Our current digital age has changed some of the ways we live our lives. Because we have now become used to information being available the second we request it, our expectations of immediacy have permeated beyond the initial realm of search engines. That is, we now expect service to be as immediate as information. Patience for a problem to be resolved is at an all-time low, and demand for efficiency in contact center solutions is at an all-time high. That is why it is increasingly important to incorporate self-service options into your call centers, so customers can first try to help themselves before having to seek further assistance.

That didn’t use to be the case. It used to be that a consumer just wanted good customer service. But expecting good customer service came at the cost of having to submit to the customer service department operating hours. If you had a question in the middle of the night, chances were that you were out of luck and simply had to wait until morning. But alas, those days are gone.

Presently, companies try to offer customer service around the clock. But even that isn’t enough anymore. Most people have common issues that can often be simply solved through a quality self-service option.

Typical self-service features address those issues that are most frequently encountered by your customer service agents. These issues are easy to identify as well as simple to solve, so long as you have the appropriate information. These solutions provide the customers with the information they need while diverting unnecessary calls away from your telephone agents. This will reduce call volume and reduce the amount of time other customers spent waiting to get help while requiring your company to spend less onstaffing their call centers.

Providing the latest technology in contact center solutions will allow your customers to get better service while your business spends less money. It truly is a win/win, and the only pitfall you need to avoid is making it difficult to reach an actual representative. Some companies make the mistake of automatically filtering all customer service requests into an automated system. This isn’t a bad thing in itself, but it certainly can be if it becomes difficult to get connected to a representative. So make sure you clearly direct people to where they want to end up.

If you are trying to figure out what exactly it is your customers are looking for, don’t be afraid to ask them. Creating a well-designed and accessible customer satisfaction survey about whether to create self-service options can be extremely useful. Get their point of view on the front end, so you can better cater the solution to their needs. And once you do implement a new solution, remember to continuously check the metrics. Track statistics about call volume and self-service traffic. Those numbers compared to your previous reports should indicate whether the new contact center solutions are having the desired affects. And if you find that you need some advice on how best to implement new self-service options to your customer service contact center, please feel free to contact us at Eventus for help.

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