My Challenge Is...
My organization’s customer service representatives are spending hours each day answering the same questions over and over again via phone and email.
I want to be able to easily monitor, control and quickly respond to any questions or comments on my company’s Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
My organization needs a cloud-based customer service solution that integrates with our current systems and also with the online business applications we use on a daily basis.
My organization needs a proven way to track and improve upon our customer service representatives’ productivity. We want to provide more efficient, yet effective customer service.
My company is looking for a way to deliver legendary customer service and engagement to increase customer retention. We need to ensure our customers are satisfied.
I need customer service metrics and reporting tools that bring together and compare data from all my customer service channels, so I can see not only what works best for us, but who works best for us.
There is a high price to pay for poor customer service, while conversely, there is money to be made from consistently delivering an exceptional customer experience. The challenge on both sides is that customer expectations have never been higher for service and support. Read More
With government spending being scrutinized more heavily than ever before, and budgets and workforces being slashed, there is a bright spot for significant savings, and that’s the continued adoption of cloud-based technologies for processes such as constituent service and engagement.
Several years ago, the outlook was a little hazy as to if the public sector would move to the cloud, but with the Office of Management and Budget’s Cloud First initiative, it’s now just a question of who, what and when most agencies will do so, if they haven’t already. Read More
In using technology and its big or little data to create a more personalized customer experience, one of the key things that brands and organizations must always remember is that, when it comes to collecting and utilizing customer information, it isn’t just business, it’s personal.
Consumers are becoming increasingly more comfortable with providing personal information for an improved customer experience, and in fact, most desire that personal touch. In the Cisco Customer Experience Report which surveyed more than 1,500 consumers across 10 countries:
Chat has always been right on the bubble in terms of becoming a major customer service channel. But since social media and texting have made short, personalized messaging the mainstream method of communication, chat is now being deployed by more companies across more channels than ever before to improve the customer experience.
Chat allows today’s hyper-connected customers to stay online, avoid hold times, multitask while they’re seeking customer service, and use the brief messaging bursts of language they’ve become accustomed to on their smartphones and social media, all keys to saving time, which is a huge consideration for today’s consumer.
Forrester data shows that 71% of US online adult consumers say that valuing their time is the most important thing a company can do to provide good service, and a 2013 LivePerson Connecting with Customers report which surveyed 5,700 global consumers corroborates this. Read More
Since the 16th century, government has been bound by a struggling service reputation that has frequently been summed up by the phrase “red tape.” But motivated by the recent establishment of the Office of E-Government and Information Technology, as well as Executive Order 13571, which requires federal agencies to streamline service delivery and improve the constituent experience, government agencies are working to quickly cut ties with this persistent persona.
For government customer service perception to noticeably improve, agencies at all levels require a citizen engagement strategy that’s of the people, by the people, for the people, and able to serve them anytime, anywhere, on any device. Thanks to a pioneering effort and investment in CRM technology by customer-centric brands in the private sector, the groundwork has already been laid and tested for this “no wrong door” approach, which not only improves customer satisfaction by giving the public a choice in how they initiate and receive service, but opens up channels that are far less costly than traditional ones such as phone or email. Read More
Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson serves travelers abroad a Virgin America flight New York to San Francisco in a handout photo from Virgin America.
Dos Equis may lay claim to The Most Interesting Man in the World, but it’s another brand that boasts the world’s most interesting and famous customer service representative: Virgin Group Founder, Richard Branson.
While the billionaire son of a barrister and flight attendant could easily take a break from the business spotlight, he chooses to continually shine it toward what he believes is a key differentiator for all brands including his own, and that’s customer service. In Forbes, Entrepreneur magazine, the Wall Street Journal, and on his own blog and Twitter (when Richard Branson tweets, it’s him, not an assistant or a PR firm), Branson consistently credits customer service as a key to his companies’ and other companies’ success. And if Sir Richard Branson is willing to dress up as a female flight attendant and serve drinks in front of the cameras (even if it was the result a bet), you better believe he is willing to do whatever it takes to promote his brand’s service.
Here are five key words of advice for any customer-focused organization from The World’s Most Famous Customer Service Representative:
1. On setting realistic customer expectations from Entrepreneur magazine: “The key is to set realistic customer expectations, and then not to just meet them, but to exceed them — preferably in unexpected and helpful ways. Read More
While the number of frequently-used customer support channels reached a brief plateau in the first decade of the new millennium, the early 2010s have witnessed an explosion of groundbreaking new ones including social media and mobile, which have resulted in an uphill climb for large contact centers that must work to adapt.
Deloitte’s 2013 Global Contact Center Survey Report shows that contact centers continue to grow, with 77% of those polled saying they expect to maintain their size or expand within the next two years, with growth driven in large part by the need to improve service. For the report, Deloitte surveyed 560 contact centers across four continents and seven industries including the public sector, software tech, media, telecom, healthcare and financial services.
While smaller brands and organizations are typically agile and better able to adapt to changing customer expectations and emerging customer service channels, large contact centers tend to be challenged with making the best out of the technology they have, siloed customer data and set-in-stone policies and procedures. This makes noticeably improving customer service and the customer experience at scale to compete with digital disruptors and an always-online global marketplace a monumental task. Read More
Parature is pleased to announce that the company has been named a 2013 Hot Ticket Award nominee in two categories: Hottest Emerging Government Contractor and Hottest Buzz. The awards are hosted by the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) and criteria include vision, the ability to implement and deliver, as well as innovative management approach. As the largest technology council in the nation, the NVTC serves more than 1,000 companies from all sectors of the tech industry, as well as service providers, universities, foreign embassies, non-profit organizations and governmental agencies.
As a Hottest Emerging Government Contractor nominee, Parature continues to drive its momentum in the government space following an 85% growth in the government vertical in 2012. Read More
Parature, Inc., a leading provider of cloud-based customer service solutions serving more than 3,000 mid-market to enterprise brands, is pleased to announce it has been positioned by Gartner, Inc. in the Niche quadrant of the “Magic Quadrant for the CRM Customer Engagement Center.”**
Michael Maoz, Vice President and Gartner Distinguished Analyst, author of the report, writes, “The CRM customer engagement center (CEC) refers to a logical set of technologies and business applications that are engineered to provide customer service and support, regardless of the interaction (or engagement) channel. The goal of the CEC is not only to provide service to customers as they move among communication channels – including social media – while retaining the customers’ context, but also to deliver the appropriate business rule to determine the next best action, information or process with which to engage customers.” Read More
A discount, referral from a friend, Facebook, or an online search may have introduced your brand to some of its best customers, but after the thrill of the first transaction is gone, it’s the emotional connection that will keep your customers loyal and telling the world how much they love you. And emotions run high, especially when it comes to customer service. According to Accenture’s 2012 Global Consumer Pulse Research:
Just like in personal relationships, keeping a customer relationship going for years takes a lot of work. And the cost of losing customers can take a heavy toll: Read More
