Did You Know CRM and Call Center Integration Helps You Create New Customers?

CRM Integration

Ever wondered about the difference between CRM and call center software? If you thought both were different names for the same thing, then you are in for a surprise. CRM, in call center application, is a software solution that helps a customer support agent access customer’s information beforehand to enhance customer service experience. On the other hand, call center software is an enabler that helps in activities like receiving, making and tracking the number of calls.

The moment a call is received, the number is displayed on the call center software. Without wasting anytime, a customer service agent inputs that number into the CRM and pulls up customer’s records from the database. This provides an agent the added advantage of knowing what the customer has been going through. The information extracted by the agent is not only useful in the resolution of the query but also in building a good rapport.

Just imagine an irate customer calling the helpline and welcomed by a barrage of questions at the beginning of the call. Do you think it will lead to a healthy conversation? Definitely not! Instead, with a CRM by his side, an agent is able to proactively guess the mood of the customer and be extra-sensitive towards his call opening. If there is already a long list of call logs visible in the CRM, a customer service representative can start the call in a friendlier way and first sort out the mood of the customer. By calming the customer and letting him know how valuable he is to the organization, chances are he will be able to win his trust and along with that an excellent customer satisfaction rating.

In most businesses and jobs, profit is always tangible. You sell more, you earn more. You work overtime, you receive compensation. However, customer service is not always like that. Companies spend a lot of money on establishing a call center infrastructure or call center outsourcing, not just because they want to resolve queries but to delight the customer. Making a customer happy ensures word of mouth publicity, which helps in creating new customers. Now, you would think how that is dependent on CRM and call center software integration. Think harder, you may just find the answer. If you haven’t, then read on.

What CRM and Call Center Software Integration Does for Your Business?

Firstly, you need to understand that each call center operation/interaction directly impacts some other call center operation/interaction. Just like a happy customer brings in new customers, a happy customer service representative strives harder and performs his job better, which ultimately helps in creation of more customers, thus creating a circle of success. A win-win situation for all, isn’t it? CRM and call center software integration helps in both these cases by enhancing the happiness and satisfaction quotients of both sides.

A manager or CEO of the company does not play any role in the two-way communication between customer and agent. However, he can play a major role in facilitating that communication by deciding to integrate the CRM with call center software. Below are some advantages of integrating the two:

Real-Time Access of Records – The time it takes to fetch the information from one software solution and put it into another may be the difference between a customer gained and customer lost. Integration allows for quickest retrieval of information to maximize your chances of delighting your customers.

Complete Data Access – Imagine a scenario where calls were made by customer again and again but disconnected without any exchange of information due to some technical issue. In this case, the customer is likely to be irate. If somehow, on his 5^th or 6^th attempt he reaches a support agent, he will expect an apology. However, in dearth of an integrated CRM, the executive will not have any knowledge about the disconnections and will treat the customer as if he is calling for the very first time. This may lead to a bad call opening and possibly result in an overall bad experience for the customer. Result: Customer Lost.

An integrated CRM could have been extremely useful in this case, as it could have provided the agent information about disconnected calls and helped him manage the call flow better. Apart from call tracking, CRM integrated with call center software provides access to all types of data related with the call flow and helps a representative serve the customer better.

Extremely Useful in Outsourced Services – Offshore services like outsourced call answering services can benefit the most from integration of the two software solutions. A non-native customer care executive providing answering or technical support services may find it hard to build rapport without a good beginning. The availability of all the customer data at the beginning of a call allows the executive to impress the customer early, which later helps in good rapport creation.

Apart from the above mentioned major advantages; there are many other feature-related benefits of integrating CRM with call center software: