The Top 5 Strategic Contact Center Trends That Will Impact Customer Service in 2020

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No matter what market your company operates in, there’s an incredibly high chance that it’s saturated with competition. In fact, it’s likely that your customer service is the key aspect of how your organization differentiates itself from competitors.

So, with 2020 here and a new decade full of challenges, goals and achievements, how do you plan to improve your customer service strategy and stand out from the other companies operating in your sector? Many companies, of all sizes, are struggling to create plans that will make this happen.

That’s why Advantage Communications is excited to share our latest resource with you, an in-depth look at the top five strategic trends that outsourced call centers are set to adopt over the coming year.

In this blog, we take a look at some of the technologies and customer service trends that your organization simply must be implementing in 2020 and the coming years:

1 – The customer journey will become experiential, not transactional
An increasing number of companies are offering largely similar products or services. That means it’s no longer the product you sell that makes your company stand out. Instead, it’s the journey that customers have with your company.

Customers value your company through the experience they have with you, from the first point of contact to every moment of communications after the sale. That’s why outsourced call centers are increasingly focusing on creating an experiential journey over a transactional one.

2 – AI will increasingly be used to enhance customer service agents
Do you hear artificial intelligence (AI) and panic? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Conversations around AI in the customer service industry often come with the worry that technology will soon replace customer service agents. This simply isn’t true.

In fact, contact center AI is being used as an augmentation to humans – not a replacement. Artificial intelligence technologies can be used to enhance customer service agents in their job, whether it’s by using chatbots to answer simple queries or live call guidance tools to give real-time feedback during calls.

3 – The gig economy will take hold
Industries all over the world are making use of the ever-growing contingent workforce, and in 2020 the call center sector will be no different. In fact, some innovative contact centers programs, such as Advantage Communication’s The Home Advantage, are already making use of this flexible workforce.

By using remote, stay-at-home workers the contact centers that use this workforce can offer your company benefits such as the ability to scale rapidly, increased access to skilled representatives, 24/7 customer care and much more.

4 – The use of customer service cloud-based technologies is essential
Your business is likely using a range of cloud-based computer systems. If you are, then you’ll know just how important this software is to the efficient and productive operation of your company. That’s why a number of contact centers are now moving away from physical hardware and adopting cloud-based systems instead.

Cloud computing offers call centers a range of benefits that are passed back on to their clients, such as the ability to ensure technologies are constantly updated, rapid scalability, limited downtime, improved security measures and many other advantages.

5 – Employee happiness is key to world-class customer service
Ever heard of the profit-service-chain model? It’s actually a fairly old theory and business model proposed by a group of researchers in the Harvard Business Review in 1994. Despite its age, it’s set to become more popular than ever in 2020 with company culture and a shortage in skilled workers playing an increasingly important role in talent acquisition.

The best contact centers in the world are set to use the profit-service-chain-model in 2020 to improve employee happiness, which, in turn, will ensure they are empowered to offer your customers with a world-class customer experience.

If your company doesn’t have the resources to invest in these new trends in-house, then consider outsourcing your customer service program to an innovative and technology-focused nearshore call center.

Randy Clapp
As a multi-faceted professional, I blend sales and operations experience with a strong background in the services industry to drive significant growth. My record of success includes industry leaders HP, EDS and Avis Rental Car, spanning industries including technology, healthcare, financial services and travel. -Driving multi-million dollar revenue increases by providing insight and quality customer service -Playing key role in growing companies organically and through strategic acquisitions -Winning EDS inner circle award for top 100 performers out of company’s 130,000 employees

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