Author: XACT

Standard customer service departments can often be fraught with ongoing issues. Some of the common issues include:

• A customer asking a question, and the agent not knowing the answer.
• Customers trying desperately to get a hold of someone but not being able to because the agents are busy or the business is closed for the day.
• Customers being put on hold for long periods of time or being transferred to wrong departments.
• Customers having to repeat themselves because the agent doesn’t recall what was said prior.

All of these issues can lead to frustrated customers who may even take their business elsewhere.

Most of the time these issues don’t arise because the business doesn’t care, but rather because it’s hard to find enough support in-house to fulfill all of the customer requests. Many businesses also simply don’t have access to the technology that can increase customer service efficiency.

This is one of the ways outsourcing customer service to an experienced contact center can help the business (and the customers) — it increases efficiency.

When you choose XACT, you gain access to a pool of agents ready to represent your business with excellence. We implement quality assurance and training to ensure that each customer gets the best care. We have the ability to listen to agents who are on the call, without disturbing them in a one-way listening session to see how agents are performing. You can learn more about this and other methods we have available to us on our website.

Another way that we increase efficiency is by opening up the lines of communication, literally. We offer companies chat and web support, a customer help desk, telephone answering services and more. We can also serve your customers 24/7 making it easier for them to reach out to you.

One of the other things that we’d like to note about these offerings is that chat and web support allows agents to keep a better record of what the customer says. This can reduce the chance that a customer will have to repeat themselves since there will be a chat window that the agent can look back over. So, overall, this feature is a win-win for both parties.

Let’s not forget to mention that having access to a larger group of agents means that more people are available to respond to customers, meaning that it will be easier for customers to get a hold of someone. It can also mean shorter wait times for them.

Overall, you can see how outsourcing customer service solutions allows you to increase efficiency, which is good for the business and the customers. We hope you’ll think carefully about it and reach out to us when you’re ready to learn more.

A motivated team is crucial for productivity, lower turnover rate and happier employees. But exactly how to motivate your team can be difficult to figure out.

Thankfully, there are plenty of ways to do just that. Here are some tips.

First, take a look at your workplace culture. The culture sets the tone. If it’s not a warm, inviting and positive place to work, people will be less motivated. Make sure your culture is setting the right atmosphere for productivity.

Next, monitor workload. Are your employees being challenged or are they overworked? If employees always feel like they can’t catch up because their workload is just too much to bear, it’s time to start moving things around. Find ways to make their workload more manageable, and they’ll feel more motivated and able to get their jobs accomplished.

Look for ways you can make the workplace more enjoyable. Can you give the break room a little remodel by adding some new vending machines or appliances, games or even free snacks? Your employees will appreciate tokens of gratitude. On that note, don’t forget to tell your employees thank you when they do a great job. You can take this up a notch by giving out bonuses in the form of cash, gift cards or more paid days off.

Clearly outline (and celebrate) goals for the team. When the team reaches certain goals or completes the project, give them a reward or even throw a little party for them. Even if you don’t have a huge project, you can still set some goals each week for your team to strive for. Give them a reason to reach these objectives by offering a prize if they meet every goal.

Show empathy. Let your employees know that you genuinely care about them and their feedback. Check-in with them periodically to see how they’re doing. Also, by getting to know them better, you can learn what may motivate them the most. Another way to encourage feedback is putting out a suggestion bin and letting employees know you welcome their ideas. Make sure to carefully consider each one and initiate any that may be helpful. This shows you are listening.

Be an understanding and open leader. Be upfront about goals and the mission of the company. Let employees know that they’re an essential part of what makes the business work.

All of these things can help you to create a better work environment with more productive employees. If you’re looking for ways to help your employees feel less overwhelmed by their workload, please reach out to us to outsource your customer solutions. We’re happy to help!

As a business, you have a variety of choices when it comes to finding an outsourcing partner to handle your customer care needs. But, how do you know which company to choose? You don’t want to just choose the first one you find or the one who throws you the lowest bid. Of course, you want to make sure you choose a partner that fits your budget needs, but you also need to research what the company offers. You need to choose a partner who can represent your brand with excellence and provide the services you require. This is where XACT comes in. Keep reading to find out what sets us apart from the competition.

Customer tailored solutions

One thing that we do at XACT is offer custom tailored solutions. We don’t try to fit companies into a box. We are flexible with our offerings and work to fit what the business requires.

A variety of services

We offer a variety of services. These include chat and web support, a customer help desk, service and support dispatch, outbound survey/response and telephone answering services.

Quality assurance

You can trust that your calls will be handled with proficiency since we offer quality assurance. This is the process of observing an agent’s call and analyzing the quality of the call with respect to your requirements and expectations. Quality monitoring is one of the tools we use to ensure that we’re providing effective and efficient approaches to continually improve the services we provide to our clients. Effective call center quality monitoring allows account managers to easily spot and discover problems within teams by proactively monitoring the interactions between agents and callers.

Training and knowledge development

We also offer training and knowledge development. Knowledge development is the creation of client specific content that both educates and enriches our contact centers agents in the who, where, what, how and why of our clients’ organizations and their business’s processes. Training is the engagement of the content created and delivered in the knowledge development process.

We believe at XACT that the best call center training is hands-on, interactive and paced to the individual. Our agents learn best when they have a chance to participate and practice activities instead of listening to a teacher lecture or just watching a video. Soft skill training is also essential for excellent customer service. Our training programs are wide-reaching and don’t just stop with the initial training.

Resource management

Resource management is also referred to as coordinated services. It is an independent team that watches and monitors contact transactions and provides a level of triage and support to call center agents. It’s affectionally known as “traffic control.” These people help ensure that live contacts are being answered, agents are adhering to their schedules and that they can receive assistance when they need it.

Between our services and the extra steps we take to ensure that brands are represented well, XACT stands out when compared to the competition. Learn more about us by visiting our website today.

Loyalty programs aren’t just good for customers, they’re good for business. Why? Well, they help you retain customers, and customer retention is more affordable than customer acquisition. Plus, “members of customer loyalty programs are 75% more likely to make another purchase after receiving an incentive.” When businesses invest in loyalty programs they invest not just in their customers, but their own success.

Beyond the above-mentioned benefits, businesses can actually increase customer acquisition via word of mouth as well, since loyal customers will be more likely to tell others about the business. You can take this further by using a referral and/or review incentive as part of your loyalty program. For example, you can reward customers when they refer others to your business and those people make a purchase. A significant discount can be a nice reward for referrals. You can also provide a reward when customers give you a review. Here’s an example, say you have a reward system that racks up points for different actions and you reward a set number of points when a customer leaves you a review.

When you start a loyalty system, you’ll want to think carefully about what you’ll name it, what steps need to be taken to get a reward and what the rewards will be. Some examples include offering a discount for every purchase if they become a member (this is a popular loyalty program that grocery stores offer), a cashback rewards system, a punch card or a point system (as mentioned above). One real-life example is what Kohl’s offers. They have a few ways they reward customers. For one, if you sign up for their rewards program, you can earn cashback when you shop, at special times of the year they’ll even offer $10 Kohls cash for every $50 spent. They also offer special percentage discounts periodically, often providing an even better discount to those who have a Kohls’ charge card.

Another thing that companies can do to reward loyal customers is to offer a special appreciation event. This could come in various forms. One example of this is what Ollies’ does. They have an Ollies’ Army Night where anyone who has an Ollies’ card gets a certain discount on all their purchases on that specific date. It rewards the customer for being a member while also encouraging them to spend more with the business.

One more option to consider is partnerships. These can be another thing you can include in your loyalty program. Look for companies that you can partner with to provide this type of offer. Verizon and its Disney+ bundle is a great example of this type of program. If you sign up for a certain phone plan you get the added benefit of the Disney+ bundle being included in the package.

You can see how different companies offer loyalty programs that can help encourage more customers to shop with them. When it comes to creating a great loyalty program, the sky really is the limit, because there are so many options when it comes to building a program that customers will love and that will help your business thrive.

If you need help managing your loyalty program, please reach out to us at (877) 922-8877. We’re happy to help keep your customers satisfied.

Before 2020, there were people working from home, but it wasn’t as common as it is nowadays. The pandemic changed work for a lot of people. While many went to working virtually during 2020, several continued to do so as the years went by and are continuing to do so. Some companies have even adopted hybrid work environments.

It’s no surprise that there are some benefits for businesses to have less people in their buildings. Many businesses have the option to rent a smaller facility if they have less people coming in daily. They require less business supplies, and the utility bills are bound to be reduced. And, these are just a few of the perks. But, we’re not here to talk about the perks for remote work; we’re here to give you tips on how to engage your team when they do work this way.

1. Stay in touch. This is one of the main ways to keep remote team members engaged. The last thing you want is for them to feel like they’re on an island. Keep in touch with your employees. Check-in periodically to see how they’re doing, respond to any outreach on their part and keep them informed about what’s happening in the company. You can also use chatting software to allow teams to chat with each other with ease.

2. Schedule regular meetings. Beyond communicating via email, text and phone, also consider virtual or in-person meetings (if hybrid). Pick a time that you’ll have these, whether they’re a couple times a week, once a week or every other week. For example, maybe you’ll meet every Wednesday at 11 a.m., Tuesday and Thursday at 1 p.m. or every other Tuesday at 10 a.m. Choose a day and time that seems the most convenient for your team.

3. Acknowledge great work. Give your employees thanks for their hard work. You can highlight employees in meetings or companywide emails, or simply send an email directly to the staff member to thank them. A gift card is always a nice treat too!

4. Have fun. Consider ways you can have some fun with your virtual employees. Can you have a social meetup (in person or virtually)? How about an engaging challenge/contest that employees can optionally take part in? These are just a few ways to create a more social and fun workplace.

If you have a virtual team, we hope this helps you keep your team more engaged. Another way to keep employees more engaged is to free them up to focus on their core responsibilities. When you outsource some of your work, you allow your employees more time on those duties, prompting more motivation and productivity. If you’d like to learn more about this, please reach out to us at XACT.