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    How Savvy Managers Can Make a Business Case for New Call Center Software

    As a savvy call center manager, you know how vital call center software is to your team’s success. You perfectly understand how it can help improve productivity, enhance the customer experience, and provide the most cost-effective ways to get your job done.

    However, even though 93% of contact centers agree that technology is essential for creating a better customer experience, getting the buy-in of the executive team can be a struggle. The C-level focuses on keeping costs low, so you need to have a valid reason, backed up by data, to implement call center software.

    It’s not enough to say, “We’d like new software to improve our processes.” It would help if you had a well-thought-out business case for recommending new technology, including how it will increase efficiency, improve customer satisfaction, and save money in the short and long term.

    Let’s look at how to make a compelling case for call center QA software to get the executive buy-in you need to move forward.

    What is Call Center Software?

    First, let’s dive briefly into call center software. What is it? It encompasses a wide range of technology that can help with everything from automating processes to managing customers. There’s call center software for analyzing data, predicting customer behavior, managing day-to-day operations, reviewing agent performance, etc.

    In fact, there’s more call center software than you might ever need, which is why it’s essential that you make a case for only the best call center software. There’s no point getting buy-in for call center software that doesn’t have the vital capabilities your contact center needs.

    What types of call center software should you look for? According to Cisco’s 2020 Contact Center Global Survey, more than 90% of contact centers agree that you need software for:

    • Intelligence routing
    • Look/feel of the user interface (UI)
    • Integrated omnichannel experiences
    • Communication and collaboration

    And you need call center quality assurance software.

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    Why You Need Call Center Quality Assurance Software

    Call center quality assurance software will be one of the most powerful technological tools in your arsenal for assessing ROI in the contact center. It’s how you can track hard and soft gains, improve agent loyalty, increase sales, reduce customer churn, increase agent engagement, and enhance agent training. When implemented correctly, call center QA software is how you empower your call center to improve performance at every level.

    The truth is that poor customer service experiences cause 82% of customers to leave a company, so call center QA software that helps you better satisfy your customers is indispensable. Without this insight into how or if they are providing excellent customer service, U.S. companies are estimated to be losing as much as $62 billion a year.

    And that barely touches the surface of the power of call center quality assurance software. Let’s break down the total ROI and stats.

    Call Center Quality Assurance Software Stats

    Call center quality assurance software is essential for tracking a wide variety of key performance indicators (KPIs) within the contact center. But it also helps you go beyond capturing performance data to provide a framework for tracking, managing, taking action, and improving on every insight. 

    It can help you with:

    • Agent performance
    • Training success, failure, and needs
    • Operational efficiency
    • Internal and external collaboration
    • Customer experience
    • And call center alignment with business goals

    For example, did you know that about 15-35% of calls to your contact center are repeated? With call center quality assurance software, you can perform repeat call analysis to identify gaps in agent knowledge and training to facilitate improvement.

    Call center QA software is an investment in how you interact with your customers daily and provide excellent service. When you do this, you can expect to:

    And on top of all that, according to a study by Ultimate Software, 92% of employees say that having technology helps them do their job more efficiently and improves their work satisfaction. It does this by:

    • Improving customer flow—sending customers to suitable agents based on their QA scores and skills.
    • Connecting your agents—connected employees can improve productivity by 20-25%.
    • Creating incentives for agents to perform their best69% of employees would work harder if they were recognized.
    • Actively engaging employees in their work85% of employees are not engaged at work, costing $7 trillion in lost productivity.

    Features of the Best Call Center Software

    Okay, now you know why you need call center quality assurance software. Let’s take a quick step back and look at call center software is discussed as the best technology for your call center. There are many elements and areas to consider whether you’re running a small help desk or a large group of customer support agents.

    The key is implementing the best call center software for ensuring high-quality customer experiences while running at peak operational efficiency. The best option is finding a call center software suite with awitheatures and integrations you need and want. However, that’s not always possible.

     So, let’s dive quickly into the features and types of call center software needed to be effective. You can purchase these separately or as part of a group.

    • Omnichannel Solutions: For 91% of contact centers, an integrated omnichannel experience is essential. Look for software that allows you to create a central repository of your customer data for our customers better when they want.
    • Call Center Quality Scorecards: A key element within call center quality assurance software are digital scorecards. These provide essential feedback on your call center agents, the customer experience, business processes, and overall ct center performance.
    • Analytics and Reporting Software: From speech analytics to text analytics and predictive analytics, there are many far-reaching analytics and reporting technologies that you can use to quickly and easily monitor your call center’s performance.
    • Cloud Technology: With remote-based call centers on the rise, it’s never been more critical to have cloud-based call center software that works no matter your geographical borders or time zones.
    • AI and Automation Software: Artificial intelligence should be integrated into your software so you can automate basic tasks and complement the work of your human agents.
    • Security & Data Privacy: Your software should meet all regulatory compliance obligations regarding customer privacy and data safety.
    • Self-Service Customer Support: Your call center software should be able to integrate seamlessly with your self-service online knowledge database to support your customers and your agents.
    • Learning and Development: You should include training and learning management in your call center software or integrate it seamlessly with your system.

    How to Build a Strong Business Case for New Call Center Software

    When building a solid case for new call center software, many aspects are to consider. You have to look at how the software will impact your call center’s performance—for agents, teams, and supervisors—technology will support other functions: training, compliance, employee engagement, customer satisfaction, etc.

    To help you build a business case, we’ve broken down the key elements you need to outline to get your executive team on board. 

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    Identify Business Needs and Types of Call Center Software

    First and foremost, you cannot make a compelling case to purchase new call center software until you can fully explain WHY you need it. It must help your team fulfill business goals more efficiently and cost-effectively. This means you need to be able to point to exactly what types of call center software should be purchased and what they will do.

    In particular, there are a few things to keep in mind.

    • Quality Assurance: The software should have the ability to analyze individual and team performance. QA should reflect your organizational structure—teams, divisions, and locations—and provide a clear idea of how your call center performs at all levels. The idea is to improve agent, team, and supervisor performance, enhance customer satisfaction, increase engagement, and aid in coaching.
    • Monitoring: There are an ever-increasing number of customer touchpoints to monitor. Your software should help you handle and monitor every customer experience to discover lost sales, training gaps, poor agent workflow, and other critical KPIs.
    • Process Improvement: According to a survey of 1,300 global CEOs, 77% say their main focus is efficiencies and driving revenue growth. This means that your call center software MUST be able to make your processes run more smoothly in everything from handling customer interactions to inputting time cards, attending meetings, training, etc.
    • Metrics/Reporting: Executives can be overwhelmed by data without context. That’s why it’s imperative for your call center software to provide helpful metrics and reporting designed to identify patterns or trends in agent performance and customer insight.
    • Dashboards: To optimize the ROI of your call center software, necessary individuals within your organization—agents, supervisors, coaches, executives, HR, etc.—should have access to appropriate dashboards to benchmark call center performance. Better than a spreadsheet, your dashboard should provide a quick summary of the strengths and weaknesses of our call center.

    Only in the call center can you truly serve your customer’s needs. The key is to implement the best call center software to help you implement the right processes and procedures for success. It’s all about having the ability to monitor, measure, and manage every moment, which will depend on your specific goals and business needs. 

    Do Your Research

    However, do your research before you reach out to any call center software provider and ask for a trial or test-drive test. And go beyond what they provide on their website—that will always be skewed to put their best foot forward. Do your arch into customer reviews, cost, and ROI.

    Review Sites

    Review sites such as Capterra, G2 Advisor, and GetApp will give you an average star rating from current and previous customers while also giving you additional insight into exacpreciselytwhat ware works. It’s a great way to get honest feedback from people and companies like yours.

    For example, on Capterra, Scorebuddy has received 40 reviews with an average of 4.5/5 stars. It received 4.5/5 stars overall, 4.6/5 stars for ease of use, and 4.8/5 stars for customer service.

    “Scorebuddy is the real deal - pricing, functionality, and ease of use. If you are thinking of signing up for the free trial - stop thinking and DO IT. You will save time and money, and your team will love the engagement and feedback!”

    Cost

    Cost should NOT be your main sticking point, but it will affect your decision. The best way to handle price is to set a budget first. Then, start looking into each software company and compare how much each cost.

    Each software has its unique pricing scheme, so we can compare accurately by looking for hidden fees such as maintenance, professional services, reporting, training, and setup. For example, some call center software providers will charge an additional setup charge that may be a surprise.

    ROI 

    And remember, while a low monthly payment is attractive, it can be deceptive. If your new call center software does not offer a high return on investment, then no matter how much it costs, it’s not a great deal.

    Look for software companies that demonstrate some type of ROI so you can determine what to expect and if it will be worth it in the end. To calculate your ROI:

    ROI = (Benefits – Investments) / Investments

    For benefits, you’ll want to look at everything from increased customer satisfaction to customer lifetime value, churn rate, cost of customer support, improved productivity, etc. The key is to look at potential hard and soft gains from your call center software to see if the ROI outweighs the investment.

    Questions to ask about ROI include:  

    Business/Quality Analysts:
    • How long does it take you to gather Quality Data?
    • Can you identify the Root Cause Analythe sis of recurring problems?
    • Can you identify Skills Gaps for appropriate training?
    •  How long does it take you to prepare reports?
    • How much time do you spend communicating analysis to team leaders?

    Team Leaders/Evaluators:

    • What is the average time it takes to score a customer interaction?
    • What is the average time it takes to prepare per review?
    • How long do face-to-face reviews take (minutes per month)?
    • Do you have a clear view of the teamteam'sividual performances?
    Performance Indicators
    • What is the average quality score?
    • What is the average customer sentiment score?
    • What is the average agent engagement level?
    • What is the agent attrition level, and why? 

    Know What to Ask Your Prospective Software Solutions’ Provider

    Buying the right call center software is not as simple as performing a quick Google search and choosing the first technology you find. If you want the best, most cost-effective software for your business that’s also simple to use and contains all the features you want, you have to delve into the nitty-gritty details of each software. 

    The idea is to compare features, pricing, user-friendliness, customer satisfaction, ratings and reviews, and client support. And that means asking many questions.

    Previously, we compiled a list of 27 questions to ask your call center software provider before you sign on the dotted line. You can find the full list here. Below, we’ve provided a brief overview of some of the most important questions to cover.

    • How extensive is the reporting? You need to be able to recognize positive results, use insights for coaching/training, gain real-time feedback, etc.
    • Is the software multichannel ready? If you offer omnichannel support, you need call center software to work effectively and collaboratively across different channels.
    • How customizable is the software? Can you prioritize QA questions? Can you set email alerts for important information? Can you calibrate the tool to meet your compliance obligations? The more customizable the software, the better.
    • How user-friendly is the software? You’re looking for software that makes it easy to edit forms and reports, add and remove users, and simple to set up through IT.
    • What do other customers have to say? Don’t be afraid to ask for current customer reviews or ask existing customers to see if they enjoy the software, how well it works, and what they wish they could change.

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    Summarize Business Benefits

    Last but certainly not least, every solid business case for software should end with a quick summary of the business benefits it will provide. This is when you’ll delve into the ROI of implementing new technology and make the final points of your case. Your goal should be to demonstrate the enormous rewards your call center—and the business as a whole—will achieve from the upgrade.

    Here are a few key business benefits to keep in mind related to customer satisfaction and increased revenue.

    • Brand Loyalty: When you provide good customer experiences, 86% of people will demonstrate brand loyalty, leading to 140% more money spent and creating brand evangelists who will promote your brand.
    • Increased Revenue: According to research by American Express, 86% of customers are willing to pay more for a better experience.
    • Product/Service Evangelism: 97% of customers consider reviews before purchasing, and consumers read an average of 10 online reviews before committing to a local business.
    • Brand Differentiator: According to Gartner, 89% of companies compete primarily on experience.
    • Customer Retention: Almost one in three customers (32%) will leave a brand they love after just one bad customer experience, explains PwC.
    • Increased Customer Value: According to Harvard Business Review, emotionally attached customers are 25-110% more valuable in terms of revenue and profitability Harvard Business Review. 

    There are also process improvements to mention, including: 

    • First Call Resolution: The fewer calls, chats, emails, and social media messages it takes your team to answer the customer’s concern, the happier they are. A higher first-call resolution will increase your agents' productivity, reduce staff attrition, and higher customer satisfaction.
    • Average Call Handle Times: These metrics relate directly to customer satisfaction and how well your agents resolve issues and perform their duties promptly.
    • Customer Service Scores: NPS and CSAT measure how satisfied your customers are with your service and the strength of your relationships. Incremental improvements in these scores can result in large increases in revenue.
    • Employee Efficiency and Happiness: Happy and efficient agents are eight more likely to stay with a firm beyond the first year, 16 times more likely to refer their friends, and three times more likely to feel highly empowered to resolve customer issues.
    • Training and Development: According to 68% of workers, training and development are essential to success and happiness. Call center software can provide an easy way to identify training gaps, track employee progress, and keep employees motivated to learn.
    • Agent Workflows: 74% of your call center agents are at risk of burnout. A software solution that optimizes the workflow within your call center, helping you prioritize support, analyze data, and keep organized is critical to effective management.
    • Employee Recognition & Rewards: Recognizing when your agents perform well can have long-lasting benefits that incentivize your agents to stay, grow, and be more effective for your organization and your customers.
    • Identify and Solve Problems/Trends: McKinsey reported that 70% of the customer journey is dictated by how the customer feels they are being treated. Call center software offers an opportunity to identify customer problems more quickly and deliver more effective solutions to improve quality experiences improves. If you can engage your customers how they want, results will soar.

    Make a case for Scorebuddy’s Call Center Quality Assurance Solution.

    Scorebuddy’s call center quality assurance software is essential for customer service improvement and agent engagement. It is entirely customizable, so you can capture the performance data that is most important to your business.

    Through detailed data and analytics, Scorebuddy makes it easy to take action and radically improve your quality of customer service. You’ll arm your call center team with insight into call center patterns and trends to identify strengths and weaknesses and make better decisions.

    With Scorebuddy, you can service your customers better and provide them with experiences that don’t just meet their expectations but exceed them. It will help you improve your contact center processes, meet regulatory standards, fill in training gaps, and develop an overall more effective call center.

    Learn how Scorebuddy can help improve your call center at almost every level and put the customer experience at the heart of your organization. Get started with a customized tour today.

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