Archive for the 'Call Centers' Category
Posted by Ted Hopton on July 19, 2008
I started this blog just to get started blogging. I had wanted to blog for years, but one thing after another held me back, not the least of which was fear that I would not keep up with it. Blogs that aren’t updated regularly aren’t really blogs, IMHO. I didn’t want to set something up that I could not commit to and write in frequently.
So, one decision I made was to let this blog include any and all content I felt like blogging about. I know people who have different blogs for different kinds of content. That makes sense, and if you’re trying to build traffic to your blog it’s probably best to be targeted in what you write about, so readers interested in that content will find your blog valuable.
But I’m not doing this for the website traffic and I couldn’t commit to keeping up with more than one blogs, such as one about work topics and one about things of personal interest to me. So I made this blog a blend that reflects all of me — all of my interests, whether professional or personal, the serious and the silly, the carefully considered and the random tidbits. I’ve decided I like it this way.
Now, my career has changed direction and blogging is suddenly part of my official job, Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Blogs, Call Centers, Career, Social Media | No Comments »
Posted by Ted Hopton on June 18, 2008
Sorry I have been away from this blog for a while. I just moved, and the fun still has not stopped. Boxes are piled everywhere, the kitchen is not unpacked at all, and heck if I know where the towels and washclothes are. I’ll be back after I dig out.
But, I should comment on Comcast, both the good news and the bad. First, the bad news: even though I told the customer service rep when I called to tell them I was moving that every time in the past when I have moved Comcast has screwed things up, and even though he assured me he had taken care of everything for me this time . . . you guessed it, it got screwed up. I waited two hours when I had far better things to do, and Comcast never showed up to set up my service.
So, I called, navigated my way through their annoying and illogical IVR Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Call Centers, Customer Sat, Customer Service, Human Interest | No Comments »
Posted by Ted Hopton on June 10, 2008
Seth Godin hits the nail on the head, again, in this blog post.
Let’s say the person in charge of your retail operations does the following every single day:
- Puts up a sign indicating which of five doors customers should use.
- Locks that door.
- Randomly unlocks another door.
- When someone figures out which door to use, he runs out and kicks them in the groin, then locks the door.
read more | digg story
Posted in Call Center Management, Call Centers, Customer Sat, Customer Service | No Comments »
Posted by Ted Hopton on May 29, 2008
How did I miss posting about these great articles by Jay Minnucci? I went to link to them from the post I just wrote about Dr. Jodie Monger’s article on survey malpractice and that’s when I discovered I never wrote about them. They were both published in ICMI’s Customer Management Insight (CMI): Getting a Real Measure on Satisfaction (Part I) and Getting a Real Measure on Satisfaction (Part II).
Well, now I am! I loved this two-part series Jay did so much that I asked him to do a presentation on this topic at ICMI’s Dallas Call Center Demo and Conference last week. I think the live session was even better than the articles, because of the audience participation and the dialogue that took place, and just because Jay’s a fun and professional speaker.
These articles make an excellent companion to Jodie Monger’s article that I just wrote about, Are You Guilty of Survey Malpractice? She delves into the details of survey practices and Jay uncovers a whole lot of other factors that you’ve likely never considered.
Surveys alone do not reflect true customer satisfaction levels. Behavioral metrics hold the key to managing dissatisfaction.
I love the way Jay pussy-foots around touchy issues so delicately, as he does here: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Call Center Management, Call Centers, Customer Sat, Customer Service, ICMI, ICMI Conferences, ICMI's CMI | No Comments »
Posted by Ted Hopton on May 29, 2008
Dr. Jodie Monger knows surveys, and in this Customer Management Insight (CMI) article, “Are You Guilty of Survey Malpractice?,” she explains what NOT to do on your customer satisfaction surveys.
Measurement programs must meet certain scientific criteria to be statistically valid with an acceptable confidence level and level of precision or tolerated error. Without these considerations, you are guilty of Survey Malpractice. To defend your program with “it has always been this way” or “we were told to do a survey” is not sufficient. Research laws adhered to in academia apply to the business world. A deficient survey yields inaccurate data and results in invalid conclusions no matter who conducts it.
How hard is it to come up with a bunch of questions and create a survey? That’s what most of us think, and if you just want some quick and informal feedback, that’s fine. But your customer satisfaction measurements are another story altogether. Jodie explains seven warning signs of “survey malpractice”:
- Measuring too many things
- Not measuring enough things
- Measuring questions with an unreliable scale
- Measuring the wrong things or the right things the wrong way
- Asking for an evaluation after memory has degraded
- Accuracy and credibility of service providers and product vendors
- Wiggle room via correction factors
(See the article for the explanation associated with each.)
Posted in Call Center Management, Call Centers, Customer Sat, ICMI, ICMI's CMI | No Comments »
Posted by Ted Hopton on May 26, 2008
Nothing new at all in this NYT article, “Far From Always Being Right, the Customer Is on Hold.” It’s designed for popular consumption and it rehashes points made better elsewhere, with this author’s distinction being a decidedly whiny tone. But it’s the kind of article my mother notices and points out to me, knowing I work with call centers for a living. Thanks, Mom, I found it . . .
The bottom line, as I have said many times before (see, for example, Just Answer the Phone Quicker!) and will say many times again, is that those of us in the call center industry have the power to change the negative perception the public has of us. It’s going to take resolve and determination, and recognition that customer service is important enough to do right that spending money on it is a wise investment.
Posted in Call Center Management, Call Centers, Customer Sat, Customer Service | No Comments »
Posted by Ted Hopton on April 29, 2008
Good insights on recruiting for call centers:
Successful recruiting programs prioritize the quality of recruits over the sheer speed or numbers of applicants. Practices such as rebranding your agents’ job and using employee referrals are proven methods for attracting quality applicants.
read more | digg story
Posted in Call Center Management | No Comments »
Posted by Ted Hopton on April 29, 2008
It’s common sense once you think about it, but applying marketing principles to your company’s image can be an important part of your approach to recruiting.
To bring quality candidates to your door, you have to have them at “hello.” Positive branding — attaching your call center’s name to a reputation for quality benefits for both customers and agents — can increase your desirability in applicants’ eyes.
read more | digg story
Posted in Call Center Management, ICMI's CMI | No Comments »
Posted by Ted Hopton on April 29, 2008
In this excerpt from their best-selling book, How to Build a Speech Recognition Application, EIG’s Bruce Balentine and David Morgan touch on the unique application design issues surrounding speech-enabled IVR systems.
read more | digg story
Posted in Call Center Management, ICMI's CMI | No Comments »
