Contact Center Pipeline Magazine, November 2023 November 2023 | Page 25

In addition , there is a growing divergence between on-demand customer service in today ’ s digital age versus tolerance for delays in the “ real ” world .

It ’ s realistic now that a consumer can be shopping in-person , realize a product is out of stock and then find it online and have it delivered before they return home . Today , people expect the physical world to move at the same fast pace the digital world offers . This trend is creating less tolerance for delays .

WHAT CHANNELS AND MEANS ARE CUSTOMERS CHOOSING TO EXPRESS THEIR COMMENTS AND CONCERNS TO ORGANIZATIONS , ARE THESE CHANGING , AND WHY ?

A : People are getting increasingly used to digital channels to engage with a brand , and at the same time , these digital channels are becoming increasingly available to them .

But it ’ s still the case today that a certain level of importance and emotion will inform a customer to speak to a live agent or escalate the interaction from digital to voice .

Listening to social must be done carefully as there are bad actors that are using the channel to shill for companies , tear down others , or game them for special treatment .

But is it actually possible to gain meaningful accurate insights from social ? And can artificial intelligence ( AI ) help ?

Here ’ s Dave Singer ’ s response :

“ Thankfully , there are generally more good actors than bad actors , but toxic tactics still exist and can damage a brand ' s reputation ,” says Dave .

“ This is what makes AI so important . For example , there is a new phenomenon called ‘ review bombing ,’ in which a large number of people ( or a few people with multiple accounts ) purposely post negative reviews , resulting in biased ratings against a company .

“ This is when AI-powered analytics can come to the rescue and identify these types of events or behaviors by examining content and looking for patterns , like bursts in negative comments phrased exactly the same way .

“ Similarly , with fraud detection , robust AI-powered analytics and capabilities that are designed to provide rich metadata and risk signals can help companies quickly and easily identify and filter out fraud callers versus safe , legitimate callers . Thereby reducing costs and call handling time in its contact centers .

“ Overall , getting good insights is possible , but it takes some work . You can ' t take it all at face value .”

For example , if your rent payment is processed in error and you ’ re at risk of being evicted , you will likely want to speak to a live agent until it ’ s resolved because the issue is of high importance and impacts your livelihood . With the high costs of renting and low availability of suitable places to live these days , your angst would understandably be off the charts .

What ’ s changed is the threshold for what ’ s considered highly important . Today , you can buy a car entirely online without ever speaking to a live person , even considering that this purchase is relatively high cost and therefore high importance .

Which engagement channels customers choose to express their comments and concerns to organizations comes down to three types : Immediate digital ( web chat app ), deferred digital ( web / email form ), and voice ( calling into customer service ).

Today , there ’ s less differentiation between these channels , but the breaking point when customers switch between a digital channel and voice is increasing .

Before , channel hopping was more difficult because you had to move between voice and mobile devices , but today , mobile devices handle every modality , making it easy and seamless .

CONVERSELY , WHAT CHANNELS AND MEANS ARE CONTACT CENTERS USING TO HEAR , UNDER- STAND , AND ACT ON CUSTOMERS ' CONCERNS ?

A : There are many channels and means for companies to collect , analyze , and act on the voice of the customer ( VoC ) to improve and enhance CX , including feedback channels and customer surveys , to name a few .

It used to be that a customer was quick to use social media to get their issues resolved quickly . Or companies " forced " channel hopping . For instance , when you receive the text " We ' ve noticed fraud on your credit card , please call this number ," forcing the customer to switch from text to voice .

Consumer-channel behaviors are evolving , and they should be able to engage on whatever channel ( voice , text , email , etc .) at whatever time they want . Brands shouldn ' t force their customers into one channel or another , it should be the customer ’ s choice .

If you get a text message alerting you of suspected credit card fraud , you should be able to authenticate and approve within the same channel . Channel hopping is decreasing as mobile apps are increasingly becoming an action channel versus just a communication channel .

NOVEMBER 2023 25