CCaaS CONTEST: Why is it important for an ACD and CRM to work together?

An automated call distribution system, commonly known as, automatic call distributor (ACD), is a telephony device that answers and distributes incoming calls to a specific group of terminals or agents within an organization based on a predetermined set of rules such as caller ID, automatic number identification, interactive voice response or dialed number identification services to determine how calls are handled. ACDs often use a voice menu to direct callers based on the customer’s selection, telephone number, selected incoming line to the system or time of day the call was processed. It is important that the caller is correctly directed to the best qualified agent for their request, who then can best handle their needs based on a detailed Customer Record Management system which includes the callers account and personal info.. . The agent is then prepared to not only answer the callers inquiries but also possibly upsell. Info. is King!
This allows for the highest possibility of sales success in the shortest amount of time.

Mike D.

Customers want highly personalized service, they want to contact a call center how they want and when they want. They want issues resolved quickly and efficiently—preferably on the first call. And they want to deal with knowledgeable agents who know their call history. In short, they want you to deliver a high-valued customer experience. If they don’t get it, they’ll bolt—without hesitation.
To stay competitive, call centers need to work harder to deliver high-valued customer experiences and earn each customers’ respect, trust, and loyalty.
Most inbound call centers use skilled-based routing (SBR) to handle incoming calls. It routes calls to agents with the appropriate skills to address the customer’s need, but doesn’t provide personalized service. But when you integrate your CRM with your ACD you get both skill based routing with personalized service. This union creates a routing system that adds context to every caller interaction. And because it does, it lets agents provide customers with differentiated, one-on-one customer service—exactly what customers want.

Here are Five benefits of CRM+ACD Routing adaptive real-time routing are:

Increased customer satisfaction
Improved response quality
Reduced customer complaints
Increased customer loyalty
Simplified customer journeys
Streamlines operating environment
Increases agent productivity
Reduces call center costs

Cindy S.

In today’s world where organizations are fiercely fighting to provide great customer satisfaction, linkage between the ACD and CRM is paramount. By integrating the CRM with the ACD, many new doors are opened that enable customer satisfaction such as:

• Intelligent / data-driven routing where customers are recognized by the ACD to provide personalized routing or prompts. For example, the ACD will automatically route inquiries based upon the customer’s transaction status, products purchased, or value. High value customers can be provided high-touch service and preferential treatment that prioritizes them in the queue while lower value customers would be offered “self-service” options that attempt to answer their inquiry and if that fails, they are routed to the “back” of the queue.
• Agents can receive a screen pop that includes all the key information they need to serve that customer at the same time they receive that interaction (call, email, chat, etc.). Moreover, the screen pop could include automatically opening up the appropriate CRM screen on the agent’s desktop empowering them with the ability to provide great, efficient service.
• An integrated contact history at the agent’s fingertips lets them see the customer’s interactions and their result. The agent will know if this is the first interaction ever with this customer or whether the customer has recently been involved in a flurry of communications with the company (including when they occurred, which communication channels were used, what agents were involved, the disposition of those interactions, etc.). The agent immediately knows how they need to handle the interaction they just received.
• Last agent routing allows organizations to build rapport with their customers by routing interactions to agents that the customer has previously worked with whenever possible.

These are some of the common scenarios we deploy at Evolve IP and hopefully your creative juices are now flowing with the possible doors that can be opened in your organization to WOW your customers!