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Multi-Contact CRM Strategy

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New technology continues to change the face of modern call centers. One critical new development is the convergence of multi-contact software solutions onto one single, centrally managed and administered platform. A multiple site platform can help your organization to reduce overall costs, boost revenue, as well as tremendously increase total customer satisfaction.

Until recently, most contact management solutions were still hosted on separate platforms, administered separately, running software applications developed and deployed separately, and not sharing information about operations and customer interactions. With continuing research and case studies, these software systems have proven to be a much more powerful, efficient and cost-effective solution at winning customer loyalty and generating more significant revenue.

The information below offers a great deal of insight into the complex business intelligence and contact strategies that are required to operate successful call centers. Learn how to utilize the very latest software technology to maximize the efficiency of your company or organization, as well as develop new ideas to improve your knowledge base, and ultimately build more profitable and long-lasting relationships with your customers.

To view software vendors that can provide you with multi contact technologies click here.

Multi-Contact CRM Strategy

  • Boosting First Contact Resolution with Best Practices and Technology Solutions
    - Presented by Altitude Software
     Much has been written and said about first contact resolution (FCR) in recent years. The importance of FCR to cost savings and customer satisfaction is well documented. But despite the intense focus, a study by ICMI indicated that only about half of contact centers currently track FCR for telephone contacts and far fewer track FCR for other channels. Unlike more established metrics, there is no uniform definition. Nor is there a broadly accepted means for collecting and tracking the data. In this white paper we tackle head-on the definitional challenges and dissect the various methods of data collection. The paper outlines thirteen specific actions contact center management can take to increase FCR rates. Fortunately, new software applications such as those produced by Altitude Software can materially simplify the process of improving FCR rates and help get to the root causes of callbacks.  Read More...
  • Three Best Practices for Today’s Profitable Contact Center
    - Presented by Avaya
     Cost vs. revenue? Efficiency vs. effectiveness? Contact centers have always had to balance these apparently opposing forces. In this new era, contact center managers must find approaches that deliver on effectiveness and efficiency simultaneously. The three best practices discussed here are those that Avaya has found can deliver on this promise today.  Read More...
  • Maximizing the Savings of Call Center Multi-Sourcing While Protecting Service Levels
    - Presented by Echopass Corporation
     Multi-sourcing is an advantage for call centers—but gains depend on implementation - Many companies are moving to multi-sourcing for call center agents, largely in pursuit of the cost savings that can come from flexibly tapping into a variety of labor pools. The trend is also growing because multi-sourcing enables call center resources to be rapidly scaled in either direction to align with business growth, call volumes and seasonality.  Read More...
  • Mine the Best White Paper Library: Chat, Self-Service & Social Customer Service MultiContact
    - Presented by eGain
     Chat and Cobrowse Customer Service that Pays Off: 8 Foolproof Steps to Success Chat and cobrowse tools, often referred to as “web collaboration technology,” have unmatched potential for improving customer service and increasing revenues. Savvy businesses in many sectors are using chat and cobrowse tools to attract, win, and keep customers. In this paper, we describe eight somewhat uncommon but foolproof steps to help businesses use chat and cobrowse to maximize the value of interactions in all phases of the customer life cycle.

    Web Self-Service Pitfalls: What Every Contact Center Manager Must Know This paper reveals hidden pitfalls in self-service strategy and implementation. Believe the myths discussed in this paper at your peril—they are proven recipes for customer defections and project failure! Based on experience distilled from hundreds of successful self-service implementations at world-class companies, the paper provides a best-practice approach that can dramatically increase self-service adoption and reduce escalations to assisted service, driving cost savings and customer satisfaction.

    Social Media Customer Service and Knowledge Management: Early Best Practices Social media present a great opportunity for businesses to extend service options for customers, grow revenue, and reinforce brands. As businesses consider implementing social media customer service, often called "social customer service," they should leverage the best practices that have emerged from the experiences of early adopters.

    Harvesting Social Knowledge for Customer Service Community-based knowledge creation for customer service is not new. However, enabled by the ubiquity and ease of use of the Web and the availability of social networking tools, it has gone to a whole new level, leading to the coinage of the term "social knowledge." While more prevalent in B2C sectors, social knowledge is also starting to matter in B2B sectors. How can companies harvest the best of social knowledge for the customer service they offer through their own contact centers and service organizations? How should they engage with customers on social websites? The following five-step plan will increase the odds of success in harvesting social knowledge for customer service.      Read More...
  • Dynamic Customer Value Maximization
    - Presented by eglue Business Technologies
     In today’s competitive age, when customer satisfaction is a key to success, customer interaction must rely on real-time assessment of information and immediate reaction to customer demand. This document will offer you a glimpse of how customer-centric organizations can maximize customer value, enhance customer retention, leverage past investments and deliver fast ROI, by delivering to the customer interaction relevant information and defining the action required to maximize the value of the interaction.  Read More...
  • Reducing Total Email Response Time
    - Presented by emailtopia
     Today’s competitive marketplace is placing extraordinary demands upon customer service organizations, sales teams and call centers. Managing the rapidly growing volume of email from customers can be a daunting challenge.  Read More...
  • Best Practices for Transforming Call Centers into Blended Sales/Service Organizations
    - Presented by Enkata
     By Donna Fluss, DMG Consulting LLC;Compliments of Enkata

    DMG Consulting predicts that within the next eight to ten years, the majority of today’s service-oriented call centers – whether focused on customer service, field service or technical support – will become revenue-generating profit centers. Call centers that do not make this transition will either be outsourced to an offshore location to dramatically reduce the cost of service, or eliminated altogether and replaced by self-service applications. While this sounds harsh, it is a business reality. Senior executives have a fiduciary responsibility to shareholders and employees to reduce expenses and improve operating margins. They can no longer afford to have their company’s profitability reduced by non-revenue-generating activities, such as customer service.

    At the same time as senior executives are facing intense pressure to improve their operating performance and bottom line, they are also recognizing the important role that customer service plays in retaining customers and enhancing their brand. Building a customer-centric organization is no longer an option; it is a strategic imperative. This white paper provides a roadmap for converting service-oriented call centers from cost centers into revenue generators. It makes the business case, addresses the systems, and provides best practices and tactics for succeeding with this essential transition.      Read More...
  • Customer Service Strategies: Creating a Great Customer Experience- Genesys
    - Presented by Genesys
     Learn about the impact a superior customer experience can have on your business—and how to bridge the gap between satisfaction and loyalty. This strategy guide is intended for customer-facing business and operational decision makers interested in maximizing the value of customer interactions across all channels.
    It examines:
    • Nine winning strategies for improving customer satisfaction—and building loyalty ;
    • The elements of “customer satisfaction”—and how it differs from loyalty;
    • How to create a great contact center experience—critical to increasing revenues and profitability      Read More...
  • Hosted CRM Buyer's Guide
    - Presented by InsideCRM
     This paper outlines the general benefits and drawbacks of hosted vs. on-premise CRMs and lists the basic features to look for in your hosted solution. This is an up-to-date overview of the CRM market and a rundown of the general costs of various CRMs today.  Read More...
  • Multi-Channel Scheduling -Back Office Planning with WFM -
    - Presented by InVision Software
     In this white paper we discuss how workforce management, in a multi-channel environment, requires additional attention and planning methodologies to achieve business goals. The proper balance between demand for service and resources available to provide service requires the WFM planners to properly carry out forecasting and scheduling in a multi-channel environment utilizing tools and methods designed with this emerging environment in mind.  Read More...
  • Identify Service Issues Fast- Increase Your Customer’s Experience
    - Presented by LiveOps
     Gain real-time visibility and control to proactively manage customer experiences. 

    To thrive in today's highly competitive business environment, companies need innovative approaches to attract and retain customers. Why? Because customers are more sophisticated and have higher expectations than ever. They always want better products and services. But given how quickly products and services are commoditized today, what truly sets your company apart is customer service. The problem is, too often, companies find out about service problems too late — or they can't make quick changes that get things running smoothly again.

    What about your contact center?
    -- Do you know when your service levels are being affected?
    --How quickly can you identify the root causes of problems?
    --Once you're aware of a problem, how quickly can you implement changes that improve service levels?

    See how salesforce.com, West Marine, and VForce-AAA Ohio optimize their customers' experiences.      Read More...
  • 7 Ways to Out-Service the Competition
    - Presented by RightNow Knowledge Managment
     It's five times more expensive to gain a new customer than keep an existing one. So in a recession especially, it is critical for your business to both retain every customer and maximize their lifetime value.

    • Companies that increase marketing and customer interaction investments during tough times improve profit margins, sales, and market share over competitors who don't.
    • Less than half of senior marketers surveyed have insight into customer retention rates, lifetime value, and profitability, yet most believe that the full revenue potential of their current customers is unrealized.

    This white paper will help you recognize the seven unique opportunities this downturn provides. Capitalize on them while they exist and be positioned to out-service your competition and propel profits in the year ahead      Read More...