| Contact centers, commonly known as call centers | | | | call centers is the predictive dialer. The technology |
| have become the touch point for customers and | | | | behind a dialer is used for outbound calls like cold |
| business. These contact centers have grown | | | | calling or pre-sales offerings. Instead of having |
| from simple telephone sales to full customer | | | | individual employee-agents dialing numbers, the |
| service organizations. From billing issues and quote | | | | predictive dialer can manage the number of calls |
| requests to full sales teams, the call center has | | | | being made at any given point in time and adjust |
| delivered on the promise of lower overall costs to | | | | based on the number of available people to |
| many businesses. | | | | accept the call. |
| Call Centers, from a practical standpoint are | | | | This tool is a call management system that is |
| actually a technology center that can be used for | | | | based on logic rules to deliver maximum |
| many things. These include: | | | | efficiency. |
| Direct telephone answering. Customers call into | | | | A Predictive Dialer Can: |
| the center with specific issues or problems. | | | | Can make and manage hundreds of calls at a |
| Support Calls. Any technological product that | | | | time. |
| needs technical support are now using call centers. | | | | Has the ability to monitor the number of agents |
| Outbound Calling: Calls to existing customers can | | | | available to take a call |
| be placed throughout the world from a centralized | | | | Can detect call status and route the call based on |
| contact center. | | | | that status. Busy signals get called again, bad |
| Outbound Pre-Sales: Prospect calling to develop | | | | numbers are flagged or removed, a live person is |
| potential sales opportunities | | | | auto routed to an agent, etc. |
| Quotes: Customers can call in for rate quotes on | | | | Auto adjusts the number of calls being dialed |
| products | | | | based on when an agent is expected to be free |
| Sales: Handling sales generated from a direct | | | | to accept the call. The predictive dialer is |
| mailing, television or other advertising program | | | | programmed with basic rules that determine the |
| Email: Many call centers now offer direct email | | | | number of calls being made at any one time. The |
| processing. Customers can email for specific | | | | idea is to have everyone on the phone all the |
| problems or questions and have them answered | | | | time but also have the process appear seamless |
| usually within 24 hours. | | | | to any potential customer. More agents available = |
| IVR: Interactive Voice Response. Customer | | | | more calls. Fewer agents available = less calls. |
| interaction with a computer system to obtain | | | | To much time between calls and the call center |
| information or route the call to the correct | | | | cost per call go up, increasing the operating |
| department. | | | | expenses. To little time and the potential |
| The opportunities for a business to benefit from a | | | | customer is held up and is likely to end the call |
| call center operation are only limited by their | | | | without hearing the offer. Many of the newer |
| imagination. Contact centers are constantly being | | | | predictive dialers actually can learn and adjust the |
| upgraded with the latest in technology. A good | | | | original rules based on how the specific call center |
| example is the recent growth in the use of voice | | | | is operating. Overall, the call center has made |
| over Internet protocol or VOIP. This is telephone | | | | customer support and customer relationship |
| service over the web. | | | | management easier, cheaper and faster. |
| One of the biggest technological features of many | | | | |