Call centres up tech adoption

Telecommunications provider Maintel has suggested that technology will continue to be embraced by call centres, with the next-generation too impatient to be told 'your call is important to us, please hold', reports The Drum.

Andy Timms, contact centre specialist, says: “The next-generation expects instant gratification and in any case, none of these traditional methods works well via their preferred communications mechanisms such as social media.

According to the Business Wire, in part the change has been driven by the revolution in smartphone usage. More than 21 million people now use their handsets to browse the Internet and 6.8 million make multiple visits to online retailers. Within the UK population, 41% now own a smartphone and this is expected to rise to 50% within a year.

This enables people to communicate just as easily in any format as they do by voice. They expect to be able to send emails and texts and to access customer help online, rather than waiting in a voice queue.

Andy Timms advises organisations on how to select and install their contact centres, reveals EON.

He says: “There is a wide range of tools available now that enable companies to use multi-channel options. They can also provide face-to-face support via video which can be a much more effective way of communicating, and a multi-lingual response where it's required.”