Interactive Intelligence Introduces New Mobile Customer Service Solution
Interactive Intelligence Group Inc. , a provider of unified IP business communications solutions, is releasing a new software platform that enables organizations to rapidly deploy customer service applications on multiple mobile operating systems, devices and social media websites, while bridging the gap between mobile self-service and live assistance. Interaction Mobilizer™ enables organizations to brand their own mobile applications then publish them on the appropriate app store (e.g. Android, Apple, Google, Microsoft, etc.), or offer them from their corporate website for users to download. Customers can log on using their Facebook ID, or using company-supplied credentials, as desired.

USAN Selected by Rooms To Go for Multichannel Contact Center and Social Media Monitoring Capabilities
USAN, a provider of a comprehensive portfolio of multichannel contact center products and technologies, announced that Rooms To Go, an independent furniture company, has selected the company’s social media monitoring and customer contact software for its 275-seat contact center. Rooms To Go will utilize the blended inbound/outbound capabilities of USAN’s on-premise Automatic Call Distributor, Interactive Voice Response, and Predictive Dialer platform to facilitate customer service and deliveries, appointment setting, confirmations and reminders. Rooms To Go will also expand its customer service reach by using social media channels to confirm deliveries and perform customer surveys.

CallCopy Presents Upgraded cc: Discover v5.0 Workforce Optimization Suite
CallCopy, a provider of innovative contact center call recording and workforce optimization (WFO) solutions, announced an updated version of cc: Discover, the company’s WFO suite. cc: Discover allows organizations to better utilize business intelligence and ensure optimal end customer satisfaction through integrated call recording, speech and desktop analytics, quality management, screen capture, agent coaching, performance management, customer survey and workforce management.

IT Employees: Engaged, Committed but Likely to Consider Leaving
A study released by Randstad Technologies and Technisource shows IT employees tend to be engaged at work and loyal to their organizations, yet over half (53 percent) plan to explore other employment options when the job market picks up.

Findings from the latest Randstad Engagement Index show that IT workers display more volatility than other employees when it comes to their intentions to leave their current jobs. Despite this, three-quarters of IT workers are proud to work for their organizations and 75 percent are inspired to do their best every day.

Key findings:

• 76 percent of IT employees are proud to work for their company, up 6 percent from last quarter

• 63 percent of IT employees enjoy going to work every day, 5 percent less than employees surveyed overall

• 75 percent of employees feel inspired to do their best each day

• 68 percent of IT employees feel their efforts at work are recognized and valued, 5 percent higher than employees surveyed overall

• 67 percent indicate they trust their company leadership to make good decisions for the workforce, up 4 percent from last quarter

• 67 percent of employees believe their company shares their values

Additional findings:

IT workers on the job market:

• More than half, 59 percent, of IT employees believe the job market will pick up in 2012 (5 percent higher than employees overall)

• 80 percent of employees feel secure in their employment (5 percent higher than employees overall)

IT workers feelings towards the future:

• More than three-fourths, 77 percent, believe their company has a great future

• 64 percent believe their company is making the right investments now in their workforce for the future

• 60 percent report being only a little or not at all concerned about having to take a pay cut 

More...

No Slowdown for IT -- Robust Job Growth Continues in April
Despite an anemic overall jobs report, IT jobs continued to grow briskly in April--reaching yet another historic milestone.

In April, the number of IT jobs grew by 17,000 or .4 percent sequentially to 4,168,700, according to TechServe Alliance, a collaboration of IT services firms, clients, consultants and suppliers.

April marks the fourth consecutive month where IT employment has reached a new record high. IT jobs have increased by 117,000, an increase of 2.9 percent, in the past 12 months. In comparison, the number of overall jobs grew only 0.1 percent in April and was up only 1.4 percent from the same time last year.

More...

 

Consumers Crave Simplicity Not Engagement
According to Corporate Executive Board, a research and advisory services firm, the rise of new technology has fundamentally changed the way consumers buy, providing greater access to information and choice than ever before.  Feeling overwhelmed, consumers want support -- not increased marketing messages or "engagement" -- to more quickly and easily navigate the purchase process. Brands that help consumers simplify the purchase journey have customers who are 86 percent more likely to purchase their products and 115 percent more likely to recommend their brand to others.

In a study of 7,000 consumers and marketing executives representing 125 consumer brands across 12 industries, CEB identified a significant disconnect between current marketing strategies, including customer engagement, and preferred consumer buying behavior. While most marketers are behaving as if the majority of consumers are open to having a relationship with their brand, CEB found only 20 percent of consumers report being open to such relationships. As a result, today's marketing tactics are making customers less loyal and resulting in lost revenue for companies.

To capture customers' attention and build loyalty, companies should invest in making the purchasing process so simple that customers' decision-making actually becomes easier. CEB's insights show a 20 percent increase in simplifying the decision-making process results in a 96 percent increase in a customer's likelihood to purchase, re-purchase or recommend a particular brand. Companies can simplify the buying process in three important ways by helping consumers:

• Trust Information: provide recommendations by consumer advisors, ratings and reviews

• Navigate the Purchase Process: simplify the research process by offering clear and streamlined brand-specific product information targeted to each decision stage

• Weigh Comparison Options: make transparent buying guides and brand differentiated information easily available

More...

Learn How to Handle Irate Customers
No matter how good you are at what you do, what business you are in, or where it is located, you will at some point find yourself facing an irate customer, but perhaps no more so than in a call center. Maybe the product was flawed, a delivery was late, or a charge was inaccurate. How you deal with that customer not only will determine how he or she feels about your organization – or your client’s organization – but how you feel about yourself.
Full Article...

Making Customers the Object of Devotion
Companies would be well-advised to prioritize according to such factors as the lifetime value of the customer relationship. If a high-value customer just sent an email, perhaps the next available agent should respond to the request rather than engage with a lower-value customer who has been waiting on hold for a couple of minutes.
Full Article...

Go From a Cost Center to a Profit Center
All customers want is for you to quickly and effectively “know me," "help me" and make sure you "remember me.” While this sounds simple, we all know that managing this capability within a contact center in a cost-effective manner presents a significant challenge. However, by applying the following three tactics you can transform your call center from a cost center into a profit center, without sacrificing a quality customer experience.
Full Article...

When Choosing a Job, Culture Matters
Some organizations will excite you. They'll stimulate your success and growth. Others will be stressful. They may lead you to quit before you've accomplished much or learned what you hoped to. With the pressure (or excitement) of finding a new job, it's all too easy to pursue a job opportunity or to accept an offer with only a hazy view of how the institution really operates. The path to an institution you'll like is to investigate the culture you're thinking of joining before you accept the position.
Full Article...

CEO Guide to Customer Experience Technology
Learn how companies from PepsiCo Inc. to Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. are adopting tablets, digital signs, touch-screen kiosks and mobile applications to help customers interact with products before buying and capture part of the estimated 85 percent of purchases that will be influenced by some sort of digital experience in 2015.
Full Article...

Smart Customers, Stupid Companies: Why Only Intelligent Companies Will Thrive, and How To Be One of Them
by Michael Hinshaw, Bruce Kasanoff

In the last decade, companies strove to be great. Now they need to act as smart as the customers they wish to serve. Why? Because acting dumber than your customers is not a sustainable business model. This visually arresting book not only challenges business leaders to profit from the wave of disruptive innovation making customers smarter, but it also presents an actionable five-step plan for doing just that.

Click here for more information on this book.

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2012 Service and Support Technology Showcase Now Available
SupportIndustry.com has released the 2012 version of our Service & Support Technology Showcase. This in-depth buyer's guide features the latest tools and technologies in the support services industry that enable support operations to deliver superior customer service. To view the listings, click here!

Free Research on the Service and Support Industry
Are you looking for the latest research available (for free!) on the service and support industry? Then check out the research section of SupportIndustry.com. Some of the current offerings available to members are:

• The 2012 Service & Support Snapshot: 5 Support Trends That Will Change Your Business in 2012
• 2011 State of the Industry: Six Trends Every Support Organization Should Know
• 2011 Survey Results: How Support Behaviors are Changing for Mobile and Social Media Environments
• 2010 Service and Support Metrics Survey
• Research Insight: Self-Service Support
• Research Insight: Average Speed to Answer, Wait Time and Handle Time
• 2010 Service and Leadership Trends in Customer Support
• Research Insight: Effectively Measuring Customer Loyalty
• Research Insight: Cost Per Contact (Phone & E-Mail)
• Research Insight: First Contact Resolution

All of these reports can be accessed by clicking here...

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