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VoIP, or voice over internet protocol, is essentially a form of technology that is used to create the delivery of voice communications over the internet. There are some concerns about VoIP, however, that have, as yet, prevented it from becoming more widespread in usage. To find out more visit http://voipblogs.com/

According to research released by Psytechnics, as many as two thirds of companies now make use of VoIP technologies but, despite this heavy uptake of the software, more than half of those companies which have integrated VoIP technology are worried that it may result in a deterioration of call quality. One of the principle reasons that VoIP technology is struggling to be implemented effectively is due to the fact that as many as 90% of IT managers weren’t aware that it is more difficult to manage voice data over the internet than other forms of web traffic such as email. It is often this lack of understanding regarding VoIP that is making it an uphill task to make sure that companies integrate into their business model as successfully as possible. The overall objective of Psytechnics survey was to get a greater understanding about current attitudes within various industries about the usages of IP systems and, in doing so, addressing ways in which VoIP may be utilised in the future.

VoIP Technology – Changing Perceptions

One of the most surprising findings to emerge from Psytechnics’ survey was the fact that almost half of the IT managers surveyed didn’t believe that IP telephony could have an impact on call quality. In addition to this, 11% of the IT managers who responded felt that such issues were easy to address. This clearly elucidates the lack of understanding that surrounds VoIP within the IT industry and makes it apparent that more needs to be done to educate IT managers about how best to integrate VoIP technology into their day to day work environment. To explain these findings, Anthony Finbow of Psytechnics, states, “Businesses are implementing IP telephony systems to replace existing designated private network telephone systems to enable cheaper and more flexible interaction with customers, clients and colleagues. It is crucial that they appreciate both the complexity of IP telephony and the need to understand the caller experience.”

VoIP – Addressing Quality Concerns

It is apparent that there is a general lack of understanding concerning the effect that low standard voice quality can significantly impact upon the quality of company’s customer service endeavours. With this in mind, Anthony Finbow of Psytechnics states, “Echo, noise level and speech distortion, for instance, during a phone conversation can impact negatively on customers and cannot be spotted or diagnosed with existing IP network service assurance tools. This survey demonstrates a low appreciation of the impact poor voice quality is having on businesses, as well as highlighting the increasing burden on network managers.”

Training could be the key to success for people eager to kick start their careers in the contact centre industry. If you are looking to increase your business skills, search for six sigma jobs UK.

The contact centre industry is a thriving one in the UK, with thousands of employees working in the call centre industry, having the required skills and training to do the job can make a huge difference. Training can help potential employees get their foot into the door of the contact centre industry, as well as help existing staff climb their career ladder.

Training for Contact Centre Careers

Training for a career in contact centres clearly pays off. EDF Energy, a Sunderland based customer contact centre benefited from training courses after employing five newly trained customer service advisors. The pre-employment contact centre training course ensured that Tracey Bell,  Mandy Jones, Michael Stewart Karl Nessworthy and Joyce Slater were all given jobs at EDF Energy. The Go Forward contact centre training the five advisors took was a course run by the North East-based Contact Centre Professional (CCP).

Contact Centre Training – Accessible and Available

Pre-training has proved invaluable for kick starting many people’s careers in the contact centre industry. The five employees now at EDF Energy were given the opportunity to train thanks to the fact the contact centre training was funded by a mixture of bodies, such as Jobcentre Plus, the Learning and Skills Council and the Local Government. For 35-year-old Tracey Bell who had been unemployed since her son was born seven years ago, her career has taken off at EDF Energy’s customer service contact centre. She said in a press release for EDF that the training to prepare her for a career in the contact centre industry not only provided her with the necessary skills, but it gave her the necessary confidence to put herself forward for jobs and careers, and ultimately achieve her new role at EDF Energy. “I’m so glad I completed the course,” Tracey said. “I’m really enjoying my new job and I feel like I have settled into the role really well as a result of the course.”

Training Boosts Job Prospects

EDF Energy have also reported how the five new staff who excelled in the contact centre training course are now proving to be valuable employees. EDF believe in investing in training and personal development to help its contact centre employees build on their careers, and in return, boost quality customer service.

Sales force automation is a crucial part of the customer relationship management system -  research profiling next generation uplift analytics shows how it can improve customer retention. To find out more visit http://callcentrediary.blogspot.co.uk/

Sales force automation systems are crucial to most contact centres when it comes to managing customer relationships. By automatically recording all stages of the sale process, it’s possible to optimise customer service, which in turn impacts on customer retention. Sales force automation can eliminate duplicated work, reduce the risk of irritating customers and assist in sales forecasting.

Optimising Customer Retention Programmes

Recent research by Forrester Research examined next generation uplift analytics to see its impact on improving customer retention. The report, Optimising Customer Retention Programmes, states uplift modelling can equip marketeers to improve customer retention programmes. In fact, uplift modelling was shown to achieve 36% better results than more traditional analytics. And not only was it shown to be more effective, it is cheaper – with 40% less marketing costs.

Improving Customer Retention

The current economic downturn and global credit crunch is driving to some extent the rise in sales force automation and uplift modelling. Dr Mark Smith, the executive vice president of Portrait Software says more contact centres and companies are seeking to reduce expenditure, and improve their customer retention levels at the same time. Customer retention is an even higher priority when the economy is struggling. Sales force automation systems are the most cost effective way of managing the customer relationship. Dr Smith said in the report that identifying customers ‘likely to churn’ and directing attention to that group, is the focus of customer retention initiatives. But simply identifying the likelihood of churn ‘isn’t sufficient to power retention programmes’. Suresh Vittal is a principal analyst at Forrester Research who are behind the customer retention research. Mr Vittal said upcoming techniques such as uplift modelling can do more than simply help marketers identify churners: “This helps marketers to narrow programs to only focus on customers who will react positively.”

Sales Force Automation: Uplift Modelling Explained

There are a number of phrases that are used to describe uplift modelling: net modelling, incremental impact modelling, incremental response modelling, differential response analysis and true response modelling. The purpose of uplift modelling is to identify ‘true’ responses to marketing campaigns, from those that would have happened anyway. Uplift modelling can help determine the probability of whether consumers will buy or stay with a service, when they wouldn’t have done so otherwise. This helps marketeers examine which campaigns work, and which act as a trigger for consumers to defect.

Recruitment has been in overdrive for one of the UK’s largest distributors in the domestic appliance market; Connect has expanded their call centre division and embraced SMS technology. If you are looking for a job, PR recruitment agencies London are a good place to start.

Recruitment is busy for Connect – one of the country’s biggest distributors in the domestic appliance market. Connect are building on their call centre and contact centre division and expanding to new premises to incorporate the latest technology with network based call solutions.

Recruitment: Connecting with Connect

The recruitment expansion is indicative of a shift to incorporate the latest technologies into customer service contact centres. The move reflects how culture has changed – we live in an era of instant gratification – whether its by text, email or phone – customers expect service and they expect it here and now. And with mobile and broadband technology, information and services are at our very fingertips. Companies that don’t recognise and move with these demands and expectations run the risk of being left behind. Connect has adapted its recruitment strategy so that its call centre division moves to new, larger premises in Small Heath Business Park. Callstream has handled the large scale site telecoms move and offered state of the art network based call solutions.

Recruitment Expansion Reflects SMS Growth

And the use of SMS and data technology has been a crucial area of growth for the company; Connect’s recruitment strategy has reflected this move. Group Sales Director, Martin Depper said in a press release that the use of SMS was equipping Connect to provide a much faster response to their customers’ questions. He said: “When customers have enquired about product information we have been able to send them a text within a couple of hours with all the key information.”

Martin added that clients’ feedback has backed up the move into SMS, saying customers have reported appreciation for being updated or informed via text. SMS has also meant customers can be informed of engineer appointments, reminded of bookings and time slots and be alerted when an engineer is on their way. Contact centres, telecoms and agent recruitment is an essential component of Connect’s business activities. MD of Callstream, Mark Drury, said he was ‘delighted’ to be part of Connect’s telecoms partner. Mr Drury added: “Our proactive approach to understanding how they operate and where they are going, has meant that we have demonstrated our ability to deliver solutions to them, which have proved to add significant value to the way they operate.”

A study by Eloqua reveals how crucial ROI is in integrated marketing, but many contact centres and companies are not equipped to measure the results. To find out more visit http://www.maxxy.co.uk/blog/

Integrated communication techniques for telemarketing or any marketing campaign is recognised by the majority of marketers as being crucial for effectiveness. In fact, a study by Eloqua revealed that more than two-thirds of those surveyed backed up the notion that integrated communication techniques were used in all of their marketing campaigns; only 5% said that their marketing campaigns were not integrated.

Telemarketing – An Integrated Approach

Eloqua provides integrated demand generation platforms to deliver highly effective marketing programmes. The Eloqua Conversion Suite combines a number of communication systems such as email, website analytics and direct mail to drive the marketing process from contact to close – companies can benefit from market-leading technology that automates best practices for telemarketing companies and contact centres that need to produce a steady flow of leads for their sale force.

Telemarketing Using Integrated Techniques

A third of those surveyed said they used integrated techniques to help them meet key individual targets in telemarketing; 28% of those questioned said they preferred to use their abilities to reach a wider audience. But a quarter believed integrated marketing techniques help generate a better rate of investment. A massive 96% of those questioned agreed with the fact that ROI is a necessary and crucial consideration in developing telemarketing campaigns.

Although the survey revealed the importance of ROI in telemarketing and integrated marketing campaigns – the study also showed many contact centres and companies simply didn’t have the equipment or ability to accurately measure their ROI. Less than a third of those questioned said their measurements of ROI was ‘good’ or ‘excellent’; whereas almost a third (29%) said their measurement capabilities were ‘terrible’ or ‘poor’.

Contact Centres Need to Measure ROI

Telemarketing companies and contact centres could benefit from systems and technologies that could help report and evaluate their marketing campaigns. Over half of those surveyed said they used a simple in-house spreadsheet, with just 25% using a CRM or multi-channel reporting system. The survey shows there is still work to be done for effective telemarketing campaigns: although integrated campaigns are increasingly common, many contact centres are not equipped to measure ROI. And without these effective processes to measure the sales and marketing process, integrated marketing campaigns are at risk of being undervalued.

Speech recognition is crucial for the contact centre industry. And recently, SpeechStorm joined forces with Comet promising a more efficient and personal customer service. To find out more visit  http://telemarketingblog.com/

The electrical giant Comet is renowned for its customer service, and the company has recently announced the news that it will be using Speechstorm for a more personal as well as efficient customer service experience. Speechstorm is the specialist speech self-service solutions provider for contact centres. And Comet, celebrating two-thirds of a century in business, plans to move forward by capitalising on Speechstorm’s knowledge and expertise in creating bespoke, sophisticated speech self-service solutions to transform contact centre customer care.

SpeechStorm: The Speech Recognition Specialists

Effective speech self-service solutions are a crucial element of the contact centre industry. Speech recognition helps manage the millions of customer queries and interactions that pass through contact centres over the phone. Good customer service is rooted in giving the customer what they want. And SpeechStorm offer a combination of speech self-service solutions, including speech recognition, SMS, Video, Voice or Touchtone. For companies looking to meet their customer needs and optimise their customer care, speech recognition and SpeechStorm interactive tools allow their customers to access and find information, helping them meet customer requests. A string of blue chip companies and organisations rely on speech recognition, and specifically, on SpeechStorm, to transform their overall customer service and support their business performance. Comet will be joining SpeechStorm’s existing clients, Northern Ireland Electricity, Dixons, SITA Suez and eircom.

SpeechStorm has around 250 consultants. The company leads the phone self-service sector thanks to its twenty years of experience deploying critical customer interaction solutions.

Speech Recognition – Improving Customer Care

And Comet is currently in the Top 50 Call Centres for Customer Service, which aims to transform the perception of the contact centre industry. Comet’s desire to keep improving and putting their customer service levels first was the main factor it teamed up with a speech solutions partner. A phone self-service provider will enable Comet to deliver a broad-based customer service programme that allows customers to ‘self serve’ using speech recognition and speech self service solutions. Comet’s Customer Information Centre General Manager told the press that speech self-service was a powerful technology that could improve their customer service performance: “…SpeechStorm is at the forefront of the market in its experience and expertise in developing and delivering speech self-service solutions.”

Comet chose the speech recognition and speech self-service specialists after finding SpeechStorm frank, open and supportive of all Comet’s immediate and future requirements, offering a ‘synergy’ crucial for a long-term partnership.

It is, of course, clearly apparent that training has an important role to play in creating a skilled workforce amidst reports that as many as 6.6 million workers in the UK are classified as ‘low-skilled’ workers and who lack the requisite education to forge a successful career or find jobs in Glasgow.

A government initiative has been undertaken to help improve the education levels of the UK’s workforce and various forms of training are being implemented in order to create a more skilled workforce. Obviously, two primary skills that are required to become a successful worker are numeracy and literacy and the government has decided to facilitate training to ensure that each UK citizen has the opportunity to achieve a decent standard of literacy and numeracy and work towards a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) level 2, which is akin to having 5 G.C.S.E’s. One of the main industries which has difficult in attracting the requisite number of skilled workers to fill roles is that of contact centres, who often have a high turnover of staff due to an inability to attract workers with the necessary skills to fill the role. It is hoped that this dedication to creating a more skilled base of workers will help to make this a less of a problem.

Training Provides Workers with the Confidence they need to Succeed

When an individual receives the training and education that they may previously been unable to gain access to, it provides them with the confidence to enter the workplace with a renewed sense of confidence. It is expected that call centres will be one of the industries to reap the most benefit from the government’s endeavours to create a more skilled workforce as many will use their new skills to become contact centre agents. The government’s training initiative, the National Employer Training Programme (NETP), began in August of this year and it is hoped that it will be able to establish the needs of businesses and what can be done to help ensure that the training provided brings about the desired results. One of the main aspects of the programme is the NVQ that is pertinent to working in contact centres as it was devised with the assistance of employers within the contact centre industry which will help ensure that it focuses on issues that are relevant to the position.

Motivating Staff to Perform to the Best of their Abilities

It is reported by many of the companies who have undertaken the NVQ training programme, that staff are often more motivated as a result. Such is the success of the programme, many large companies are beginning to look into the possibility of creating an internal training centre within their workplace as having motivated, happy and competent workers has considerable benefits when it comes to employee retention. In providing an internal training facility, companies can actually save money in the long run by avoiding the need to employ the services of an external trainer. In addition, having a company based training centre will often encourage employees to play a more integral role in the ongoing success of the company.

Looking at the Facets Required to Set-up an Internal Training Facility

There are tangible benefits to be garnered from having an internal training facility, particularly within the call centre environment, but it is important to realise that there are some general prerequisites that should be considered prior to the set up of an internal training facility. For example, a company will generally need at least one assessor for every 6 candidates that they wish to train. In addition to this, it is a requirement to have an administrator who can enrol candidates and manage their registration. Generally speaking, an external trainer can provide the requisite training to create these positions and the training usually takes approximately 6 months to complete successfully.

Contact Centres Look to Set Themselves Apart

High performing and well managed contact centres are always looking for means to differentiate themselves from the less well performing counterparts and setting up an internal training facility is a good means by which to accomplish this aim. With this in mind, Shona Harper, of consultants, Contact Centre Professional, states, “An organisation that is happy to show the work it is doing can use this transparency to differentiate themselves from the poorer contact centres”. The personal development of employees is clearly instrumental in ensuring the continued success of contact centres and Andrew Palmer at e-Skills UK states, “Surveys often point to the fact that the investment made in the development of managers in contact centres could in many cases be improved. e-Skills UK hopes that employers will take advantage of the services offered through the NETP to help them address the development of all their employees. In such a fast-moving environment continually developing its employees is a key way to ensure that the sector in the UK remains competitive.”