As we look to 2023, the contact center industry is poised for significant change as new technologies and trends emerge. Advances in artificial intelligence, cloud-based solutions, and omnichannel communication are driving innovation and allowing organizations to improve customer experience, streamline operations, and gain a competitive advantage.
Companies are placing greater emphasis on using technology to provide personalized and efficient service and improve agents’ satisfaction while focusing on cost reduction and improving the overall customer journey. In this blog, we will highlight some key trends expected to shape the contact center industry in 2023:
1.) The Continued Rise of Automation and AI
According toVCC Live, in 2022, they asked contact center leaders about their long-term objectives. Automation emerged as the leading trend that many participants aimed to further incorporate into their operations, emphasizing solutions that empower customer self-service. There are several reasons for this push toward automation, but the following four stand out:
- Cost reduction through improved efficiency: Automation can help contact centers reduce costs by streamlining processes and eliminating manual tasks.
- Enhancing customer experience: Automation allows for providing personalized solutions at any time, improving the customer experience.
- Retention through agent assistance: Automation can take on tasks typically performed by agents, reducing the risk of attrition.
- Increased customer value: Automation frees agents to focus on providing direct assistance to customers, adding more value for them.
In summary, there is a significant interest among contact center leaders to implement automation solutions in their operations, with a focus on self-service capabilities to improve efficiency, customer experience, and agent productivity, providing more value to the customers.
2.) Focus on Agents – Employee Experience & Productivity
The shortage of contact center agents is a prevalent issue in contact centers worldwide and across all industries.SQM Groupbelieves that historically high agent turnover rates of 35% are the number one obstacle to achieving a high CSAT and FCR rate for call centers in 2022.
Repetitive mundane tasks increase agent burnout and lower employee satisfaction rates immensely. Optimization of agent tasks is a trend that we see on the rise. Using technology solutions to automate specific monotonic tasks can help alleviate agent burnout. In addition, it provides agents with tools to enhance every customer interaction – the ability to send links to customers, one-way video calls, easy upload of images, AI-suggested scripts and actions, and more.
Automation can improve agent performance and enhance the overall customer experience. In addition, automating routine tasks can free up time for agents to focus on personalizing one-on-one interactions with customers. Not only does that free up much of the call line, but it also allows agents to dedicate more time to complex calls.
Overall, using technology will help contact center agents work more efficiently and provide a better customer experience while improving the agent’s overall satisfaction.
3.) Hyper-Personalization
Personalization of the customer experience is crucial in building customer loyalty and improving your KPIs. Customers seek tailored experiences that cater to their specific needs and preferences. According to a report byTwilio, 62% of consumers say that brands that deliver an unpersonalized experience will lose their loyalty.
Businesses can provide more accurate and efficient assistance by taking the time to understand a customer’s history and previous interactions, leading to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty. Personalization can also help build customer trust, making them more likely to return to a business. Contact centers can implement personalization through various methods, such as using the customer’s name, providing personalized recommendations based on their purchase history, or routing them to a specific agent with the skills and knowledge to best handle their inquiry. Personalization can also be used in the digital space via chatbot and AI assistant, which can have a customer-specific conversation based on the previous conversation history. With the right approach, personalization can be a powerful tool to improve the customer experience and increase customer loyalty.
4.)Expansion of Self-Service solutions
To manage the influx of customer inquiries and support requests, many companies turn to self-service solutions to deflect call volumes and free up agents for more critical tasks.
These self-service tools, such as IVRs, Visual IVRs, automated chatbots, Conversational AI, and enhanced knowledge bases, redirect agents to focus on high-value tasks that require more empathy, attention, and a personalized approach. These self-service tools allow more efficient use of labor resources and provide customers with relevant information quickly and easily.
As self-service options are deployed, it is essential to make it easy for customers to move across channels and quickly reach a human agent when needed. Contact centers must continue to provide digital omnichannel support and have human agents available to handle complex empathy-required interactions. This will ensure that customers can get the help they need when needed while maximizing the efficiency of staff resources.
5.)Contact Center as a Revenue Generator
Customer service has long been considered a cost center for businesses. However, Customer Experience (CX) leaders such as Shep Hayken are now realizing the potential for customer service and a strong focus on CX to drive revenue and growth. Hyken mentioned he advocates for rebranding customer service as the “Revenue Generation Department”or the Customer Retention Center because, when done correctly, it can significantly increase profits.
6.)Proactive Engagement
Proactive engagement in customer service is a trend that has been gaining momentum in recent years, and it is expected to continue to be a critical aspect of customer service in 2023. This approach keeps the consumers continuously updated, improving their satisfaction, reducing anxiety, and reducing inbound calls and queries.
By identifying patterns and trends in customer interactions, organizations can proactively address potential issues and improve the overall customer.
With a proactive mindset, organizations map the user journey and identify the areas in a proactive outreach that can vastly improve the user experience. Proactive engagement can be achieved through a variety of different methods, including phone calls, emails, text messages, and social media. Proactive engagement can also be achieved through the use of Visual Self-Service solutions that can send out personalized emails and texts to be used as appointment reminders and promotions, and update customers about their status.
In conclusion, by proactively reaching out to customers, organizations can improve customer satisfaction, reduce customer churn, and improve the overall customer experience. Companies that invest in proactive engagement will be well-positioned to meet the evolving needs of their customers and ultimately grow their business.
7.)Advancing Remote Work
Remote work has become increasingly popular in recent years and especially since the Covid-19 pandemic, and the contact center industry is no exception. Advancing remote work for contact center agents can have many benefits, including increased flexibility and productivity, reduced absenteeism, and improved employee satisfaction. But this does not come without challenges.
One way to advance remote work for contact center agents is through the use of cloud-based technology. By using a cloud-based contact center solution, agents can easily access their work from anywhere with an internet connection. This allows them to work from home or another remote location and still have all of the tools and resources they need to do their jobs effectively.
Although there are many benefits to this remote setting, cyber security s is a major concern for companies. Ensuring the security of remote contact center agents is of the utmost importance, as they often handle sensitive customer information such as personal details and financial data.
There are a number of steps that organizations can take to improve security for remote contact center agents. One key step is to implement a VPN for remote agents to use when accessing company systems. Implementing digital payments as self-service can also provide a contact center with a way to obtain secure payments. Agents can send a link to the customer, they handle all the personal information on their end, and the agent can see if the payment successfully went through without being exposed to personal information.
Summary
In conclusion, customer service is set to undergo a major transformation in the coming years as new technologies and trends continue to emerge from artificial intelligence and automation to proactive engagement and self-service, these trends that will shape the way customer service is delivered in the years to come.
Organizations that stay ahead of the curve and invest in the latest customer service tools and technologies will be well-positioned to meet the evolving needs of their customers and, ultimately, grow their business.