If you are a newcomer to the contact center industry, you may have heard of Promero and the key product they are marketing called the Oracle Contact Center Anywhere call center solution. But as a newcomer to this fusion of IT and call center functions, you need to know a little bit more about the terms industry mainstays seem to take for granted because they use them daily.
When an agent is busy with so many calls from customers (called inbound or incoming calls), this may leave some customers frustrated because they cannot reach the agent fast enough to suit their needs. This results in the so-called Abandoned Call or Lost Call (meaning simply the customer opted to hang up than wait around.)
The agent is also referred to by other names, like specialist, attendant, staff member, customer service professional, team member, account executive, technician, operator, engineer, consultant, associate, rep, telephone sales representative, service representative, and customer service representative. They all refer to the contact center agent or call center agent who is responsible either for accepting incoming calls; or for making outgoing or telemarketing calls (also dubbed the Outbound calls.)
The worst thing that can happen to a call center is if it has an All Trunks Busy situation, wherein every one of the trunks in their system or network is clogged with calls. This means that inevitably some callers will encounter busy signals when they try to make incoming calls to the call center. And when callers encounter busy signals consistently, the frequency of Abandoned Calls or Lost Calls will go up as well since customers will not hang around to wait for the trunk or the line to clear so their call will be patched through.
This is where Average Time to Abandonment comes in – this term refers to how long on average your caller will stay waiting in queue before choosing to abandon the call altogether. In an ideal call center solution, Average Time to Abandonment will be rather high which means that the caller will agree to wait a longer period of time until an agent picks up the call to address the concern. But in reality, many call centers experience short Average Time to Abandonment, meaning clients will call, wait a short time then hang up. A short Average Time to Abandonment will mean more Lost Calls representing Los Business.
Any of the call center software packages you might choose from will all have a specific Architecture. Architecture simply means the basic design or way by which the software was created so that its different components can work together in cohesion. A good call center solution architecture would be one that can factor in the aspects of system capacity, the ability to upgrade the system, and capacity for integration with other systems as well.
One virtual call center solution you may want to try out for your call center system is the Oracle Contact Center Anywhere call center solution.
The contemporary world survives on the information received and this is a precious asset for any organization. Any information has to be organized, stored, carefully managed and should be handled perfectly such that it should be available on demand and facilitate easy access. Business intelligence systems are excellent for the modern business as it has the capacity to ensure smooth, incessant flow of information without negotiating on security. The Business Intelligence systems duty is to ensure that correct decision is taken with the available data at the appropriate time. This is done based on the information provided. Business Intelligence systems are basically used to enrich the timeliness of information necessary for the organization, to allow access to all the information wherever it is stored and to offer the information in business terminologies. A business intelligence system greatly reduces the distribution costs spent on the information as well as the handling time. Business intelligence systems should facilitate the tracking of changes, recording and quick response thereby steering the organization to its objectives. Business intelligence systems should facilitate planning and forecasting.
Features of Business Intelligence
The business intelligence solutions should be contemplated carefully, and the system opted for should prove to be consistent. Even if you add new data or new systems, or bring about major changes, business intelligence systems have to steer the company to success. Steering to accomplishment is done by integrating the new data with the existing business intelligence systems is one of the significant elements of this intelligence solution. Creating or developing data warehouses consume time, money and energy, whereas creating the data marts are effective. However, ensure that it contains one data within the organization.
Business intelligence needs suitable analytical tools to assist in gathering information. It categorizes the collected data and this categorization involves data extraction, conversion and cleansing process. Employing suitable tools, you can restore order quickly. The next procedure is to analyze all the stored data to assist in making decisions. To use the tools properly, users should learn to navigate it through the systems. Similarly, selecting right tools is necessary to produce perfect results. There are three types of tools namely, traditional query and reporting, data mining tools and OLAP. The elements of the business intelligence solutions should be considered as well as the organization requirements should be determined prior to buying a business intelligence system.
Impact of Business Intelligence
The business intelligence impact is reaching far and wide and its influence is felt in all the aspects of business. The non-technical users and end-users, business analysts, IT departments and external users are greatly influenced by BI.
To have an effective working system, selecting an appropriate business intelligence system is essential. They have to consider the support platforms given by the system, the backup as well as recovery option, the end user functions, the connectivity options, the files and databases supported and various other criteria to have an active system in the IT sector. The non-technical end users system should be user-friendly such that it should analyze sales, financial matters and marketing. Business analysts should arrive at perfect solutions to have a profound impact on the business.
Call centers are the hottest topic of the existing business environment. The call centers or BPOs have increased in great numbers throughout the world and are proving their efficiency in handling various areas adeptly. Call centers are increasing everyday as innumerable prospective and potential international players are employing their effective trade services as well as effective business solutions. Initially, call centers were viewed as a competent and resourceful tool employed to decrease business costs as well as other administrative expenses. However, in this number of years it has resulted in bestowing the desired results owing to the efficient system. There is no doubt that BPOs operate their functions effectively and well in time and it makes distributing the productivity to maximum with minimum working costs.
Role of Call Centers
The role of call centers have become significant as many organizations find it comfortable to handover the charge to the call centers than handling it on their own. The infrastructure cost, the operational charges, the staff salary, maintenance and administration charges are totally reduced as it is being handled by call centers. The BPOs efficacy is not limited only to handle clients, but is also extended to minimize the time spent on each dead call. The dead time call is referred as unproductive hours and minutes that is spent during the process of making calls such as dialing, answering the number and ringing. This time is considered as unproductive because the agents spend maximum productive time in making the calls than talking with the clients. However, businesses that deals with receiving or making calls, should have sophisticated call center software solutions. This is highly essential to stay well ahead of their competitors.
The people working in the call centers are trained for the products and are given knowledge about the product or services they are supposed to handle. They are expected to handle the inbound and outbound calls in a deft manner. No matter, however is the customer at the other end, it is expected of the call center staff to be highly polite, shrewd in answering, co-operative, alert, knowledgeable about the pros and cons of the products they are handling and quick. They cannot afford to waste a call for a non-productive lead. A call can be held provided it transforms to be prospective at least. The role is highly appreciative as they do not accept any unwanted charges nor do they defy the charges. They handle it very tactfully and convincingly.
Prominent Players
The call centers have a significant role in the changing business environment because of numerous international players. These international players include fortune companies such as Citigroup, Walmart stores, General Motors, etc. Many are making use of the call centers. These companies ensure that they have outsourced their work to a dedicated BPO offshore so that it incorporates skilled and talented agents with adequate technological capacities to deliver opulent customer services. These call centers assist the companies in saving their administrative and transportation expenses and bestow them with superb customer support and business consistency.
Speech has been the inspiration for communication and many other modern features. This has been realized by modern technology as lots of facilities are based on speech such as voice recognition software. The augmentation of technology has introduced several things that a business can gear up its activities and one such facility is the voice recognition software. Voice recognition or speech software is one of the most fabulous software that is provided today. It allows you to store data in your voice in your computer. Voice recognition software is an alternative to the traditional storing devices such as the mouse and the keyboard. You can store your voice using a headset or a microphone and inform the computer what you desire to do. The voice recognition software has the capacity to convert your voice into text as and when you speak, and this text is later on matched with coded wave files.
Benefits of Voice Recognition Software
The benefits of using voice recognition software are many. Impaired individuals who are unable to use their hands can make use of voice recognition software. This technology is of immense use to an extensive range of professionals such as doctors, executives, lawyers, military officers and other high level ranks. The installation of voice recognition software helps in handling documentation and in report preparations as this software does the job effortlessly and owing to this voice recognition software the need of hiring secretaries and people to do transcriptions is totally eliminated. Over all these facilities, the voice recognition software records everything that is expressed and so missing anything or getting any information wrong is highly impossible.
Types of voice recognition software
There are various types of voice recognition software such as speaker dependent voice recognition software and independent voice recognition software, command as well as control voice recognition software, and discreet, continuous and natural speech input voice recognition software.
Speaker dependent software involves you to endure comprehensive exercises to make a voice profile in your computer so that it matches your speech patterns. Alternatively, speaker independent software is flexible and can be used immediately after the installation of the program.
Command as well as control voice recognition software lets you handle your computer through various voice commands. This kind of software allows you to start programs, navigate web sites, open documents and do various other functions by merely talking to your computer.
Discreet speech voice recognition software requires you to stop after each word. Pausing after every word enables the computer to accurately identify the dictated words. However, they possess the efficiency of taking down more than 60wpm.
Continuous speech voice recognition software is synchronized and immediate voice recognition software that facilitates you to dictate commands or instructions without breaking for a pause in between words. However, this software is designed especially for medical specialties.
Eventually, the natural speech voice recognition software is capable of recognizing words if you prompt it fluently. It recognizes 160wpm and retains your voice as you speak. The accuracy is better than any other type of voice recognition software. However, the microphone quality, the environment and the processor’s speed are crucial factors to accomplish the accuracy of this software. |
Improving Contact Center Service and Performance
