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5 Ways CRM Helps Your Service Department

As customer service emerges as a key competitive differentiator, the role of call centers and contact centers is quickly evolving. Team members must now do much more than just answer questions and provide information. They must serve as extensions of sales, marketing, and service departments. With CRM service applications, companies can give staff the tools they need to rapidly respond to customer needs.

CRM service solutions simplify and improve service-related interactions by effectively coordinating and automating agent tasks. As a result, they enhance the customer experience by providing:

1. Complete Visibility Into Customer Activities

In order to deliver superior service, contact center staff must have instant access to a complete, timely, and accurate history of each and every customer. This includes a consolidated, 360 degree view of all sales, accounting, technical support, and other types of customer-facing transactions. CRM service tools dynamically integrate the various applications that reside on a service agent’s desktop, such as inventory, sales, accounting, marketing, and help desk systems. So, they can immediately retrieve the information they need to solve client problems.

2. Accelerated Response Times

With CRM service systems, call center agents have a wealth of customer, product, billing, and other information right at their fingertips. So, they are fully equipped to conduct some basic troubleshooting and handle more complex issues. As a result, fewer calls get escalated, and the number of costly on-site service calls and field visits is dramatically reduced.

3. Effective Management of Multiple Communication Channels

Call volumes are on the rise, and contact centers must find new ways to deliver fast and responsive service, while keeping operating costs down. CRM service solutions enable companies to maximize efficiency and reduce expenses, while increasing ease and convenience by offering multiple service channels to customers. Clients can utilize email or live chat facilities to interact with service staff, or help themselves using Web-based self-service features.

4. Agent Activity Monitoring and Performance Management

In order to ensure that customers receive consistent, high-quality service, department managers must be able to closely track staff activities and results. CRM service solutions offer powerful reporting capabilities that enable managers and team leaders to analyze call center statistics and other key metrics, so they can more effectively manage processes, improve procedures, and optimize agent performance.

5. Alternate Revenue Streams

CRM service software can help boost sales and revenues by enabling contact center agents to participate in sales promotions and other income-generating activities. Staff members have the tools they need to effectively up-sell and cross-sell during service interactions and help manage inbound marketing initiatives such as 1-800 promotions and special offers.

Companies that deploy CRM service solutions realize significant benefits, including enhanced staff efficiency, increased revenue, and reduced service-related costs. But, the real value from CRM service applications comes from the dramatic improvements in customer satisfaction they provide. With CRM service tools, businesses can achieve a significant boost in customer satisfaction levels, as well as loyalty and retention rates.