Just when business thought they had hit upon the best procedures for serving their customers, the rules have changed again.
At least that’s what the buzz is about at the CCA Convention being held in Glasgow, Scotland at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall November 8 and 9, a press announcement revealed.
CCA (Customer Contact Association) is a global independent organization focused on customer contact that conducts industry research and counts more than 900 organizations as subscribers to its membership services. It says it comprises a network of more than 5,000 senior practitioners who employ from 35 to 45 percent of the contact center population in the United Kingdom.
The theme of this year’s convention is “Customer Connected” and fittingly, it is presenting the results of research on consumers’ use of social media to connect with companies that was sponsored by Verint and compiled by CCA in association with Ipsos MORI.
Anne Marie Forsyth, CCA chief executive, was quoted in a press release as saying: “UK organizations spend millions of pounds each year analyzing customer comment but CCA research shows that many are failing to keep pace with their most ‘connected’ customers who use social media as a powerful tool to make their views known. The social media revolution is rewriting customer service rules and CCA is helping business to formulate a robust strategic response.”
The data from the research discussed at the convention show that more than 70 percent of the “online population” are regular users of Twitter and Facebook and 46 percent of consumers think “social media can hold brands and companies to account like never before.”
Contrarily, those who were polled indicated that they feel companies aren’t listening to them. Forsyth commented, “We know organizations are genuinely committed to listening to customers yet our latest research shows that 44 percent of consumers believe companies do not care what they think.”
Forsyth went on to say, “It is clear that many businesses are struggling to listen to the customer voice across all channels but it is critical that they address this disconnect, especially in the current economic climate. Organizations must adopt effective multi-channel customer contact methodologies or risk alienating or losing valuable customers.”
The disconnect is obvious in businesses’ monitoring of all their customer communications channels. The CCA survey data show that 75 percent of consumers contact companies for service-related issues via email, yet in the CCA survey, 65 percent of companies say they monitor under a quarter of the emails they receive as a means to capture customer insight.
Nevertheless, the CCA Convention has drawn 500 delegates, which could be interpreted as meaning companies are indeed interested in learning how to better connect with their customers and adjust their focus across all customer communication channels.
David Parcell, managing director EMEA and corporate officer for Verint, a convention sponsor, appeared to recognize this. He was quoted in the press release as saying, “Many companies are starting to make real efforts to understand the true meaning behind what their customers tell them and use this intelligence to offer much better service to customers.”
Forsyth concluded, “CCA is working with member organizations to recognize their efforts and equip them with the skills required to meet new challenges in a multi-channel environment.”