Fast AND Accurate Customer Service

When thinking about customer service, it’s important consider how the means justify the end. Sure, it’s great to wow a customer, delight them even. But if all of that glitz and glitter doesn’t help them achieve their primary goal—getting information in a timely manner—then it’s more of a hindrance than anything else. They called because they want answer, not because they love talking to customer service reps.

Get Answers Quickly and Correctly

According to a recent Harris Poll survey, 59% of customers said the most important thing to them when talking with a customer service representative is to “get answers quickly and correctly.” This response outpaced all others by a wide margin.

In the survey, conducted for analytics firm NICE, the next closest answer, chosen by 23% of respondents, was an agent who “doesn’t read from a script but has a real conversation.” For additional context, not being put on hold (6%) and not being transferred (3%), followed by a cryptic “other” at 2% rounded out the list.

An Inaccurate Answer Isn’t an Answer

Darts that miss the dartboard don’t count. The survey respondents said they wanted answers quickly and correctly. There’s an old saying in business that you can have something quick, cheap, or high quality: pick two. It’s clear that speed is of utmost important when talking to customer service, but quality is in the conversation too. After all, would anyone consider inaccurate information to be quality information?

Providing a customer with inaccurate information does nothing except postpone a resolution, and more likely frustrate the caller. Think about it. What’s their post-call thought process? They hang up the phone and return to their regularly scheduled programming. Once they realize that the information provided was not, in fact, what they needed, that person needs to call back. Chances are they won’t be happy about it either. The clock keeps ticking on an interaction until the customer gets what they need.

Limit Two?

Customer service reps work the front lines of customer support and as a result patrons expect them to have accurate answers. Accuracy is the de facto expectation here. Based on the Harris Poll results it would seem that the other selection from the business adage triumvirate is speed.

Fortunately, with automation, companies can actually have all three – speed, quality, and cost. Utilizing Plum’s platforms for automation allows companies to integrate their voice system with CRM and other databases, thus providing fast, accurate, real-time information to callers. An automated solution is also much less expensive than relying on live agents when handling routine inquiries.

When it comes to great customer service experience, Plum helps to usher in a new paradigm where quality, speed, and cost are all possible.