Store Call Management:
Driving enhanced multi-channel
service
STCA201112PM | © Capita 2012
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PropositionStore Call Management
Managing the omni-channel challenge
As customer expectations rise, the role of stores is changing – compounded by the growth of online and mobile retail. As a result of this, the queries coming into stores are changing – at a time when the cost effectiveness of store operations has never been more under the spotlight.
Rather than a challenge, this presents a significant opportunity to retailers to centralise store call activity – release store based staff to service customers – and provide a platform for significant service enhancement, insight, revenue retention and cost reduction.
Nature of Calls
When the nature of typical calls received by stores are considered, the opportunities for improvement (and benefits of centralisation) are clear:
Store enquiries
A significant percentage of calls will relate to details such as “Where is my nearest store?” and “What are the opening times”. Options exist to automate the response to a number of these, using speech recognition to confirm a postcode or leveraging the Caller Line ID (CLID) and respond with the nearest store and directions automatically. This can then be enhanced through offering to send an email or SMS the details to the customer’s mobile phone.
Alternatively, speech analytics and customer insight can be used to identify key related queries and ensure that web channels are updated with the correct information – negating the need for customer to calls.
Finally, the contact can be used to secure a sale – either by promoting the URL of the website (outside of opening hours) or actually allowing the customer to order over the phone either through an automated channel or by speaking to a representative.
Product enquiries
A number of enquiries will concern products – relating to a stock position, price confirmation or even a complaint. Again, options exist to automate this through online stock visibility – including “nearest stock” information. This can also be enabled through automated voice channels – although it is recommended that this be focussed on top query lines.
Alternatively, speech analytics and customer insight can be used to target focus of both online and in-store stock availability towards those lines generating most contacts. This can be expanded to cover quality related contacts and even used to generate automated messaging on key promotional items out of stock.
“I do everything on my phone as a lot of people do.”
Mark Zuckerburg, Facebook Chief Executive
Store Call Management:
Nature of Calls
When the nature of typical calls received by stores are considered, the opportunities for improvement are clear:
Store Enquiries
Product Enquiries Sale Enquiries Expert Enquiries
Finally, the contact can be used to secure a sale – most typically through the offer to “order or reserve” on all stock or price queries. Additionally, bundling can be used by agents to offer relevant items relating to the key queried item.
Sale enquiries
Where discounting and sale activity forms a key strategic component, a number of queries will be received relating to price differences or changes – be they differences between channels and stores; or clarification on whether an item is included in a promotion and when a sale commences. In this case, options to automate are limited – although it can be used to address significant mis-pricing issues causing customer confusion.
Speech analytics and customer insight can be used to avoid a number of these contacts – provided it is leveraged rapidly and information and updates are fed back into an appropriate channel – which could include social media.
Finally, the contact can again be used to secure a sale – with the potential for an agent to reserve a product against a future promotional price (if known) or to capture the opportunity for the customer to be contacted when the promotion commences.
Expert enquiries
Where the products being offered are complex or relate to a specific project or activity, a number of calls will relate to customers requesting expert advice – including “How do I….?” and “What do I need to do…?”. Whilst more challenging, options still exist to automate such as access to answers for the Top 5 or 10 expert questions asked. This information can also be leveraged online (and through alternative channels, including the stores themselves) to prevent these enquiries being received.
STCA201112PM | © Capita 2012
4
PropositionStore Call Management
Strategic Benefits of Centralisation
The above opportunities can be leveraged most effectively through the centralisation of store calls – yielding significant benefits including:
Consistent and improved multi-channel customer service experience for greater
loyalty and repeat purchases
Customer insight driving improved processes in line with strategic vision Increased revenue from opportunity sales
support.
Core to our success is a proven record in understanding our clients and their objectives; building lasting strategic partnerships and transforming their customers’ experience. We are the UK’s largest provider of Customer Management Outsourcing and part of Capita plc, the UK’s leading business process outsourcing (BPO) and professional services company.
Contact us
If you would like to talk to one of our retail experts to see how we can help transform your customer management operations, then contact us today. Email: bizdev@capita.co.uk
Website: www.capita.co.uk/customermanagement Telephone: +44 (0) 113 207 3476