Category: Customer Experience

Did you know that this year’s CX Day will mark 10 years of this global celebration? CX practitioners across the globe will once again raise a glass and celebrate efforts invested in improving products and services. As a leading CX magazine, we proudly announce that on October 4th at 5.30 pm. UK time, we will…
The post Real talk 2.0: join us on October 4th for an interactive CX day celebration appeared first on Customer Experience Magazine.

The law is simple to describe, fair and useful: It should be as easy to unsubscribe from an online service as it is to sign up.

Other than powerful brand bullies, who is against this?

It took me five minutes to sign up for a data connection for my car a few years ago. Yesterday, after selling the car, it took me more than three hours to get AT&T to stop charging me for the service. Went to the store, they won’t do it. Went to their website, they won’t do it. Went to online chat, half an hour later, discovered they won’t do it (I have the transcript if Kellyn Smith Kenny wants to see it). I called, waited on hold for half an hour, was disconnected, you get the idea…)

Yes, this is bad marketing by AT&T. It’s unlikely that making it inconvenient to turn off service for a car you no longer own is going to dissuade someone from doing it. It hurts their brand, demotivates the employees and destroys loyalty. It’s short term-thinking by a lazy brand manager.

But they do it anyway.

When organizations get too big and too short-term focused to pay attention to the market, it’s a perfect moment for consumers to band together and give them a guardrail.

If I can sign up with a few clicks, I should be able to unsign up with a few clicks.

If you apply for something with a 99% rejection rate (which is more common than it sounds–job openings, sales pitches, fellowships, journals, etc.) that’s pretty close to 100%. Something with a 99% certainty is generally considered a sure thing.

Hence this Journal, which promises to reject every single person who submits an article.

The absurdity of it is the point. Submitting to them feels effortless and without a lot of drama, because you know you’re going to get rejected. So instead of becoming attached to the outcome, you can simply focus on the work.

That’s a useful approach to the rest of the things we apply to.

Hi all, I am working on project where I am comparing two different CSAT surveys. One was completed in 2020 with a ranking scale of 1 (very dissatisfied) – 10 (very satisfied) and the other completed in 2022 with a 1 (very satisfied) – 5 (very satisfied). We will be running these CSATs every 6 months with the 1-5 ranking scale going forward so I’m trying to understand how to convert the survey done in 2020 so it can be included in the comparison analysis with the surveys with a 1-5 ranking scale. M solution as of now is that I have converted each individual response using a 1-10 ranking scale from the 2020 survey with a the attached conversion table. After converting each response to the 1-5 scale, I ran averages and t-tests to compare each question. https://preview.redd.it/12d0y8vyy7o91.png?width=432&format=png&auto=webp&s=67ea8d232571584c204ff814ce0c61478cfbc4ba Is the a valid route? or should I run the averages of the 2020 survey (1-10 scale) for each question, then convert the question averages to the 1-5 scale, then then run the t-test? Any advice is helpful, Thank you! submitted by /u/BeansJC [link] [comments]

The simplest way to run a business is to have no also.

We maximize profit, period.

At least you’re being honest about it.

If you say, “and we also care about the environment,” or “we also care about our people and treat them like family,” or even, “we’re here to serve our customers…” now you’re doing one of two things:

Either you’re asserting that doing those things is the way to maximize your profit…

Or you’re committing to not maximizing your profit, as your purpose is more human and connected than something that simple.

If it’s the latter, if you’ve decided that making just enough profit to maximize your real goal is the purpose of the organization, what an extraordinary opportunity. Organizations of humans with a clear measured goal and just enough profit to get there can make a huge impact.

But it’s worth being honest about whether you’re running that full-page ad with a koala bear in it because you’re here to help the bears or simply because you see it as a stepping stone to making more money.

Starting at the top seems like great advice. Deal with the people with power and authority.

Except…

Power and authority aren’t often in the same place.

The real power is usually foundational. What happens when humans interact. The way things are around here. Often, the people who are ostensibly in charge are simply choosing from a few culturally acceptable choices, and those choices are dictated by the foundation.

It might seem like a detour, but it’s actually the cause of change.

Happy Friday! We’re bringing you the latest roundup of industry news. This Friday, we’re looking at new Gartner research, the upcoming launch of Starbucks Odyssey, latest updates by Reputation, and what to expect from the partnership between Sprout Social and Salesforce.   Key news   Reputation, the global leader in reputation experience management, announced the appointment of a…
The post This week in CX: Reputation, Salesforce, and Qualtrics   appeared first on Customer Experience Magazine.

We are delighted to announce the start of the US Customer Experience AwardsTM ’23, a premium awards program celebrating top results and achievements in CX across the United States. As of September 12th, the second annual edition of USCXATM is officially accepting entries. Organizations from the U.S. are invited to showcase their achievements, submit their…
The post The 2023 edition of the US Customer Experience Awards is open for entries  appeared first on Customer Experience Magazine.

​ Explore more from https://medium.com/clootrack/13-actionable-tips-to-help-you-fulfill-customer-expectations-12424be6a9b7 submitted by /u/pallavi_pavithran [link] [comments]

On a good day a call center can run a well-oiled machine, but call center shrinkage can derail the best-laid plans.  
Picture this: You’ve got 100 agents scheduled to work on a Monday morning—enough staff to cover this notoriously busy shift. But at any given time, some individual staffers will be unavailable. They might be on a break or in a meeting, and some have likely called in sick or arrived late. Pretty normal, right? The difference between the time for which agents are paid to answer calls, and the time they actually spend doing so, is known as shrinkage. Every business deals with shrinkage, but too much can negatively affect agent performance, and ultimately, disrupt your customer experience. That’s a bumpy road you don’t want to travel. 
What Causes Shrinkage? 
There are many reasons an agent might be away from the phone. Call center managers have little control over some of the external factors affecting the time agents spend actually taking calls, though you can work to improve absenteeism and schedule adherence. 
External Factors Include:

Sick time
Scheduled holidays and vacations
Late arrivals
Absenteeism

Internal shrinkage factors are time constraints that come from inside contact center operations.
Internal Factors Include:

Lunch breaks
Team meetings
Employee training
Post-call administrative work

Managers can have some control over these factors, though most are predictable and healthy parts of the normal workday. Not all shrinkage needs to be eliminated.

TIP:
Tools like Fonolo Voice Call-Backs push back on the productivity losses that can come with call excess center shrinkage.

How to Calculate Shrinkage
To calculate your shrinkage in hours you need to know two things:

the number of hours employees are scheduled to work in a week and;
the number of hours they spend doing other tasks besides working in that same time period.

Divide the time spent doing other tasks by the total hours scheduled, and you’ll get your shrinkage rate. For example, if an employee is scheduled to work 35 hours, and spends 10 hours doing other tasks, the shrinkage rate for that person is 10/35 or 29%.
How Much is Too Much? 
Remember, shrinkage doesn’t always mean something is wrong. A certain amount of employee downtime is unavoidable and some of it even has a positive impact. For example, staff training and team meetings help you inform and educate staff. They help your agents feel engaged and improve your customer service. All good, right?  So, how much shrinkage is too much?
A shrinkage level of 30-35% is average for call centers.
But every call center is different and what works for you will be unique to your business. Acceptable shrinkage levels can change from one team to another, too.  To decide how much is too much, keep your eyes on other key metrics to see how shrinkage is affecting your call center and set your benchmarks accordingly. 
Popular Call Center Benchmarks
Too few agents assisting customers will likely result in callers spending more time on hold, affecting your CSat Scores. Excess shrinkage rates can also impact other agents’ performance, lowering their productivity and increasing agent dissatisfaction. Don’t let high shrinkage rates start a domino effect that results in poor CX.  
How to Control Shrinkage 
Create a plan to address excess shrinkage in your call center; these steps can help get you there! Share your plans and your progress transparently with your agents and work together to achieve your call center’s goals. If you can identify recurring pain points, you’ll be able to correct small issues and help your contact center thrive.  

Track employee schedule adherence and improve it where you can.
Monitor your shrinkage carefully, using annual overviews to improve future staffing projections.
Be thorough and accurate when scheduling: include meetings, training and time off in your calendar.
Monitor absenteeism and identify root causes and repeat absences.
Offer incentives and training to keep agents competitive and reward great performance.

Remember: Shrinkage Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story
Like all metrics, shrinkage is a useful data point, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. Be sure to carefully consider how shrinkage impacts your business and your customer experience when you decide how to interpret the numbers. Instead of trying to erase the figure entirely, think about reducing the excessive shrinkage that negatively impacts your call center’s performance. And be sure to consider how changes you make to reduce shrinkage rates might affect other call center KPIs like average handle time, customer satisfaction, and agent retention. The post What is Call Center Shrinkage? first appeared on Fonolo.