{"id":126118,"date":"2019-01-15T04:40:44","date_gmt":"2019-01-15T12:40:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/?post_type=blog&p=126118"},"modified":"2019-01-15T04:40:44","modified_gmt":"2019-01-15T12:40:44","slug":"how-to-build-and-manage-a-cost-effective-flexible-and-scalable-retail-contact-centre","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-gb\/blog\/post\/how-to-build-and-manage-a-cost-effective-flexible-and-scalable-retail-contact-centre","title":{"rendered":"How to Build and Manage a Cost-Effective, Flexible, and Scalable Retail Contact Centre"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_section full_width=”stretch_row”][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The warmth of an agent\u2019s greeting. The assurance of a concise SMS. The micro-content on a web form. <\/span>The customer experience is everywhere. Get every element right, and you\u2019ll capture the customer\u2019s heart forever.<\/span><\/p>\n

47% of customers would take their business to a competitor within one day of experiencing poor customer service, and 79% would do the same within a week <\/span><\/i>\u2014<\/span> 24\/7<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

What\u2019s missing from this picture? The <\/span>practicalities of implementation. Too many solutions in the space seem starry-eyed about future possibilities\u2014without a thought for the IT professional charged with making it real. <\/span><\/p>\n

In the real world, downtime isn\u2019t an option. Nor is rip-and-replace. Or the downwards dip in CSAT scores when your time-to-answer increases from two rings to ten.<\/span><\/p>\n

That means the job of keeping the contact centre flexible, scalable and on a budget starts with the IT team. It\u2019s about resource allocation, cost control, maintenance hours and integration complexity. <\/span><\/p>\n

So here\u2019s a thought: if you\u2019re building and managing a retail contact centre, \u00a0why not look at those practical issues <\/span>first<\/span><\/i>? <\/span><\/p>\n

In this blog post, we\u2019ll explore an approach that works. Not just about the <\/span>potential<\/span><\/i> of unified customer service, but how your IT team can <\/span>realise<\/span><\/i> that potential .\u2026 by planning for <\/span>principles, not pain.<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Peak time panic: when service matters most for retailers<\/b><\/p>\n

People who aren\u2019t call-centre-savvy ask why peak times matter since they\u2019re such a small part of the day. Of course, that\u2019s the whole point. In peak periods, <\/span>more customers are experiencing your brand<\/span><\/i>. In many sectors, 80% of calls come in during just two hours of the day. <\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s more. Almost by definition, these are the customers with most at stake \u2014 interested in getting the best result in the least time. People with other things to do; people who\u2019ll appreciate two-ring answers and first-call resolutions (<\/span>FCR<\/span><\/a>) <\/span>most<\/span><\/i>. That\u2019s why the first principle of any retail contact centre should be to assess how you perform at the most demanding times \u2014 with <\/span>scalability<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n

One way of doing it is to explore <\/span>Contact Centre as a Service or CCaaS. Using your in-house resources, burst capacity from outside, and\/or a combination of both, the number of available agents can expand and shrink to match your busy and slack periods. This helps solve scalability both for peak times today and business growth in the years ahead. <\/span><\/p>\n

Call it <\/span>Principle #1: to ensure scalability, think SaaS from the start<\/b>. Adding only the resources you need keeps your costs under control, too.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. All-in-one vs plays-well-with others: a tricky balancing act<\/b><\/p>\n

Many contact centre applications offer a turnkey solution covering multiple business functions \u2014 and many work well. But just as many fail to understand how deep your legacy structures go. That customer database, that customer relationship management (CRM) application, that order entry system dating back a decade \u2014 all of them reflect deeply-embedded business processes that are your company\u2019s entire competitive advantage. And they can\u2019t just be thrown in the garbage. <\/span><\/p>\n

Generation Y prefers social media to any other channel, yet 60% of contact centres have no social media capabilities <\/span><\/i>\u2014<\/span> Dimension Data<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

So Principle #2 is another practical one: look for <\/span>balance<\/span><\/i> in how your technology choices work as a single source and as part of an integrated stack. A click-to-install SaaS is great: fast and easy to set up with scalability built into the cloud. But if your databases and legacy apps aren\u2019t negotiable, look for a sound <\/span>developer API that lets you connect them seamlessly.<\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019re not just looking for integration with a set of partners or vendors, but <\/span>names both large and niche<\/span><\/a>. Because scalable solutions mean thinking about <\/span>what the future holds. You don\u2019t know what big-name CRM your next acquisition might hold its customer data on, so you want the ability to work with custom apps as well as off-the-shelf packages. <\/span><\/p>\n

The convenience of turnkey SaaS is great; so is the flexibility of third-party integration. In your strategy, make room for both.<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Rip-and-replace? Not in this contact centre<\/b><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a fact of life that many contact centres use a cocktail of technologies, introduced at different times to answer different needs. Perhaps unavoidable \u2014 but there are <\/span>right and wrong ways to deal with it<\/span><\/a>. If a new solution will add further complexity rather than eliminate some, tread carefully. <\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019re looking for solutions that <\/span>actively reduce the number of necessary platforms <\/b>\u2014 and connect those that remain more effectively. If an agent has to triple-jump between screens or apps to answer a customer query, look to remove a screen rather than add another. If a new business requirement arises, see if it can be answered by connecting existing data rather than adopting a new app.<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s Principle #3:<\/span> connect in ways that simplify. It may mean sidelining an app or interface while continuing to use the database behind it. Or integrating two data sources on a single agent screen. Whatever works \u2014 but keep the principle in mind to save headaches later.<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Factor in maintenance tomorrow as a cost today<\/b><\/p>\n

Count the hours. In five decades of business computing, one metric stays stubbornly high: the amount of time the IT professional spends just keeping the plates spinning. And your schedule is probably no exception.<\/span><\/p>\n

So <\/span>Principle #4:<\/b> start with an idea of the <\/span>hours needed for ongoing upkeep, <\/span>before<\/span><\/i> any solution gets rolled out. Sometimes, a rough back-of-envelope estimate can be surprisingly accurate. <\/span><\/p>\n

Many business models don\u2019t even take future upkeep into account<\/span><\/i><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

To minimise this resource vampire, list all the breaks and chokepoints where your attention gets taken up today. What\u2019s that regular escalation scenario where the person above needs to step in? How many hand-offs does a customer suffer in common use cases? How many screens of data does an agent need to chug through? Every app you add, every process you change, needs to simplify at least one of these \u2026 without making any others more complex.<\/span><\/p>\n

Best of all, it\u2019s a win you can explain easily to your colleagues and managers outside the IT department: the more seamless your internal process, the better the experience for customers.<\/span><\/p>\n

5.\u00a0 Think eCommerce change management as well as eCommerce management!<\/b><\/p>\n

The last principle on the way to a successful build is softer: have a <\/span>change management mindset. (Since any IT professional\u2019s life is constant change, you\u2019ve got a head start.) <\/span><\/p>\n

Change management isn\u2019t so much about making changes as getting buy-in for them. So as <\/span>Principle #5<\/i><\/b>, commit to<\/span> talking<\/span><\/i> more to your people at the front end of customer service. What happened when that last big change rolled out: did they like it, dislike it, view its outcomes as negative? Did they think it was imposed <\/span>on<\/span><\/i> them, or negotiated <\/span>with<\/span><\/i> them? How are they <\/span>really<\/span><\/i> using that data source: as its architect intended, or are they doing an end-run around its requirements because the payoff for customers doesn\u2019t make sense?<\/span><\/p>\n

CSAs are fast becoming profit centres instead of cost centres – <\/span><\/i>Voxai<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

The people who deal with customers one-to-one \u2014 your contact centre agents \u2014 are a deep resource of customer knowledge. It\u2019s shocking how rarely their views make it into boardroom decisions. Seamless customer service means a better experience and that starts with a seamless centre team: make sure you\u2019re taking advantage of their daily learnings. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Start smart, and let your retail contact centre shine<\/b><\/p>\n

If there\u2019s a common denominator to these five principles, it\u2019s that success comes from what you do <\/span>before<\/span><\/i> you build out your solution. <\/span><\/p>\n

(These principles aren\u2019t hard, but look back over your own career \u2014 you\u2019ll be surprised at how many times your life was made difficult by a project that missed one or more of them.)<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEffective contact centre leaders must have the ability to not only envision and champion processes, but also to ensure that ensuing projects are scalable to existing resources, platforms, and products.\u201d <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The overarching point here: it\u2019s often up to the IT professional to be that agent of change who thinks about the future. Sounds like a challenge? Well, it is. But the right principles will help you <\/span>start seamless\u2026 and keep it that way.<\/span><\/p>\n

TAKEAWAYS:<\/b><\/p>\n