From Cost Centre to Profit Centre, How CX Has Transformed Contact Centres

The contact centre has been one of the most important means of providing customer service excellence for decades. For many businesses it has become the central hub for interacting with their customers.

With the internet age changing consumer behaviour, contact centres have had to evolve too and focus on the customer experience more than ever before. Rather than working as a separate entity that focuses on taking customers calls and complaints - like call centres of the past did - the evolution of contact centres has seen them become well aware of their place within the customer journey.

The modern contact centre has been transformed by the demands for superior CX, but how has this helped make them profitable too? Contact centres today are not just crucial for customer service, they are integral to the creation of value throughout the customer lifecycle.. Here, we take a look at the main ways the contact centre customer experience has transformed for the better.

The Omnichannel Vision

Meeting the demands of your customers means providing new ways to interact with and experience your brand. In the past, there were only so many ways you could do so, but with the rise of social media and other digital channels such as SMS and messaging, contact centres realised the potential to offer more than just interactions by phone.

Now, customers can enjoy a truly omnichannel experience where they can choose whichever channel they want and switch seamlessly between them without having to start the whole interaction over again. So, if a customer wants to send an enquiry through WhatsApp or liaise with an agent through live chat rather than call, they can now do so, meaning contact centres that do not offer these options will be falling behind.

If a customer cannot interact with your brand in the way that’s most convenient for them, they will find brands that can accommodate this.

Automation & Intelligent Software

Technology is the driver behind the contact centre CX evolution, opening up many new avenues to help contact centres thrive in the modern digital world. The only way omnichannel can work successfully is to have the right software to deliver this and maintain high-quality CX. It’s one of the reasons why contact centre leaders are investing heavily in emerging integrated solutions and automation, a decision that not only improves CX output, but also reduces operational costs. With Gartner reporting 64% of customer service and support leaders are focusing on business growth this year, finding ways to scale and ensure contact center infrastructure sufficiently meets the needs of the business without heavy capital investment is a difficult balancing act.

The modern call centre needs to have both physical and virtual resources to ensure CX continues to be consistent and successful against competitors. With one eye on reducing capital expenditure (CapEx) and day to day operating expenses (OpEx), it’s no wonder many business leaders are seeking outsourcing opportunities as a solution. Rather than investing in physical space and equipment as part of contact centre digital transformation, BPO services can be hugely beneficial as it can provide all of this ready to go, with an expert team to oversee operations too.

Automation and AI are important for the customer experience, and many contact centers are adopting intelligent software that leans on this. This makes providing an omnichannel approach simple, easy to track, and also provides personalisation for customers. AI in particular has been able to streamline processes that are time-consuming and help free up the workloads of teams under pressure during peak demand periods. Chatbots are one example where many customers can find the information they need without interacting with a human advisor straight away, filtering out many common enquiries and processes. This all assists with the customer journey and creates not only satisfied customers but advocates for your brand too.

Better CX Means Better EX

As with any emerging technology, ensuring this is being implemented for the right reasons will avoid becoming tech-first rather than process-focused. Bringing automation and AI into your call centre is all very well, but if it doesn’t help improve processes, it may not be the right time. The focus should be on enhancing CX rather than hindering it, and this will not only resonate with your customers but also with your employees. The improvements to contact centre CX have a huge impact on the employee experience (EX), and vice-versa – companies after all need both CX and EX to work harmoniously.

Productivity and employee satisfaction are two of the biggest wins contact centre digital transformation can bring. Ultimately, this is all for the benefit of CX as happier employees mean higher productivity, better customer feedback scores, and more engagement in their work. Providing your employees with the tools to do their job well has always been necessary, but the changes with CX influencing the way modern contact centres are run helps deliver more convenience and efficiency in their roles.

An omnichannel approach ensures each agent can see the full history of whichever touchpoints your customers use, meaning fewer pain points relating to customers speaking to different people through multiple channels. Enabling your employees to have all the information in one place speeds up interactions, increases productivity, and drives CSAT and NPS scores higher. Employees are more satisfied too as a result of this, especially when creating a feedback loop to celebrate success and not just focus on the negatives.

Start Delivering Better CX

Brands know how important CX is for their long-term success and contact centres that focus on improving this can transition from a cost centre to a profit centre quicker than their rivals. The focus on the customer experience has thoroughly transformed the role of the humble contact center. They have become an integral piece of the CX puzzle, and businesses looking to improve their CX should ignore them at their peril. With 88% of customers having higher expectations than in previous years, and 79% more informed than ever before, lacking the infrastructure to deliver the CX your customer’s demand can start to impact your brand reputation.

If you want to focus on CX and reducing CapEx and Opex, you will want to consider outsourcing in your plans. At Ventrica we can help you with BPO solutions that will provide a cost-effective approach, addressing common pain points many brands have such as hiring talented staff, meeting peak demand, or implementing the latest software to improve CX.

Contact us today to talk through your current challenges to see how we can help.