Computer Assisted Telephony Systems (Pty) Ltd took automated outbound calls to the next level by making it a solicited call while the process is fully automated. Hence optimising the hardware resources of its client to the maximum and also automating the process to the maximum.
MD Johan Grobler stated: "For a long time, predictive dialling assisted a host of agents to successfully connect to clients and customers in the shortest time period. Whenever an automated system made the dialling, the call was normally unsolicited and the person being called had no motivation to continue with the call once answered. Added to this, the call most probably was on a unexpected and inconvenient time."
Enter C.a.T.S. with an innovative product. The solution, developed by C.a.T.S. allows CRM personnel to upload a list of telephone numbers via a Web interface. This interface then populates a database which sends out SMS messages to the numbers, asking them if they would like to partake in a customer survey.
The only thing the client needs to do is to reply to the SMS. All return SMS messages are recorded and again used to populate a second database which, in turn, is used to make the calls. Rules are put in place for the system not to call on times which are obviously not convenient for a person to receive a call.
The IVR (interactive voice response) system then starts the calls as per the numbers in the database and on answering the call, the caller is again asked if the time of the call is convenient and via an array of options, is given the opportunity to request a call back in an hour's time, or the next day etc.
Grobler continued: "It was important to us not to add to the current situation of unsolicited electronic communication being sent around, and to give our client's clients the utmost freedom and flexibility.
People are in general much savvier in terms of communication and marketing than in the past, but also much wearier. Hence, they need to know that they are part of a very intelligent and very discriminate process. Once people feel they are not pressurised to partake and you opt to give them this freedom, they are generally more prone to partake."
The caller is then asked questions. Based on the questions, a database is populated which provides middle and top management with a dashboard of sorts, in terms of what their clients think and feel. This data can then be used as a decision support system, bringing motivation to the table when deciding on key CRM issues. It can also fuel the current MIS (management information system) and provide valuable feedback on clients' likes and dislikes.
Grobler concluded: "It is a pity that surveys often only allow companies to involve a very small segment of their customer base. We see this innovation as a tool for companies to conduct surveys on a very large scale in terms of people partaking, while at the same time dedicating a very small amount of resource in terms of human resources and processing time. By also adding a definite expiry date to the survey, only relevant data is collected, especially if it is used to measure the success of a campaign or a new product. And the next survey campaign is only a push of a button away."
C.a.T.S. has successfully implemented this solution with a West African telecommunications company with great success. The solution can be owned and managed in-house or can be made use of as a hosted service.
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