Inbound client solutions providers should deliver more than the bare minimums set out in service-level agreements. Customer-centered inbound support is more than just numbers, and that’s one of the disruptive beliefs we hold.
Providers who focus only on deliverables can actually hurt customer satisfaction. Metrics like time to answer, abandonment rate, handle time, transfer rate, and waiting calls are useful tools, but shouldn’t be the only focus.
In fact, inbound service providers with a focus on customer experience and satisfaction will deliver better results more consistently than one that focuses on deliverables only. The exceptional customer service that we offer here at Millennial Services goes further than mere repetition of actions and following scripts.
Such lofty goals require a unique culture of customer-focused strategy. Here are some of the factors we consider to help us deliver satisfaction with excellence.
What Do Your Clients/Customers Need?
When your clients reach out to you through your inbound support center, they already have a few expectations in mind. For example, some might be okay with interacting with your interactive voice response (IVR) system for quick resolution, while others will want to speak to a live agent.
The key is to put yourself in the customer’s shoes. The entire service experience should be satisfactory, not just a single interaction. Each agent needs to be above par in terms of empathy, professionalism, and a helpful attitude.
One thing you can do to achieve this is to map out the customer journey. With good research and analysis of your customer’s demographics and behavioral patterns, we can come up with a solutions-based strategy to meet their needs.
For example, you might discover that your customers are trying to reach you through alternative channels, in which case omnichannel will be necessary.
You can also implement a system of organic feedback collection with each interaction. Once you have a strategy in place, you will be able to anticipate customer needs more accurately to achieve customer success.
Where Does Your Business Need to Focus?
Customer satisfaction is an intensive process that can take your attention away from the core goals of business development and growth. If you are a fast-growing company, time and freedom to focus on growing your business are precious.
Outsourcing customer service allows you to focus on your products and services. It allows you to become more creative, innovative, and adaptable as you continue to improve your products.
When your in-house team constantly has to worry about customer support and improving customer experience, you are not putting their creativity and energy to the best use.
It is tempting to want to handle everything in-house, including your customers. There is a common myth that outsourced customer service isn’t as good as internal teams, and that BPOs don’t understand your business and your customers as well as you do.
That’s not always true. At Millennial Services, we work very hard to fully understand your clients, business processes, and product, becoming one with your business. Thanks to our expertise in customer care, we can provide even better customer support than you could with limited resources.
What Inbound Client Solutions Can You Outsource?
Inbound customer care isn’t just about handling customer complaints. When you empower customer agents with the right skills and technology, you can use inbound client solutions for many other functions within your organization.
1. Customer Care
Customer care is the white-glove version of customer service. It focuses on providing more value and helps customers make better use of your products or services.
This distinction is important because value-added customer care is about proactive interaction with customers. Customer service specialists employ hard and soft skills with customer-centric goals.
While inbound customer support does the bare minimum, customer care or customer service goes the extra mile to create an emotional connection and ensure higher customer satisfaction. With customer education, strategic advice, and helpful service, we deliver customer care that aligns with your business goals.
2. Prescreening
Customer or employee pre-screening is an incredibly time-consuming process, which makes it the perfect candidate for outsourcing.
For example, if you need to prescreen a market demographic for your products or services, you will need a massive outreach marketing campaign with meticulous data and feedback collection. Outsourcing customer pre screening saves you time and keeps your in-house team focused on your core business processes.
When prescreening for vetting and qualification, outsourcing also helps you weed out unqualified candidates and save significant resources. One of our specialty areas is prescreening and prequalification for insurance and lending companies.
We also represent lawyers from legal and financial institutions and help them know whether disability candidates meet the minimum Social Security Administration Blue Book standards. You set the criteria, and we handle the rest.
3. Retention
Skilled and empathetic inbound customer care keeps customers from leaving. Fast resolution, friendly service, and willingness to help go a long way towards building customer loyalty, even when a technical solution isn’t immediately available.
Statistics show that the average customer retention rate is below 20%, yet a 5% increase in retention can boost profits by more than 25%. Outsourcing customer retention is one way to grow your business faster and more affordably.
4. Business Development
You already know that proactive customer care opens up opportunities for cross-selling and up-selling. Did you know that 65% of a company’s revenue comes from repeat customers?
In fact, it is easier and 6-7 times more affordable to sell to existing customers. Exceptional customer service will empower your customers, multiply referrals, increase customer lifetime revenue, reinforce loyalty, and so much more.
5. Reservations
Are you a restaurant, hotel, or any other type of leisure and holiday business? You know that reservations require a personal touch and outstanding niche knowledge. In spite of that, you can outsource reservations to the right inbound client solutions provider.
To start with, that provider will need 24/7 availability with highly trained, professional customer care specialists. They will also need in-depth knowledge of your business, customers, and industry.
The benefits of outsourcing reservations are immediate: increased occupancy, reduced wait times, reduced operating costs, and increased customer loyalty. Outsourcing also helps you handle spikes easily, especially during peak seasons.
6. Appointment Setting
Inbound client solutions can also include appointment setting. Although it is technically an outbound marketing process, appointment setting requires many of the same soft and hard skills as inbound customer care.
More importantly, outsourcing appointment setting leaves your sales team free to actually show up and make the sale. It lets you implement more effective, personal outreach strategies while the BPO company deals with the actual calling.
What Channels Do Clients Prefer?
Inbound customer service extends beyond traditional phone calls. Depending on your business, your clients will likely want to reach your other channels.
- SMS
- Social media
- Chat
The rise of these new customer support platforms has made omnichannel customer support a necessity for any business. You need skilled agents who can handle customer care across multiple communication platforms while providing a seamless, uniform experience.
Work With a US-Based Inbound Client Solutions Provider
As a business operating here in the US, outsourcing your inbound customer care services to a US-based BPO gives you unparalleled advantages. You get a team that understands your business, is available when you are, and understands your customers as you do.
Millennial Services is a team of highly dedicated, customer-centric, and omnichannel customer care agents. We care about customer experiences, and that’s why our clients love us.
If that sounds like the kind of inbound client solutions that you’re looking for, let’s get started with forging your success story.