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Article : The Answer To Customer Service?

Many times, customers experience a trade-off when they try to find satisfaction through machines - what they gain in convenience they lose with modern-day annoyances that come with the new technology.

Today, you can check your savings account balance at any time of the night, but not until having to cope with about five rounds of touch-tone multiple-choice questions. You can order clothing online, but if there are delivery problems, e-mailing customer service can be frustrating, especially if you have to wait hours—or days—for a response.

For years, speech recognition technology was viewed with a more critical eye. Not only was the technology seen as clumsy, with people having to overly annunciate and practically shout into the phone to be heard, but many times, the technology simply didn't work properly. The concept of talking to a computer or telephone and having it (accurately) respond to your commands was seen as something for science fiction.


Paul Kowal
Founder & President
Kowal Associates


Passed up as unreliable a decade ago, speech recognition today receives high marks for its high completion rate, accuracy, and large vocabulary. Retailers are so confident of speech recognition's power that the technology now manages customer service. This is no small task in a culture where consumers expect next day delivery and the ability to do business at any time of day or night. But according to the Gartner Group, "Speech recognition technology finally works. (It is) an emerging 'self-serve' technology that will enhance customer service while reducing personnel costs."

Speech recognition software and hardware have the capability to change the way we think of customer service. While customer service today is dominated by Dual Tone Multi Frequency (DTMF) systems that require the sometimes tedious use of touch-tone phone keypads, tomorrow belongs to the ease, efficiency and cost savings of speech recognition.

Here are several reasons why speech recognition is so well suited for customer service: Ease of use. A company using DTMF customer service provides the following outline to customers who wish to change their PIN number using their touch-tone phone:

Press 1, then 4, then wait for the dial-in welcome, then press 2 and star. Then press one and star. Enter your (personal code) and star, then press in your PIN and star. Then press 6 and star.

Now you can start(!) the procedure to change your PIN number. Under this plan, customers would have six rounds of button pushing before beginning to do what they want. Is it any wonder that 60 percent of customers using these systems have hung up on them before completing their task?

While convenient, DTMF systems are notorious for their tedious routing. Sometimes, tasks that would take less than a minute with a live person can be frustrating and time-consuming as customers are subjected to several "multiple choice" options.

With the proper programming, a customer could have duplicated the above procedure by simply stating, "I want to change my PIN number." Instead of choosing from a menu which may not list their needs, consumers just say what they want. Furthermore, unlike DTMF systems, speech technology can be used from both touch-tone and rotary phones.

It's what customers want. When it comes to customer service, customers want efficiency, speed, accuracy, convenience, friendly interaction, and a system that is easy to understand. With the exception of "friendly interaction," speech recognition technology fulfills all these needs. (While speech recognition is certainly cordial and professional, we're assuming that it is impossible to achieve friendly interaction without a live call center representative.)

Companies prefer speech recognition software and hardware for the same reasons they appreciate DTMF; it is cost-effective, it enables their customers to use it at any time, and it delivers a consistent message. But unlike DTMF, consumers also appreciate the new technology.

In surveys, 83% of consumers are at least somewhat satisfied with speech, and 74% claim that speech is as good as a live Customer Service Representative (CSR) or better. Finally, 60% of those surveyed say that they actually prefer being handled by speech technology to CSRs. It's cost-effective. When implemented, a speech recognition program can cost 94 percent less than a human CSR. No, that isn't a typo.

Here are the figures: combining salary, recruitment and management costs, as well as the expenses of the facilities and benefits, a CSR costs an estimated $34,800 a year. With a speech port, the installation, maintenance and overhead costs total $3,333 a year. Broken down by call, customer service costs $1.47 per call through a CSR, and $.09 for a speech recognition port, 16 times less expensive. All for a service that 60 percent of customers say they prefer.

Positive identification. One of the biggest limits of DTMF technology is its weak security. Many times, users only need a few Social Security digits and an account number to have full access to a savings account. Also, because of its structure, DTMF systems need to rely on PIN numbers that can be easily forgotten or stolen.

Speech recognition is so advanced today that customers only have to "register" once using their voice, and their voice patterns are secured on a small file for any future transactions. When the customer calls the system again, he or she needs only to say a few key words (usually a natural element of the call) and has full access to the account. Each voice pattern is unique, and can't be duplicated or changed. Even if the user has a sore throat, the customer will still be recognized.

Speech recognition eliminates the need for tedious, extra steps in the identification process that are unreliable to begin with. In fact, speech recognition systems can be used as a two-tiered security system, prompting users to speak their account or name, and simultaneously checking the validity of both the information and the voice. If there are any discrepancies, the caller is routed to a live representative.

A proven technology. Speech recognition is now being used with phenomenal results. Today, Fortune 1000 companies such as Sears, Hewlett-Packard and Federal Express use the technology to give customers technical help with computer problems, give stock quotes, and provide 401K account information. In the case of Federal Express, the technology has been so useful in helping customers track packages that it is now used for scheduling pick-ups and ordering supplies.

Another case where speech recognition has left its mark is with United Airlines. It was a huge test for the technology, as the airline handles an estimated 1.5 million calls a year to inquire about United's 2,300 daily flights to 130 destinations. After a four-month development period, a speech recognition program was launched at the end of 1997. The system provided immediate service, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and answered queries with direct dialogue and natural language.

Before implementing the speech technology, customers checking on the status of a certain airline flight were asked to press 1 for flight information, and were then required to choose between pressing 1 for arrivals or 2 for departures. After that, they were asked to type in the day of the flight they were checking. Then, the customer had to punch in the flight number. If they didn't know the flight number, they then have to press a different key, and so on and so on.

Customers using the speech recognition system had a far easier time. They only had to say, "I want to check an arrival flight for today. I don't have the flight number." Already, four rounds of Q&A were eliminated.

The result? The system had a completion rate of 97 percent. It has been so efficient, that more than 70 percent of customers voluntarily choose to deal with the speech recognition system when prompted.

But despite its attractive price tag, ease of use and popularity among consumers, speech recognition should not be used for every possible DTMF application. For instance, applications with a very short start-up time or a very short life are not a good fit for speech recognition.

But when the elements are right, companies can come to view speech technology as the answer to their customer service needs. Previously seen as unreliable, speech technology is now affordable, reliable, proven, and in demand. For companies willing to take the gamble, speech technology promises to be a rare breed—technology that enhances customer service with virtually none of the trade-offs that have made DTMF technology a modern day annoyance.


About the Author
Paul Kowal is founder and President of Kowal Associates, Inc. Paul has over 20 years of customer service, advertising and marketing experience at service bureaus, advertising/direct marketing agencies and consumer packaged goods firms. Paul has been the lead consultant to Fortune 100 companies regarding teleservices and customer service for a variety of CRM programs.

About the Company
Kowal Associates is a telemanagement consulting firm founded in 1988. They provide services that improve communication and customer satisfaction in the teleservices environment.

Today's Tip of the Day - Utilize Time & Money Saving Tools

Read today's tip or listen to it on podcast.

Published: Monday, May 26, 2003

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2024 Buyers Guide Cloud Contact Center Solutions

Page: 1234
1.) 
Premium Listing
Call Center Studio

Call Center Studio
Call Center Studio is the world’s first call center built on Google and is one of the most secure and stable systems with some of the industry’s best reporting. It is one of the most full-featured enterprise grade systems (with the most calling features, one of the best call distribution, outbound dialing features and integrations—including IVR, AI Speech Recognition, blended inbound/outbound calling and includes Google’s new Dialogflow and Speech API. Call Center Studio is the absolute easiest to use (with a 10 minute setup), and is the price performance leader with lower equipment cost and less setup time.

2.) 
Premium Listing
iNextrix Technologies

iCallify
iCallify: intelligent call center software is one of the most popular products offered by iNextrix. iCallify is developed using cutting edge technologies as well as the predictive sphere of artificial intelligence. This call center software has some intelligent features along with the standard features available in other call center solutions. Thus, it is truly an intelligent call center software solution.
This intelligent call center software is built to benefit all businesses, no matter what industry vertical they belong to. This call center software has features to empower different campaigns in different call centers and businesses.


3.) 
Accordia Solution

Accordia Solution CIS
Accordia Solution is an innovative developer of seamlessly integrated cost-effective omnichannel Contact Center Solutions specifically targeted at the micro, small and medium operations.Our core business model involves the development and marketing of IP Telephony and IP Contact Center Solutions. We also strive to develop customer interaction solutions which include contact center and customer relationship management (CRM) that enhances Customer Experience Of The Future (CEOTF) and optimizes agent productivity.

Our flagship product, the Accordia Customer Interaction Suites (CIS), offers comprehensive functionality by helping your business meet and exceed the level of service in line with...
(read more)

4.) 
Adversus Dialer

Adverus Dialer
Adversus is a web-based dialer and practical CRM solution for telemarketing, fundraising, and appointment scheduling businesses.

5.) 
Alcor Consulting, Inc.

HoduCC/VoipCor
Omnichannel contact center platform which can be deployed on-premise, private cloud or public cloud subscription. Our contact center provides all of the modern features expected in a full contact center solution. Includes voice, SMS, chat, email, and social media integration. Built-in integrations for all major CRM's (Plus a built-in CRM). Survey module and QA module are also available.

6.) 
Allstream

Contact Center
Contact Center is a powerful tool that you can add to your unified communications (UC) solution to ensure you've always got the right resources available to both customers and employees, no matter the communication channel they're using — voice, email, web, chat or social.

Contact Center’s enhanced call routing and workforce management tools can help increase employee productivity. And with the advanced reporting and forecasting tools, you’ll be able to properly staff your contact center and enhance your customer experience.

It has everything you need to deliver superior customer and employee experience.

7.) 
Alvaria

Alvaria Cloud
Alvaria Cloud is the only enterprise cloud contact center solution that allows you to adopt best-of-breed Customer Experience (CX) and Workforce Engagement Management (WEM) applications modularly. Start with one or more applications and then add applications with ease when ready for additional capabilities, as your needs change. With the Alvaria Cloud Platform, you have the advantage of knowing that all provisioning, security, user management and other administrative tasks are already configured and in place.

8.) 
Alvaria

Noble Contact Center
Noble offers a modern communications platform for optimizing all customer interaction. Put Noble’s unified platform to work for you — building performance and productivity, improving the quality and effectiveness of customer contacts, and reducing costs. With the critical software technologies that contact centres need most, our solutions provide seamless integration to existing corporate environments, reduce your learning curve and protect your technology investments.

9.) 
Amtelco

Genesis Intelligent Series
Genesis is the latest advancement in Amtelco’s long line of call center solutions. This call center technology is entirely software-based and virtualized, with cloud-based capability. Genesis provides skills-based automatic call distribution (ACD), built-in speech recognition, text-to-speech (TTS), and voice services to improve call routing and management.

10.) 
Arise Virtual Solutions

The Arise Platform
Arise is a pioneer of on-demand customer management business process outsourcing solutions, headquartered in Florida. Through the cloud-based Arise Platform, Fortune 50 and other companies connect to Service Partners who deliver authentic, loyalty-building interactions with their customers. Delivering radical flexibility to meet even extreme contact volume fluctuations, the award-winning Arise Platform is an innovative alternative to the traditional contact center.

11.) 
Astute Solutions

Astute Agent
Astute Agent gives your agents everything they need to work cases confidently and efficiently. This modern case management CRM is the preferred choice for Consumer Relations and Customer Care teams who support some of the world’s most prestigious brands.

Astute Agent balances agent efficiency with customer experience. Here’s how:

- Automated email responses
Using natural language processing, Astute Agent reads incoming customer emails and automatically supplies a response to agents to review and send.

- Auto-populated case fields
AI capabilities automatically suggest reason codes, product codes, and other case information, saving agents minutes per case.

- Time-saving case feat...
(read more)

12.) 
Brook Trout Solutions

CCaaS, SIP Trunking, SD WAN, Interconnectivity
Brook Trout Solutions provides Technology Guide services to help Contact Centers find the best possible solution for their business.
We represent the leaders for CCaaS, CPaaS, SD-WAN, SASE, SIP. We identify the best fit for our customers and help them manage the lifecycle of the customer engagement. We also have an excellent solution for mobile marketing and can raise call acceptance by more than 50% with a Next Generation caller ID for mobile phones.
We solve problems and give our customers time back to run their business. Give us a call we have world class expertise and resources that can help you build an exceptional customer experience.

13.) 
Callnfax

Voice & Video Services at the Speed of Business
CallnFax offers global virtual telephone numbers with Flat-Rate pricing, A-Z termination service with full CNAM support, and full-featured video meeting solutions. CallnFax has been delivering reliable solutions since 2009, accompanied with personalized customer support, designed for Call Centers, Contact Centers, and Global Enterprise.

14.) 
CallShaper

CallShaper
Welcome to CallShaper – Harnessing the Power of the Cloud for Greater Sales Efficiency
For sales-based call centers, where margins are so tight, it’s all about closing. Thanks to CallShaper, inbound or outbound call center directors can have a dynamic, highly flexible platform that enables sales agents to focus on making the sale.

Thanks to CallShaper’s flexibility, call center directors who are managing multiple vendors from multiple locations can have everything they need on one platform that offers 99.999% reliability. And when it comes to reporting, CallShaper has no equal in providing real-time transparency.

With CallShaper, clients quickly find that they are better able to manage efficiencies at the sales rep level – and make more money!

15.) 
Cloud Call Center Search

From AI - WFO and everything in between!
Cloud Call Center Search has spent hundreds of hours evaluating and vetting leading cloud software applications (Omni-Channel, Artificial Intelligence, Business Intelligence, Workforce Management and many others) and their actual use in the trenches with real-world clients. As a result, we understand the strengths and weaknesses of cloud-based call center software solutions. At NO charge, Cloud Call Center Search will match your organization with the cloud software providers that are the best fit to drive positive ROI in your customer experience, sales, and back-office operations.

16.) 
ContactCenter4ALL

CC4Teams
Contact Center solutions; that is what we do! So we know, like no other, that integrating natively with Microsoft, making our solution available on the same screen is what your customer contact team needs. CC4Teams enhances Microsoft Teams with features and adds additional functionality to use Microsoft Teams as a complete Omni-ChannelContact Center solution.

For example, CC4Teams adds our proprietary drag and drop IVR (no code needed), ad-hoc or scheduled call recording, operator attendant, historical and real-time reporting (integrates with Microsoft PowerBi), wallboards, home workers, supervisor functionalities, and skilled based routing directly to Microsoft Teams.
The intuitive CC4...
(read more)

17.) 
Contaque

Contaque VERVE
Cloud or On-Premise? Elevate Customer Experience Either Way with Our Contact Center Solutions!

18.) 
Content Guru

𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗺®
Content Guru makes engagement easy. A global leader in cloud communications solutions, we deliver off-the-shelf and bespoke customer engagement and cloud contact centre services, through the multi-award-winning 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗺® platform.

Europe’s largest Customer Engagement and Experience platform, 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗺, brings together intelligent automation, third-party systems integration, and on-demand scalability to enhance all customer communication functions. With true omni-channel engagement capabilities, 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗺 gives organisations the power to create consistent and seamless experiences for customers, inspiring loyalty and powering success.

19.) 
Convoso

Convoso is the #1 dialer software for outbound lead gen/sales-related contact centers. Our cloud-based omnichannel solution solves the biggest frustrations call centers have with their dialer, including:

*Caller ID reputation
*Call flagging/blocking
*Low contact rates
*Limited insight into list performance
*Time wasted resetting lead lists
*Dropped calls
*Poor answering machine detection

Customers report dramatic increases in contact rates of up to 300%, delivering more conversions and significantly improved ROI.

20.) 
CSX Cloud

CSX Cloud
CSX Cloud provides a full omnichannel cloud-based turn-key customer communications solution as a service based on a monthly subscription with no long term commitments. Our easy to use solution and top-notch customer service makes it an easy choice to get started today.
 
Page: 1234

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