The strategic significance of the call centre for customer-service-oriented organisations is growing, particularly for companies that have numerous clients.
At the centre of an organisation's customer-facing initiatives, the call centre serves as the point at which clients can establish contact, request assistance or even voice complaints with the service or products they have purchased.
An effectively functioning call centre, which is built on a sound technology platform, is a strategically important facility for businesses serious about providing effective customer service.
According to Gert Cronj'e, regional chief executive of Business Connexion's Eastern Cape region, the growing importance of the call centre is reflected in the company's experience in the region. "Clients see strategic value in call centres and are either looking at establishing new facilities or enhancing existing ones," he says.
Cronj'e notes that the call centre is becoming more versatile as customers increasingly use alternative channels of contact. "While voice remains the preferred method for customers to contact their service provider, e-mail, fax, SMS and Web contact must also be taken into consideration. Clients should be given the choice to contact the service provider in a way that is most convenient for them - and not the other way around," he says.
As such, Cronj'e explains that existing call centres are being equipped with technology that enables multimedia contact.
"We have seen a shift in the perception of the role played by the call centre, from being a cost centre to a revenue-generating facility," he says. "Clients often indicate the solutions they require must be equipped with the tools and technologies necessary to rapidly handle customer needs. In most instances, this requires highly integrated CRM solutions able to draw information from several systems and effectively address even more complex calls at the first contact."
While systems such as intelligent voice response (IVR) are necessary for effective call routing, Cronj'e notes that the emphasis for a successful client experience still falls on the availability of well-trained and well-informed agents capable of addressing clients' queries immediately.
"Agent training is therefore as important as the availability of the technology systems to support them."
Cronj'e notes that outsourcing of call centres is also on the increase and provides businesses the benefit of a centralised resource capable of expanding as business needs grow. "Our clients have emphasised the importance of scalability, in terms of the ready availability of more seats, as well as the ability to rapidly enhance a voice-only solution to a multimedia one," he explains.
Business Connexion, which operates its call centre services from a centralised location in Midrand, has experienced steady growth over the last few years, which Cronj'e says is divided between clients requiring new facilities and those requiring enhancements of existing services. "There is no doubt that companies need call centre services in order to support, maintain and grow contact with their clients. As a non-core component of the business, this function is best left in the hands of an expert service provider," he concludes.
Share
Editorial contacts