A webinar that just took place titled “Achieving More with All-In-One Cloud-Based Contact Centers” was presented by TMC, and is still available free online. Register now to access the presentation.
As you’re no doubt aware, hosted contact center platforms have advanced considerably over the last several years. They represent a higher-profit option for some customers who want to go to market quickly with a low up-front cost.
Presenting at this webinar was Corey McFadden, managing partner of Infradapt, a managed services and platform provider. He has over fifteen years of industry experience, and a background including experience in field-consulting, project management, IP telephony, and software development.
“Not every network is created equal,” McFadden said, “and not every service provider has the skills” you might need, noting that considerations for choosing the best provider include such considerations as where the facility is, physical security, staffing and technical standards. “When you’re looking at these folks, it’s important to consider” these things.
McFadden highlighted some of the advantages of cloud contact centers, such as limited in-house IT needs, allowing your company more of a focus on its core competencies, quicker deployments for seasonal needs and of course, the significantly lower initial investment.
Read more here.
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“The most effective sales techniques go beyond the selling process itself.” That’s according to an interesting post on the Soffront blog, noting that it’s “the small, but critical details that take the sales experience from good to great in the customer’s eyes.”
Soffront runs down nine areas you can use to shine in customers’ eyes:
Prospecting skills. Exceptional salespeople genuinely love selling and understand that prospecting is a key component of the selling process.
Product knowledge. Think this is just common sense? You’d be shocked how much many otherwise good salespeople rely on pre-sales engineers or scripts or fact sheets. Think outside the box, and take it upon yourself to learn the product.
Honesty and integrity. Consumers value transparency, so honesty and integrity rank highly in the list of desired sales traits. Customers can usually tell when a salesperson is being dishonest or shady.
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You want to know what Salesforce.com’s doing about social media as it relates to CRM, and you’ve heard they have this thing called Chatter, what’s up with that? Industry observer Maria Verlengia has a long portrait of CRM as social media company, the whole long study is well worth a read when you have the time.
In brief, she says that the thinking at Salesforce.com is summed up well by Fergus Griffin, vice president of product marketing at Salesforce.com, who notes that, in Verlengia’s words, “Social CRM can improve customer service by turning problems and issues into success stories, and allow customer service to become more integrated with the sales and marketing process.”
Scott Holden, senior director of product marketing at Salesforce.com, told her that with social media, "It's more transparent. We're creating a transparent world." The new customer experience is "all public."
So companies have to treat customers differently, and among other shifts, the use of mobile devices is also having a big impact -- “they can share bad experiences more quickly,” Griffin warned.
Read more here.
