Coaching Session 11: BPO Integration

Lesson Notes

Time Stamps:

00:05 Video Introduction

02:30 BPO Integration

03:50 Customer Service in the BPO

04:08 Customer Service Meaning

CSR Roles and Responsibilities (Monster)
CSR Skills Needed (Monster)
Top Call Generators (Measuringu)

19:05 Technical Support

Expected Roles and Responsibilities
Skills Needed
Top Call Generators
Common Tools

39:45 BPO Line of Business

Voice Support
Non-Voice Support
Chat Management

40:20 Common Metrics

45:36 Other Programs/Accounts

50:38 Portfolio 11

Lesson 11: BPO Integration

I. Customer Service

Customer Service is the act of taking care of the customer’s needs by providing and delivering professional, helpful, high-quality service and assistance before, during, and after the customer’s requirements are met. (https://study.com/)

Customer Service is an umbrella term for all interactions that enhance customer experience and help improve their relationship with the company. (Zendesk). Specific support classifications are (but not limited to), Technical Support, Sales, Admin and Back-Office, Travel, Taxation Assistance, and many more.

CSR Roles and Responsibilities (Monster)

Serves customers by providing product and service information and resolving product and service problems – contact can be any of the ones mentioned in the classification.
Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions and suggesting information about other products and services.
Opens customer accounts by recording account information.
Maintains customer records by updating account information.
Resolves product or service problems by clarifying the customer’s complaint, determining the cause of the problem, selecting and explaining the best solution to solve the problem, expediting correction or adjustment, and following up to ensure resolution.
Maintains financial accounts by processing customer adjustments.
Recommends potential products or services to management by collecting customer information and analyzing customer needs.
Prepares product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information.
Contributes to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.

CSR Skills Needed (Monster)

Customer Service Acumen
Product Knowledge
Market Knowledge
Problem Solving
Documentation Skills
Phone Etiquette
Communication/Listening Skills
Resolving Conflict
Analyzing Information
Attention to detail
Multi-Tasking

Top Call Generators (Measuringu)

Understanding why people call customer support helps you understand the CSR role. The visibility on the TCGs allows you to plan ahead on what skills to sharpen.

Product/Service Information
Support (Something is not working)
Purchase (Refund, Return, Exchange)
Account Help (Billing, Log-in Issues)
Complaints

II. Technical Support

Technical Support refers to services that entities provide to users of technology products or services. In general, technical support provides help regarding specific problems with a product or service, rather than providing training, provision or customization of the product, or other support services.

The Tech Support role switches between Inbound and Outbound calls to ensure that the customer receives optimum supports towards resolving the issue. This sometimes involves collaborating with other departments in the company or other support providers.

Expected Roles and Responsibilities

Identifying Hardware and Software Solutions
Troubleshooting Technical Issues
Diagnosing and Repairing Faults
Resolving Network Issues
Installing and Configuring Hardware and Software
Speaking to Customers to Quickly Get to the Root of their Problem
Providing Timely and Accurate Customer Feedback
Talking Customers Through a Series of Actions to Resolve a Problem
Following up with Clients to Ensure the Problem is Resolved
Replacing or Repairing the Necessary Parts
Supporting the Roll-Out of New Applications
Providing Support in the Form of Procedural Documentation
Managing Multiple Cases at One Time

Skills Needed

(In-depth) Knowledge of Hardware and Software
Up-to-date knowledge of the latest IT and software trends (choose a stream – networking, app/software, desktop support, and etc)
Strong Customer Service Ethos
Ability to Work Well with People
Strong Communications Skills
Excellent Organizational Skills
Accountability & Professionalism
Willingness to Work Unsociable Hours
Patience
A Logical Mind
Enthusiasm for Continual Learning

Top Call Generators

Hardware Issue/Not Working (Printer, Router, Laptop BSOD, Monitor, SmartTV, and etc)
Connection Disruption (Internet, Cable Signal, WiFi)
Account Related (Forgot Password, Incorrect Credentials, Network)
Subscriptions (Upgrade, Downgrade, Renewal)
Installation (Hardware, Software, Mobile, Gaming Device, Sync)
Product Features (Enable, Disable)
Specific Error Code (Product Specific)
Bug Reporting (Patch Release)

Common Tools

CRMs – SalesForce
Remote Access Tools – LogMeIn, TeamViewer and more

III. BPO Line of Business

Voice Support

Chat Support is another avenue to provide a TIMELY response and support to customers with the responsibility of answering queries and assisting customers through chat. Chat support agents need effective skills, training, and work experience to be able to handle queries from customers in a professional, clear, and concise manner.

Non-Voice Support

Chat Agent Skills For Superior Customer Service Experience

https://acquire.io/blog/live-chat-agent-skills-create-superior-customer-service-experience/

Writing Skills – good grammar skills, extraordinary typing skills (to avoid typos and delays) and ability to understand what the customer is saying .

Fast Response Time – reply to customers fast. At a maximum, customers should receive a reply within 30-45 seconds.

Multitasking – a customer service agent may need to handle five to six customers at a time.

Learning Ability – the customer support agent should always be ready to learn and understand new information. They might need to study new software updates or changes daily and navigate through different types of software to provide effective and quick responses.

Human Touch – speak in a friendly and conversational way, not robotically. Your sympathetic voice will gain the customer’s trust. Sometimes just a simple ”thanks” or ‘“sorry” can make a huge impact.

Chat Management

https://www.whoson.com/live-chat-best-practice/10-best-practice-tips-live-chat-queue-management/

Categorize

Good live chat queue management starts with categorization. So, categorize your company’s common customer queries and needs, and create a different queue for each category. Each categorized query can then be routed to a properly trained agent. This reduces the number of chat transfers and enables quick, efficient chat handling.

Prioritize Key Customers

Prioritizing is just as important as categorizing. You should be able to prioritize higher-value customers or more urgent support enquiries rather than leaving them to stew in a queue. For example, high-value customers could be identified through CRM integration, cart items or website history. Similarly, queries requiring immediate attention could be identified using smart keyword recognition.

Find Balance

Live chat queue management involves striking a balance between supply and demand, and between support and sales. Don’t be afraid to move your team members around. The occasional re-shuffle can help ensure the most demanding areas of your customer service are being met with enough support.

Look for Trends

Your queues are most likely to be full during peak hours and periods. So, look for common times that more chats are requested and increase the number of online agents accordingly.

Set Specific Goals

Always set guidelines for target wait times, including a limit. This helps ensure your service standards are maintained consistently, as well as being a useful reference point for employees. With queue guidelines, your live chat agents know when they’re providing the best possible service. For example, they can manage conversations knowing whether they have extra time with a customer for upselling or relationship-building, or whether they may need to start wrapping up.

Use Pre-Chat Surveys (if applicable)

Pre-chat surveys are a useful tool for live chat queue management. A pre-chat survey helps you ensure that each waiting customer gets connected to the right agent without any further delay, reducing their frustration. Plus, pre-chat surveys help determine queue priority and category. This means your agents can offer personalized service as soon as they connect – which is a pleasant experience for the customer following a queue.

Use Chatbots (if applicable)

Let chatbots tag-team with your agents to handle FAQs and simplistic problems. Chatbots have no limit on the number of customers they can serve at once, meaning that some customers needn’t queue at all. Chatbots also keep the repetitive, easy queries out of your live chat queue entirely.

Use Canned Responses

Canned responses can be a catalyst for the live chat queue management process. Use canned responses for repetitive parts of the chat such as greetings and sign-offs, to save your agents from typing the same words in each conversation. It will shave off valuable seconds.

Manage Your Experienced Agents (if applicable)

Have your experienced agents on hand to handle the hardest and most long-winded chats. Less experienced agents should always transfer the chats dealing with complex issues beyond their skillset. The experienced agent will be more efficient and capable of handling the difficult chat, while the less experienced team member can take and solve a new chat and keep the queue short.

Inform Waiting Chatters (if applicable)

Keep your waiting chat users in the loop. Give waiting for customers key information such as estimated wait times and alternate support options. This enables them to decide whether they want to wait or not and gives them other ways of reaching you – likely in a better mood than if they were forced to wait a long time with no explanation. Customers will be more forgiving if you manage their expectations.

IV. Common Metrics

CSR Metrics

Handling Time
Calls Handled
Tickets Resolved
CSAT
Retention Rate
NPS
Schedule Adherence

Sales Metrics

Sales Achievement
Upsell/Cross-Sell
Calls Handled
Tickets Resolved
CSAT
Retention Rate
NPS
Schedule Adherence

Common parameters to measure the TSR’s productivity and performance.

AHT – Average Handling Time
FCR – First Call Resolution
CSAT/NPS – Customer Satisfaction/Net Promoter Score

V. Other Programs/Accounts

Travel and Hotel

Traveling is an essential aspect of most people. Whether for business or leisure, most travelers plan and coordinate trips by themselves, others look for help to ensure a worry-free transaction. This is where Travel Support Professionals come in.

Travel Agent Job Responsibilities (Source):

Meets with clients to determine travel needs, budgets and preferences.
Sells and coordinates transportation, accommodations, insurance, tours, and activities.
Advises clients regarding destinations, cultures, customs, weather, and activities.
Collects payments, books travel arrangements, and pays applicable fees.
Handles travel issues, conflicts, complaints, cancelations, and refunds.
Builds and maintains relationships with travel and tour vendors.
Attends travel seminars and conferences.
Conducts research on destinations and industry trends.
Maintains accurate records of bookings, payments, transactions, phone calls, and meetings.
Contributes to agency efforts by accomplishing related tasks as needed.

Banking

What does a Financial Advisor do (Source)?

A Financial Advisor provides financial planning and support to clients in order to help clients achieve their financial goals. Financial Advisors assist clients to maintain their current assets and portfolios and assist with obtaining additional assets as necessary/desired. All of this must be done with adherence to ethics, best practices, and pre-established financial plans.

Financial Advisor Responsibilities (Source)

Provide financial planning support to clients
Support investment professionals to cultivate client relationships
Prepare financial plans and check their accuracy
Respond to prospective customer queries about financial planning
Assist in the development plans for the company
Offer subject matter expertise to fellow Financial Advisors
Maintain awareness of the latest legislative changes that may affect financial planning

Political & Market Survey

Market research is very important step organizations take before committing to any new major business strategy. Market research is also an invaluable step for new organizations so they can better understand their market, and most importantly, if their business offer will generate any demand from the market in which they’ll operate. Market research is the first step when developing a marketing strategy or plan, and it can be accomplished by primary market research, secondary market research, or both. (Source)

Responsibilities and Qualifications (Source)

Healthcare – Medical

A medical customer service representative performs informational and service-related duties on behalf of a medical provider or health care company, typically at a call center or office. In this career, your responsibilities are to answer phones, resolve patient insurance claims or questions related to medical care and benefits information, and direct patients to the proper resources for further assistance with their issues. You may also make calls to clients to assess their service experience or inform them about changes in their services. (Source)

Taxation

During the tax season in the US (typically Jan. 1 until the April 15 filing deadline) and in Australia (1 July – 31 October), companies outsource simple jobs. These jobs can be as basic and getting the customer’s details and booking them in for an appointment with a Tax agent or can be complicated as filling the taxes for the customers.

This is considered as a seasonal account similar to https://www.ftd.com/ which only peaks during Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day, and the holidays.

Portfolio

Task 1: Mock call

Ask a friend or a family member to act as a customer. Record the conversation thru Vocaroo and send the link.

Scenario:

Beryl bought a new laptop. She needs to connect to the internet. As a Technical Support from an internet service provider, how can you help her?

*Be the customer and the representative at the same time if you cannot find a friend or a family member to do the mock call.

Task 2: Beryl is asking for help on how to install Zoom for a work meeting.

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