2 Approaches to Jumpstarting your Self-Service Program

How To Jumpstart a Web-Based Self-Service Program

Web-based self-service platforms experienced a huge increase in popularity in the first few years of the noughties for a host of reasons.

More and more consumers gained access to the internet and realised that this was perhaps an easier way for them to seek answers to their queries 24 hours a day, while companies appreciated them for their cost saving benefits, thanks to their ability to cut the number of calls to the contact center.

However, research conducted in 2008 and 2009 around the time the recession hit found their growth had stagnated somewhat.

The annual Global Contact Centre Benchmarking report for 2009, for example, found just 11 percent of firms were using their web-based self-service platforms to offer customers incentives.

With economic times still tough and budgets still being squeezed, the boat has not yet sailed for those looking at jumpstarting their web-based self-service platform, with new facilities like software-as-a-service making it even more accessible for firms than it was in the past.

Avoiding the Pitfalls of Web-Based Self Service

The first thing that companies must realise when introducing a web-based self-service platform is that it will not act as a replacement for a well-functioning contact center.

When dealing with a complex query, customers will still want to pick up the phone and hear a human voice, although they are willing to carry out more simple tasks online. A previous study by Forrester Research, for example, found 63 million Americans will be looking to pay their bills online by 2014, compared to 48 million in 2009.

Writing for Customer Management Insight, Stephen Krajewski highlighted that another key pitfall is failing to create a vision for what their self-service platform hopes to achieve.

“It’s not that companies don’t have strategies for implementing self-service systems; it’s that they’re not clear what the systems are going to achieve for their customers and how they can measure those achievements on a day-to-day basis,” he explained.

Krajewski also said providing consistent support once the application has been launched is essential for its success. Only by promoting the platform will it be used by greater numbers of customers and fulfil its potential.

Web-based platforms must also offer the same level of customer service as it presented at the contact centre and in face-to-face interactions. As multi-channel becomes more popular, those companies which provide consistent levels of support will achieve the most in terms of customer service.

Implementing a Self-Service Platform

Panasonic is among those which have turned to online self-service platforms in an effort to cut the number of calls it has going into its contact center.

The company’s UK-based communications center was said to receive 40,000 calls and emails a month, however many of these related to frequently asked questions about product launches and promotions.

In an effort to provide customers answers to these queries without the hassle of calling, and make the contact centre more efficient, it introduced a “meaning based” search engine from Eptica on its website.

The software is designed to offer answers to both routine and complex queries, for example through the use of video answers to address technical challenges which would have previously involved several calls to the contact centre. It was initially piloted for six product sections before being rolled out across the company.

Patricia Hamed, manager of customer communications centre, Panasonic UK, explained the software has enabled the firm to collate existing information in a single place, which is making answering queries easier for both customers and agents.

“Consistency and breadth of responses is quite a challenge when you are offering support on a wide range of high tech products,” she added.

The software also provides the opportunity to monitor trends in queries, allowing the company to add answers to FAQs before a spike in calls is seen.

“Since deploying Eptica, first contact resolution for complex enquiries is increasing. Rather than telephoning or emailing an enquiry, customers are encouraged to get the support and information they need within a matter of minutes from our website,” Hamed concluded.