Technology companies have spent more than $350 billion buying other companies worldwide over the past 3 1/2 years, with the companies making these deals saying they want to give their customers more options, better prices, and smarter service. But customers used to dealing with a specialist often get worse service after the takeover.
Frontiers of Collaboration: The Evolution of Social Networking
Social networking tools such as Twitter and the emerging Google Wave web application are taking individuals and organizations to the frontiers of real-time communication and collaboration. The technology has the potential to make it easier to discover and share information, interact with others, and decide what to buy or do. But the key word is "potential": Social networking's evolution is still in its early stages.
Rev Up Your Call Center Training and Development Initiatives
Customer satisfaction studies indicate that first contact resolution and knowledgeable employees are high on list of elements required to build strong customer relationships. And these same elements can only be accomplished if the employee has the tools, knowledge and skills to easily and effectively respond to those customers' inquiries. So what this indicates/suggests is that the development of your employees is a wise investment. So how do you ensure you're getting the most from your investment?
Next time you're on the phone with a call center, listen carefully to what the rep says. Chances are you'll hear your name several times, hear a tone of empathy, maybe an "I'm sorry." It would be nice to think the rep really cares -- but of course she's probably just following a script. That can be a bad idea, we've found. A recent HBR article "Stop Trying to Delight Your Customers", explored how customer service drives loyalty, including the role of managing the emotional side of customer interactions. Here's some further insight about that delicate dance.
Your Next IT Budget: Six Ways to Support Business Growth
Make sure your IT budget priorities match up with the current business focus on growth. Here, Forrester Research shares six tips for changing the infrastructure and operations portion of your IT budget to support business expansion.
