How Unified Interaction Management Creates Measurable Value
QUIZ: Which of the following outcomes is important to your organization?
a) Creating an excellent experience for customers, but at scale
b) Cutting operating costs
c) Increasing revenue
d) Ensuring an effortless rep experience
e) All of the above
As we’ve asked this question among customer experience (CX) and service leaders, the most common response is of course: e) All of the above. These things all matter, and no matter which of these outcomes you are directly responsible for, there’s no arguing that each is important.
But now, let’s ask the same question, but in a slightly different way:
QUIZ: Which outcome concerns you the most? Where are you in danger of falling behind?
a) Creating an excellent experience for customers, but at scale
b) Cutting operating costs
c) Increasing revenue
d) Creating an effortless rep experience
e) All of the above
What we’ve been seeing is that no matter which choice you made that time (even if it’s still “e”), the problem most organizations are facing is that they have a completely different strategy to achieve each of them.
- Customer experience
- Revenue growth
- Cost savings
- Rep experience
…those all seem like different problems. At most companies, each of these is being managed by different leaders and separate teams, with different strategies to move the needle often at odds with each other.
The key is addressing the problem where these outcomes intersect: your customer interactions. Whether it’s pre-sales queries or issue resolution, whether it’s over SMS, chat, or on the phone, this is where sales, service, and retention all come together. A customer interaction strategy aims for a cohesive experience across communication channels, widespread process improvements, actionable data, and more opportunities for growth.
What we’ve been seeing is that companies are beginning to shift to a Unified Interaction Management (UIM) model, leveraging a unified interaction platform to drive strategic change. With UIM, all cross-channel customer interactions move through one ChannelLess™ platform, creating opportunities for improving results in each of these critical areas.
By automatically matching the right interaction to each customer through Unified Interaction Management, it is possible to improve the bottom line in each of these four measurable categories:
Customer Experience
By automatically matching the right interaction to each customer each time they contact you, regardless of which channel they chose, (sometimes automated through virtual assistance, and sometimes interacting with a live rep), the experience for everyone is effortless. It feels personal, like “you knew exactly what I needed,” which is also what “that was a 5-star experience” feels like.
Cost Savings
In a unified environment, interactions are significantly more efficient. Unnecessary live contacts are routed to automated interactions–but only for the issue types that are best served through virtual assistance. When live assistance is required, an OnScreen Voice interaction is typically much faster than a phone call (lower average handle time) and creates fewer costly escalations. Furthermore, data and analytics across channels are unified and in a single view so you can optimize your channel use to be efficient with lower-cost deflections.
Revenue Growth
One of the key result areas in UIM is lower abandonment rates. By matching the interaction type to the needs of different people—long-time, newer, or prospective customers—users are much more likely to continue all the way through revenue-generating processes like opening a new account, adding a new product or feature, or applying for a policy for a loan, etc. The experience is seamless and intuitive, offering timely help along the way. It’s an experience that truly sets you apart from your competitors.
Frontline Rep Experience
Everything about the UIM model improves the experience of your frontline team who are handling customer interactions. By unifying all forms of communication and collaboration, you are setting your people up for greater success. This is a hallmark of companies that excel at creating effortless experiences for customers. The job is more engaging, and since automated interactions take care of the most boring, routine needs, there are more chances to truly connect with customers on a human level in the interactions you are having.
Unified Interaction Management doesn’t require trade-offs between cost and quality. It doesn’t force you to prioritize which of these outcomes is most important, or most in need of improvement. It is a single strategy that delivers: e) All of the above.
