Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms can (and should) play an important role in customer relations. Here at The Connection®, we always recommend that companies integrate call center and CRM technologies. Doing this enables call center personnel to deliver the best possible customer experiences, and it enables the company to realize maximum sales and branding results. We cannot share the company's name, but here is a real-life example of how call center CRM integration can help a business grow.

The Company

This client is a large e-commerce retailer, well-known for offering one of the world’s bestselling notebook carrying cases and product accessories. The company has been in business for over 35 years and has a rich history of providing elite-level customer experiences.

The Challenge

The company wanted to increase customer satisfaction with their inbound call center, in a way that would reinforce its reputation for overall quality and customer service excellence. They concluded that partnering with an inbound call center service provider would be the best solution. As the company’s primary customer contact center, that partner would have to provide not only customer service, but troubleshooting assistance and email support. The company chose to partner with The Connection®.

Our Solution

In order to provide consistently outstanding customer service, call center agents (which this client calls Engagement Specialists) must be able to serve customers quickly and completely, in a manner that reflects the company’s brand and personality. The customer’s experience must be seamless and flawless. That is why call center CRM integration is so important.

#1: Technology

Integrating the client’s CRM database with our internal call center technology ensured Engagement Specialists would have detailed company and client information at their fingertips, giving them immediate visibility into complete customer profiles and discussion histories. They could view emails, client-specific notes, etc. all on one screen. They would be able to:

• Work with multiple customers at once
• Reduce customer-irritating redundant conversations from order to order

#2: The right people and training

We developed a hiring profile custom-tailored to this client’s needs, then used that profile to recruit well-matched candidates. Once we had the right team, they received two full weeks of intensive training, focusing on the client’s brand, culture, and approach to serving customers. Because deep product knowledge would be critical, the team also learned hands-on troubleshooting procedures for all of the products and technical applications.

Next, the team began using what they had learned to serve customers. However, the initial transition period was heavily monitored to ensure they met quality standards. We created subject-specific focus groups to provide additional training as needed.  

#3: A brand-immersive environment

To help Engagement Specialists get a deeper feel for the client, we created a branded workspace, showcasing the look and feel of the company’s website and displaying company products. This built confidence in answering product-specific questions, in turn boosting customer satisfaction scores.

#4: Improved email scripting

We also developed a new series of email templates based on the types of contacts received. This significantly reduced average handle time for email support. It also enabled the client to capture more pertinent customer data during the first customer contact, to further streamline and personalize future customer interactions.

#5: Reporting

Thanks to call center CRM integration, we are able to provide the client with detailed reporting, broken down by customer and by Engagement Specialist as well as overall call center performance, incorporating the client’s own key metrics.

Results

These five components – technology, client-focused hiring and training, an immersive environment, better email scripting, and customized reporting – enabled us to fully integrate our client and our call center. Now, Engagement Specialists can confidently speak about products. They can assist customers faster, without sacrificing service quality. In fact, they are achieving over 95% quality ratings and consistently above-average customer satisfaction scores.

Customers continue to receive the elite level experience they expect, and overall performance has, in fact, exceeded the company’s expectations.