How TACTAL by i-Comm Connect Helps Elevate the Customer Experience
Numerous case studies and industry surveys highlight the importance of the customer experience in today’s increasingly connected digital world. The customer experience, which is defined as the customer’s perception of a brand as a result of his or her interaction with the company, has become a critical factor in increasing customer satisfaction, loyalty, and advocacy. There are plenty of ways businesses can ensure a positive customer experience, but perhaps one of the simplest is to make it easy for prospects and customers to contact you.
In this article, Meredith Schmidt-Fellner, the Director of Marketing at i-Comm Connect, speaks with VoipReview.org about what businesses should keep in mind in order to create a great customer experience and shares how i-Comm Connect's flagship product, TACTAL, a cloud-based, real-time communications platform, can help businesses provide a superior customer experience.
Turning the Customer Experience From Good to Great
“Providing exceptional customer service is vital to a business’s success,” said Schmidt-Fellner. But despite its growing importance, most brands still fail miserably at it. In fact, The Northridge Group’s State of Customer Service Experience 2016 report, reveals that there is a significant gap between customers’ expectations of service and the ability of companies to fulfill them, specifically when it comes to communication.
According to the report, 44% of surveyed participants claim they do not feel that companies make it easy to contact them. Meanwhile, 55% say they need to use two or more communications channels to contact a company before an issue is resolved. The use of social media as a customer service channel has also increased, with 77% saying they use social channels to get in touch with companies. Unfortunately, for consumers that contact brands via social media, 21% say they never receive a response. Such figures are, indeed, disheartening.
So what can businesses do to ensure they do not disappoint customers, but instead work to and delight and satisfy them? Schmidt-Fellner says there are three important things to consider: listen, become accessible, and know your customer.
- Listen - According to Schmidt-Fellner, “Great customer service is about listening to and understanding the needs of different customers, both potential and current, and engaging positively to make authentic human connections. Listening to what the customer has to say opens the door to enhance all aspects of the business and makes the client feel valued, driving more sales and brand loyalty to benefit the business for years to come.”
- Become accessible - To be able to listen properly, Schmidt-Fellner says businesses need to become accessible and have the right outlets for customers to communicate with them. “Businesses must invest in the latest communications technologies to provide reliable accessibility to representatives at all times to satisfy customer needs,” recommended Schmidt-Fellner.
- Know your customer - It’s also important to know one’s customer (including their buying patterns and demographic) in order to deliver a positive experience. Schmidt-Fellner advises to utilize technologies that can capture and display customer data as these allow companies to capitalize on what their customers want and enhance sales by targeting specific buyers.
Making a Great Customer Service Experience Just One Click Away
i-Comm Connect, a leading WebRTC Developer and Software as a Service Provider, knows that clear and instant communication is crucial to providing an exceptional service to customers. Thus, they offer TACTAL, a cloud-based, real-time communications platform, that helps companies provide an accessible, efficient, and reliable communication channel for their clients.
TACTAL is a patented solution that lets businesses easily embed a secure call button directly on their website or mobile app. When a customer clicks on the button, they can immediately initiate contact with a representative without ever leaving a website or mobile app.
Below are the key features and highlights of TACTAL that make it an ideal solution for businesses looking to communicate better with customers and consequently boost their bottom line:
- Superior customer experience - TACTAL makes it easy for customers to contact companies at the touch of a button. No plugins or downloads required. “In many messaging or free calling apps such as WhatsApp, Skype, Facebook Messenger, Viber etc. there is a battle for the most comprehensive directory of users, yet TACTAL circumvents this need because there are no downloads, logins, or plugins required to initiate contact with an individual," Schmidt-Fellner shared.
- Encrypted secure solution - TACTAL protects the sensitive information of both the company and its customers. “As a cutting-edge WebRTC solution, TACTAL is poised to dominate the market as the only secure, encrypted instant calling solution for browser-based communications,” said Schmidt-Fellner.
- Easy installation - For businesses, installing TACTAL is simple. Subscribing businesses are given access to a self-admin panel to generate and manage call buttons as well as view data captured during each call. Secure, web-based call buttons can be applied to any website or digital touchpoint in minutes by adding three lines of HTML code or embedded in a mobile app (Android or iOS) by leveraging i-Comm Connect’s simple SDK.
- Decreased telco costs - “By placing a secure, web-based toll-free call, TACTAL dramatically reduces telco costs associated with long distance and international toll-free calling while protecting sensitive customer information,” said Schmidt-Fellner.
- Visual Directory - With this feature, customers can easily navigate to the correct department, store, or individual within an organization.
- Data Tracking and Analytics - To help businesses get to know more about their customers, TACTAL offers the ability to track each call in real time and capture important metrics. These include IP address, call initiation source, website session ID, cart information, time to answer, call duration, plus much more measurable data.
- Contact Center/CRM integration - TACTAL can also be synced with leading contact center or CRM tools, allowing contact center representatives to leverage customer profiles and order history for faster problem resolution.
- Call queue management - This feature enables businesses to field more calls than lines or agents available and holds them in a queue until an agent is ready to take the call.
Winning Business with TACTAL
“There is nothing more frustrating than attempting to contact a business, having to scroll through a list of contact numbers, being connected to the wrong person, and waiting on hold,” said Schmidt-Fellner. TACTAL by i-Comm Connect takes away such frustrations by providing the most intuitive way for customers to contact the right representative to address their specific needs. While it may look simple at first glance, as it works at a push of a button, TACTAL is loaded with features that not only lets business become more accessible to clients but also allows them to learn more about their customers.
Learn more about i-Comm Connect and their secure, reliable real-time communications platform by visiting i-Comm Connect’s website.
About i-Comm Connect
Founded in 2009 in Portland, ME, i-Comm Connect transforms the customer service industry through their secure, efficient, and cost-effective collaboration and communication solutions. TACTAL, their flagship product, elevates the customer experience by placing a secure, instant call button directly on a company’s website or mobile app for easy accessibility to a live representative. TACTAL leverages another Portland, Maine-based company, Fore Street Telco, to enable VoIP telecommunications from anywhere in the world, routed to any phone number of the business’ choosing - SIP or PSTN.