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  • Top 50 CXMStars™ 2022 have been chosen 🏆

    The past two years have been a whirlwind for all the industries, with customer experience (CX) being no different. Our aim with the CXMStars™ is to support the path to CX excellence and foster the community of the best practices as well as knowledge sharing. Thank you to all participants who joined us in our mission…
    The post Top 50 CXMStars™ 2022 have been chosen 🏆 appeared first on Customer Experience Magazine.

  • The Oxford comma, trap

    It’s easy to accept the limits that are implied when someone asks us for advice and feedback.

    Fix the typos, sure. That’s important. But perhaps you have something bigger to add.

    A friend shares plans to launch a new retail website. It’s tempting to fix the small errors on the page, but perhaps it’s more useful to discuss the product line, the pricing or whether or not it should be online at all…

    The author shares a draft of a new work. You could help with the grammar, but maybe it would help more if you talked about the parts that weren’t included.

    The agency shows three versions of a new design they’re considering. Multiple choice might be on offer, but ‘none of the above’ might be a more generous answer.

    I’m pretty confident that when the Titanic went down, the deck chairs were clean and well-ordered. It’s a shame no one talked about the icebergs.

  • Seven business movies you may not know about

    Everyone loves a good movie. Even more so about the profession they are in. But there are so many out there that you may not know what to watch next. Or that you have already seen them a few times. Well, that is why we have gathered and created this list of seven business movies…
    The post Seven business movies you may not know about appeared first on Customer Experience Magazine.

  • Webform Builder for Salesforce [In-Depth Review]

    Forms are essential for capturing data from prospects and customers and sending it into your Salesforce org. These could be web forms on your website, landing pages, portals such as Salesforce Community (Experience Cloud), or embedded on third-party applications. ​​Regardless of where you choose to… Read More

  • Salesforce Launch Trailblazer Community Groups for Architects

    In exciting news, Salesforce have announced the launch of Trailblazer Community Groups for Architects! This is great news for existing or aspiring Architects looking for a place to learn and network with other like-minded individuals. Here’s what we know so far… What Will I Learn… Read More

  • The Origins of Salesforce’s Most Unusual Product Names

    The Salesforce platform is constantly expanding, fueled by the multiple acquisitions Salesforce has been making for over a decade. Whether purchased or home-grown, there’s been a movement towards very descriptive product names, such as “Commerce Cloud”, “Marketing Cloud”, or “Salesforce Industries” (both previously known by… Read More

  • FREE WEBINAR: Turn conversations into conversions with marketing automation and personalization.

    submitted by /u/Mailgun_Kelsey [link] [comments]

  • What’s in Store for Call Center Workforce Management in 2022?

    Though customers should be the key focus of all call centers, agents are the driving behind-the-scenes force who ensure these customers enjoy a timely, empathetic, and efficient experience. From live voice interactions to online chatting, social media messaging, and post-interaction administrative work, call center agents must juggle multiple tasks on a daily basis.
    So, because agents are the lifeblood of the call center, it is vital that their managers do everything possible to promote their professional success and wellness, and nurture a positive work environment. After all, happy agents lead to happy customers and, ultimately, award-winning customer experience. 

    Your first step to keeping agents happy and working efficiently is creating and executing a thorough call center workforce management (WFM) strategy. 

    Your All-in-One Guide to Call Center Workforce Optimization

    What is call center workforce management? 

    Whether you’re operating in an enterprise, startup, or small business, you likely already have some form of call center WFM strategy in place, even if you don’t refer to it as such. In a nutshell, workforce management solutions are the tools call centers employ to ensure the right number of agents are scheduled at the right times, and that every agent’s specific skill sets are being put to good use in those moments, too. 

    Why is call center workforce so important?

    With the right WFM solution, your call center will be more cost-effective, your customer service will be top-notch, and your agents will be more engaged and efficient while performing their daily tasks. Here’s why:

    You’ll save money in the long run by adjusting staffing levels—knowing when your call center is quietest means you can safely have fewer agents scheduled to work at those times.

    Customers will rarely experience long wait times in the queue since enough agents will always be ready to promptly answer inbound calls.

    Call spikes will never catch you or your agents off guard. You’ll have developed a thorough understanding of call volume patterns on an hourly, daily, and weekly basis.

    There will always be enough staff working to allow for proper breaks and for agents to catch up on administrative work in between calls.

    TIP:
    A Voice Call-Back technology is a great way to help keep call spikes at bay. Customers will be asked if they’d prefer a call back from an agent once it’s their turn, so they don’t have to wait in the queue. An added bonus? Your agents feel less overwhelmed, and customers get time back in their day—a true win/win for all involved.

    How do I start WFM planning for my call center?

    The idea of developing a call center WFM strategy may seem daunting at first, but with a solid base of information, it becomes a little less intimidating. Try starting with these 3 steps to kick off your WFM plan.

    1. Analyze historical data.

    An easy way to predict future call volumes is to check out past statistics. Go week by week for the last 12 months and see if you notice any meaningful patterns. If there were anomaly days when volumes were particularly high or low, be sure to cross-check them with events like holidays, special offers, sales, or anything else that might have affected the metrics. 

    2. Focus on forecasting and scheduling.

    Once you’ve analyzed historical data, forecast your upcoming weeks and schedule accordingly. If you know Monday and Wednesday mornings are busy, be sure to have more than enough coverage for those specific times. Mix up the experience levels of your agents, too. During the busiest times, it makes the most sense to load up on your fastest agents and ones with higher experience levels. On days you expect call volumes to be low, newer agents will be able to take more time on their calls—but be sure to schedule a few senior agents to train new hires and answer burning newbie questions. 

    FACT:
    Research from Quality Assurance and Training Connection shows that the average turnover in call centers ranges from 30–45%. That’s a high number for any industry. Placing an emphasis on proper training for new agents can help turn new hires into long-term employees.

    3. Repeat the process once a week.

    Sure, doing a once over of historical data is super helpful right out the gate, but to ensure consistent WFM efficiency, constant monitoring of call volumes, agent performance, and CSat scores is a must. Book yourself some time to go over data for the previous week at the start of your current week. If you notice any anomalies, you can catch them early and staff accordingly for the weeks to come while you sort out the why’s and how’s. 

    Still confused? Consider investing in workforce management software. 

    Especially if you’re running a medium to large-sized call center with hundreds or thousands of agents, manual WFM solutions may not be the best fit. Plenty of easy-to-use WFM software options are available that automate the entire process including historical data analysis, real-time call volume monitoring, agent scheduling, time tracking, and more. 

    What’s to come for call center WFM in 2022?

    After studying trends from 2020 and 2021, 2022 promises to be a disruptive, ever-changing year for call center WFM. Here are a few predictions we’re making for the coming months:

    Total transitions to remote work

    Many call centers have realized that operating remotely is more cost-effective and provides employees with a better work-life balance. As such, we’re seeing a reduction in the “return to office” mentality within the call center industry. Many organizations are choosing to give up their pricey office leases in favour of all-remote work, while others are opting for a hybrid approach. 

    More digitization and automation

    With more employees working remotely, we’ll likely see an increase in the amount of call centers that invest in automated scheduling technology. Since many remote employees will be working in different time zones across the country (or internationally), scheduling even just 30 or 40 agents becomes that much more of a complex task for call center managers, which makes opting for automation an easier choice to make.  

    Flexible scheduling to fill labor shortages

    Globally, many industries are currently experiencing major labor shortages. The recent pandemic has caused a shift in the workforce, leaving companies worldwide with huge staffing gaps to fill. As the demand to hire new employees increases, call center managers will have to more agile and thoughtful about the types of employees they hire, whether that means seeking alternative options like part-time workers or even temps.

    Coping with Labor Shortages in the Contact CenterThe post Blog first appeared on Fonolo.

  • Customer Loyalty with Shep Hyken

    https://youtu.be/PbxaaX5PtlA Had the pleasure of sitting down with Shep Hyken last night as he filled us in on a great way to have customers always coming back!
    submitted by /u/BLoyet05 [link] [comments]

  • How to Improve Your Communication Skills in 5 Simple Steps

    In the workplace, each employee may have their own tasks and targets, but together, you are all working toward the same end goal.
    But with so many different people coming together, there’s bound to be some friction on how to implement ideas and strategies best. The key to helping your team succeed is communication.
    Communication is a collaborative effort, and everyone can stand to work on their communication skills. While some workers may feel shy and won’t share their brilliant ideas, other team members may struggle to see or understand different points of view.

    No matter where you are with your communication skills, you can improve them with five simple steps, leading to a more collaborative and productive team.
    How to Improve Communication Skills in the Workplace
    Improving communication skills in the workplace can involve many different elements. Whether you want to be a better listener or check in with each employee, there are several ways to help your team communicate more effectively with each other. Here are five easy ways to start bettering your communication skills.
    1. Be an active listener.
    Are you truly listening to your team members? If you’re doodling away in a meeting, writing emails during a Zoom call, or interrupting with your own ideas or solutions, you’re not actively listening. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to improve your listening skills to ensure your co-workers feel heard.

    Make eye contact when others are speaking.
    Put away distractions. You can take notes, but don’t doodle, send emails, or type out texts when someone is trying to speak with you.
    Pay attention to the other person’s tone and body language.
    Hold your thoughts until the person is completely done speaking. When it is your turn, respond appropriately and reflect back the information just shared with you to show your attentiveness.
    Nod and smile as appropriate while the other person is talking. If possible, try to avoid tugging at your hair, fingers, or other nearby objects.
    Don’t plan out what to say next in your head. You can quickly become consumed by these thoughts and miss what the other person is saying.
    Hold judgments and opinions to yourself. Avoid jumping to conclusions, and instead, let the person share everything they have to say.
    Once the person has finished speaking, ask questions to clarify any points you are unsure about.

    2. Hold effective meetings.
    If you just start adding meetings to the calendar every other day, you’re probably going to have a lot of groaning and grumbling employees. Improving communication doesn’t mean hosting more meetings. The trick is to host efficient and meaningful meetings instead.

    First thing’s first. Determine what meetings are necessary, and which ones would be better off as emails. Wasting time in unproductive meetings leaves employees with less time and energy to get their essential tasks completed.
    Create outlines for each meeting. This helps keep everyone on topic, and you can divert back to the outline any time the conversation starts to stray.
    Invite only the people who truly need to attend the meeting. While communication company-wide is important, it’s counterproductive to invite people to a meeting who have no need to be there. If there are a few points that pertain to someone, but they don’t need to be there for the whole meeting, invite them to attend and start with those points. Better yet, send it in an email.
    Leave the meeting with defined action items. This helps make the meeting worthwhile.
    Follow up with the team after the meeting. Send notes on what the meeting covered, and end with the action items expected of the team.

    3. Explain the why.
    When you ask an employee to start doing research for a new project or download reports, try explaining why you’re asking them to do the task. You may ask an employee to download reports for something they worked on last month.
    With no explanation, they may worry that their performance was poor and they are in trouble when really you just want to apply the numbers to a new company initiative you’re working toward. 
    Regardless of the task and reason, share why you are asking for certain things. This can also help avoid misunderstandings and miscommunications among the team.
    4. Check-in with employees.
    Even if you have an open-door policy that invites employees to speak their minds to you at any time, not everyone will take advantage of this open communication line. Some employees may feel nervous to share their thoughts or prefer to keep to themselves.
    Host one-on-one meetings periodically, perhaps once a month or per quarter, to check in with each team member. Ask them about the progress on their tasks, check if they are feeling overwhelmed, and invite them to share their ideas and goals.
    5. Ask for feedback.
    Communication is a two-way street. In addition to leading productive meetings and checking in with employees on their tasks and project progress, you should also welcome feedback on your own performance and the company as a whole.
    This can happen during one-on-one meetings, or offer regular surveys for employees to fill out. Offer an option to submit feedback anonymously as well, which can help some employees feel more comfortable speaking up.
    When you receive feedback, don’t just push it to the side and forget about it. Make an action plan to work on improving your own weaknesses. If you receive feedback that applies to the company, make sure to share that information with your management as well.
    Additional Options for Better Communication Skills
    While these five steps are a great place to start, there are other ways to boost communication skills in the workplace. Utilize technology, such as Google Chat or Slack, to create communication channels.
    If you do use an app or other communication tools, consider applying limits to when those lines are open. Constant 3 a.m. messages about a work project can lead many employees to feel burnt out if they can never switch off from work mode.
    Ask your co-workers about their communication preferences, too. Surely there will be times where you have to have a meeting for everyone, but keep communication preferences in mind when you need to reach out to just one or two people. Some people retain information best when they can read it in an email, while others prefer to talk out ideas in person.
    When you’re establishing effective communication among your team, make sure you include everyone. Of course, you only want to loop people into an email when it is relevant to them, but as a whole, include everyone — even if they aren’t in your section of the office or even in the same city — in your communication policies.
    Finally, consider establishing an open-door policy to let employees stop by your office to discuss concerns or thoughts at any time.
    Benefits of Strong Communication Skills
    The benefits of improving your communication skills are seemingly endless. When everyone feels heard, there are fewer chances of tense confrontations. Plus, your team will spend less time fixing misunderstandings that happened because one person wasn’t actively listening or someone else was interrupting a meeting. That means boosted productivity and more time spent on meaningful tasks.
    When your team communicates effectively across the board, you’re likely to improve the customer experience, too. Employees can meet client needs more efficiently when they can work through challenges together, and they can make sure there are minimal miscommunications that leave tasks falling through the cracks.
    Better communication skills mean that every employee feels heard and more comfortable sharing their ideas. That means your team can bring more ideas to the table, which will help your company set and achieve new goals.
    Communication Is Key In the Workplace
    Your team is only as strong as their communication skills are. Taking time to utilize communication tools, review feedback, set meeting agendas, and conduct one-on-one sessions with employees will result in more employee engagement and productivity across the board.
    Communication works both ways, so be sure to work on your own communication skills and help your team improve their communication. In the end, your company will be all the better for it.