 31, 2017

Each week I read a number of customer service and experience articles from various online resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comment about each article and would like to hear what you think too. 10+ Times Hotels Surprised Everyone With Their Creativity by Sarune Mac. (Bored Panda) If you stay at hotels often, you know that most of them seem to offer the same old thing – mildly friendly reception, a decent bed, and a warm shower.

Customer Service 0

Customer Service Benchmark SaaS Technology 0

Speaker: Laura Noonan, Chief Revenue Officer at CallFinder + Angie Kronlage, Director of Program Success at Working Solutions + April Wiita, Vice President of Program Success at Working Solutions

Are you still manually reviewing calls? 🤔 It's time for a change! The traditional method of manual call monitoring is no longer cutting it in today's fast-paced call center environment. Industry experts Angie Kronlage and April Wiita from Working Solutions are here to explore the power of innovative automation to revolutionize outdated call review processes!

Customer Experience

Contact Center Pipeline

JULY 7, 2017

Our latest webinar, Bringing Quality Monitoring into the heart of the Contact Center, was packed with an array of knowledge and best practice techniques on the topic of quality monitoring (QM). On the back of this, here is a bite-sized version of the most valuable takeaways from the day. Refining the QM Performance Cycle Step […].

Contact Center 174

Contact Center Best practices Benchmark Coaching 174

Callminer

JULY 5, 2017

In today’s customer-focused business world, that means you need to view customers as the boss. At the very least, focus on their concerns and satisfaction.

Metrics 182

Metrics 182

Steve DiGioia

JULY 3, 2017

or, does allowing a little "customer pain" actually help? This original article was written by Steve DiGioia. Pursuing excellence, customer centricity and continuous improvement are obsolete; so says Sampson Lee in his 2015 article “ Turn Upside Down How PAIN is Perceived in Innovating CX and Brand Management”. I am glad to say that I haven’t really had many bad customer service experiences, just some that fell short of expectations or I was disappointed in.

Customer centricity 149

Customer centricity Customer Service Management 149