Secrets In Providing Superior Caller Experience
Not too long ago, I picked up a Gartner report on IVR and speech recognition that had some pretty amazing findings. Not surprisingly, when customers have problems, they immediately reach for the phone (versus going to a website and trying to dig for an answer). But you already knew that.
Much more interesting, though — if wait times are more than two minutes, callers strongly prefer using speech-enabled IVR applications rather than waiting for a representative.
So it seems that speech-enabled IVR systems have found their killer app(s) — the stuff that touchtone systems can’t do, or that normally require agent assistance. Except, um, there aren’t any agents available. Obvious candidates for speech recognition are things like address change, step-by-step troubleshooting, and open-ended call routing.
Unfortunately, not all speech-enabled IVR applications are created equal. Some are highly frustrating, causing the caller to unnecessarily repeat information or to wade through endless menus before arriving at a place where self-service can finally begin.
So here are a few tips on creating a great caller experience:
1. Make it Conversational
The bottom line is this — in order for speech-enabled systems to deliver a superior caller experience, they must be conversational. That means: let callers ask for what they need, understand their questions and quickly resolve their issues. Oh, and by the way, do it faster than a live agent.
2. Give Control (no, really)
Callers also want to feel in control of the process (I know I do). Every caller should be able to give commands such as wait, go back, next, or (most importantly) live agent!!! at any time. Otherwise, the system is just as bad as the “voice mail jail” systems that are being replaced.
3. Be Different
For competitive reasons, it seems that every company wants to offer differentiated service to their customers. Next generation IVR systems identify certain customers and handle calls according to business logic. Here’s a great example — understand that an airline passenger is in the middle of a trip, and offer their next flight information proactively. If you haven’t tried it, call the American Airlines “Remember Me” application sometime. You will be truly impressed, trust me.
4. Do Your Agents A Favor
Finally, If a caller needs to speak with a live agent, the interaction has got to be productive. The agent should already have access to all the information the caller has provided to the IVR. Nothing is more annoying to a caller than inputting all account information into the system and, after failing to resolve the issue, being routed to an agent who asks for the same information all over again.
Download the rest of the article here.
5 Best Practices In Providing Superior Caller Experience With Speech
Recent Comments