On The Road To Electronic Contact Technology
In an excerpt from an upcoming report called "CTI: The Path to Mixed Media", Blair Pleasant, The PELORUS Group's Director of Communications Analysis, examines the current state of the call center as the worlds of telephony, computers, and the Internet continue to converge and more and more companies realize just how crucial the Internet is for telephone-based sales and service efforts.
Blair Pleasant, meantime, is one of the most forward-thinking analysts we know of in the area of advanced CT and business telephony applications and systems. Here's a taste from their latest report - again, it focuses on the movement towards more converged and integrated communication systems:
The PELORUS Group agrees with the rest of the call center and CT industry: the call center is dead or dying; it's being replaced by the "contact center" or "transaction center".
These centers are the result of businesses integrating their telephone-based call-center operations with the Web. Customer contact centers allow customers to communicate with a company using their contact mode of choice, be it telephone, fax, email, or the web (i.e., web chat, a Website callback request, or an Internet call using Voice-over-IP).
We call this new type of contact OmniContact - meaning all types of contacts, regardless of media type. The OmniContact Center handles all media types in a consistent way, based on business rules that each individual company sets up, taking into account the company's service level goals.
In addition, the name of the "call center" agent must change, since they are no longer working in just call centers. I like the term "contact liaison" to describe the new contact center agent. Essentially, these agents are the liaison between the company and its customers, suppliers, potential customers, and any one else who may contact the company.
In order to provide optimal customer services, companies have begun to offer customers a range of options for initiating contact with a company. More and more companies today recognize the importance of accommodating mixed media communications - voice, data, fax, email and video in the customer contact center.
It is becoming increasingly common for customer contact centers to support multiple access channels, allowing customers to communicate in the media of their choice. Companies can more cost-effectively utilize the Internet for telephony, fax, and videoconferencing in addition to data transfer, file sharing, and email.
It is crucial for companies to treat email like voice calls, using some of the CT technologies that have long been available for voice calls. This includes skills-based or data-directed routing so that messages get routed to the most appropriate agent, as well as monitoring service levels so that companies are informed about how well customers are being serviced.
By connecting its data environment to the call center using CT, a business further tailors the calling experience to individual consumer needs, tapping into account information, buying history, and other customer-related information.
Redefining CTI
Companies are beginning to better manage their electronic contacts with customers or potential customers, and a new form of CT is playing a role. CT is now moving from straight Computer Telephony Integration to electronic Contact Technology Integration (eCTI).
eCTI describes the integration of email, web/Internet, fax, and other media in the call center, or customer contact center. eCTI may or may not include traditional CTI links. eCTI can be defined as "Using mixed-media technology to serve customers and stakeholders requiring personal assistance for information, service, or support, via the telephone or Internet."
The PELORUS Group believes that the definition of computer telephony integration should be expanded to include not only telephone calls, but any type of contact, including customers who "call in" via the web or email. We like the description by Lucent about its CentreVu Internet Solutions, which seems to describe eCTI:
"It involves combining real-time Internet interactivity with existing CTI applications and standard call center functionality. In turn, this allows agents to access all the technologies and resources available to the call center to enhance the customer experience."
eCTI includes the following:
Voice over IP, Web chat/escorted browsing, Web callback, email, Telephone, and Video eventually.
A few of the impressive integrated solutions that we've seen include Easyphone, SoundLogic, Genesys, Apropos, Interactive Intelligence, and Octane Software.
Some people do claim that when there is no telephone involved, there is no traditional CT. Email and web contacts can be routed without using CT, and can provide screen pops without CT as well. Some vendors claim that if a contact comes from the web and there is no telephone interaction, there is no CT.
While some people believe that CT is only necessary when there is a phone, we believe that it is important to extend the definition of computer telephony integration to electronic Contact Technology Integration. Without traditional CT and telephony, agents would not be able to get a screen pop from the ACD to the application.
CT is also used for intelligent routing of phone calls, and for blending of telephone, web, and email contacts. CT is also used to track the customer interaction, providing a bridge between the ACD and software solution or application.
CT is used to do a "hot transfer" and prepopulate the agent's screen for a screen pop. Most CT vendors recognize that they're not just computer telephony integration. For example, Genesys, Geotel and Apropos make business based on selling connected seats, but realize that traffic may not be just CT traffic.
eCTI solutions may or may not use traditional CT links. Eventually we won't need CT links because everything will be converged onto an IP platform and network.
CT is crucial for making routing decisions. The CT server looks at the service level and customer information and makes a routing decision based on the customer. Intelligent routing and queuing decisions are important not only in traditional call centers, but in Internet call centers as well. Email and chat sessions need to be routed to specific service agents.
Unintegration
Without CT and eCTI, there are separate, unintegrated queues, going to separate groups in the enterprise, and producing separate reports.
This makes it difficult to run a business, as one group doesn't know what the other group is doing. For example, the online services group doesn't know what's going on in the new media center, and the call center agents don't know what's going on outside of the call center. All these groups produce separate reports, so there is no total view of how the company is doing in terms of service, support, sales, etc.
The critical area where traditional CT comes into play is in the area of media blending or multimedia queues. In most companies today, the customer contact center is separate from the electronic support center, or company e-commerce web site.
In most cases, some agents handle only web or email contacts, while others in a different department handle telephone inquiries. This is starting to change, albeit slowly. As this changes, the need for CT becomes more important.
In the new e-commerce contact center, or OmniContact center, telephone, web, and email contacts are blended together. Media control and the interface are also blended, using a single set of rules to govern interactions. Today, there are multiple queues by media (voice, fax, email, voice mail, etc) all come in to the call center separately and are handled on separate queues.
With eCTI, there will be a single multimedia queue - multiple media will become multimedia.
The very same capabilities found in formal call center environments are the types of capabilities that will be necessary in the IP-based service environments. These features include intelligent routing and queuing decisions. Like voice calls, companies need to route email or chat sessions to specific service representatives, and be able to measure those engagements.
The key is applying what we've learned from the voice side and applying it to the IP-based contact center.
A CT server can be used to play "cop." It lets you look at two queues and make media decisions. For example, Mustang's IMC exposes the message pools or queues and presents it to the CT server. The CT server looks at the service level and customer information and makes a routing decision based on the customer.
Companies can use the inherent CT function in their front-end application and have the email router feed those systems. While most of the email routing and web contact vendors do not necessarily provide their own CT capabilities, they do interface with CT vendors such as Genesys or Geotel who can provide the CT connectivity.
Many companies have separate groups for customer interaction: the call center, and the new media or online services group to manage web interactions. Some companies are moving to a single, blended group and converging into one enterprise strategy.
This produces duplication, inconsistency of responses and service, inconsistent service levels, and disparate contact history. Companies with separate groups cannot present a unified "face" to the customer. It is important for companies to build Internet capabilities into their contact centers.
Most vendors agree that CT is very important, as the telephone is still an important channel, and integration with CT is still crucial. The telephone must be viewed as an active channel, and CT is extremely important. The critical area where traditional CT comes into play is in the area of media blending or multimedia queues.
In most companies today, the customer contact center is separate from the electronic support center, or company e-commerce web site. In most cases, some agents handle only web or email contacts, while others in a different department handle telephone inquiries. This is starting to change, albeit slowly. As this changes, the need for traditional CT becomes more important.
Companies need to take a common interaction model approach to the web, email and call center, and have a common application model to go after the front office, back office, e-commerce, etc., and get them to work together on interfacing to these areas.
Companies can use many of the existing technologies in their call centers, including CT and CRM, to provide the same benefits for Internet transactions. For example, a screen pop can be provided for not only telephone calls, but for Internet transactions as well.
In the new e-commerce contact center, telephone, web, and email contacts are blended together. Media control and the interface are also blended, using a single set of rules to govern interactions.
Time For A Change
CT companies need to change the current paradigm and leverage what they have learned in the CT world and move to next generation. Telephones and call centers won't go away and traditional CT will still be needed for a while.
But to be successful with the new e-service companies, CT vendors need to be able to leverage what they know about accessing information on customers, identifying their needs, integrating data, and better servicing customers.
Companies still need the same fundamental information on customers that CT can provide - who they are, what their experience has been, what they've already purchased, how you can upsell them, and how you can better meet their needs. We still need CT, but now we need more - we need eCTI.