The State of Multichannel Customer Service: The View from Where We’re Standing

It’s been said that what you see and hear depends a great deal on where you’re standing. In customer service, there are three players involved – the agent, customer and brand. As the provider of the  first integrated, multichannel desktop, it’s essential to examine these three perspectives to better understand the state of customer service today.

To gain that 360-degree view, we enlisted the help of Harris Interactive and Dr. Natalie Petouhoff. Here’s what we found:

  1. Happy Agents Equal Happy Customers: 92% of consumers report that an agent’s perceived “happiness” impacts their brand experience.

Agent happiness affects a customer’s experience, which affects brand loyalty. Most agents we spoke with believe they could increase productivity by 50% through an integrated multichannel agent desktop.

  1. Integrating Social Channels on the Desktop Is a Requirement: 85% of consumers feel that how a brand handles issues on their website or social channels is a good indicator of their quality of support.

Thanks to social media and mobile devices, customers are publicly communicating with brands more frequently. Agents need to be up to speed on all relevant customer interactions, meaning integrated channels on their desktop is key.

  1. Most Brands Fail to Provide Consistent Service Across Multiple Channels:  89% of consumers believe it’s important to be able to communicate with companies through any channel and still receive the same quality of response. However, 61% of social media users feel that brands failed to communicate with them effectively on these channels.

Through a multichannel desktop, agents can pivot seamlessly between channels, delivering a smooth, efficient experience.

  1. Live Agent Service, Regardless of Channel, Is Preferred Over Self-service: 90% of customers value the ability to communicate with a live person on any channel.

No matter what curveball technology throws at us, it’s doubtful person-to-person interactions will be replaced. Consumers appreciate ‘live’ channels for the perceived immediacy of resolution.

As a company deeply rooted in customer service for more than a decade, it was imperative for LiveOps to embark on this research initiative to understand the needs of the agent, customer and brand. In turn, we received priceless information to help design best-in-class contact center technology, such as LiveOps Engage. We are using this research to continue forward momentum, knowing what is needed to accomplish better customer service in this new era.

For more information on LiveOps Research, visit: www.liveops.com/liveopsresearch.

–        Ann Ruckstuhl, SVP and CMO, LiveOps