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1. What is a customer contact
centre?
A customer contact centre, known as a call centre in the last decade, is a
physical location using telephony and computer technology to facilitate
communication between the provider of products and/or services with the
potential, current or former consumer, of such products or services.
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2. Have I
ever used a customer contact centre? What are some examples?
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Pizza Hut or KFC for delivery
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Ticket Master or Select-a-Seat for tickets
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The Sega help line to get to the next level
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MTS to get a phone number
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MPI to make a claim after a fender bender
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Greyhound or Air Canada to get a schedule
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911 to report an accident
In fact, more than 9 in 10 Canadians have
called a toll-free number for service or transaction purposes in the past
year.
WHY?
Consumers no longer fear technology; they embrace
its efficiencies & capabilities.
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3. What is the Industry all
about?
Communication; companies talking with their customers-- impacted by
technological advances in telephony & information technology
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4. What can you tell me about
the Industry?
It is one of the fastest growing industries in
North America.
There are about 14,000 customer contact centres in
Canada
with six or more agents, employing more than 500,000 Canadians. That is
3.4% of the entire Canadian population!
Canadian contact centres today anticipate a 20% growth rate in both numbers
of centres and agent populations over the next 3 years.
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5. Why is the Industry growing?
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Consumers are demanding flexible,
expedient, quality service.
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Technological improvements have spurred
customer contact centre growth.
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Businesses are making customer contact
centres a strategic element of customer contact strategy.
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Customer contact centres are a
cost-effective way for businesses to maintain contact.
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There is an evolution towards a global
economy.
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There are competitive pressures to lower
costs, increase revenues (sales) and improve cash flow.
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The need to manage customer relations.
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6. What are the benefits of
customer contact centres to Alberta?
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Develop career opportunities in one of the
fastest growing Industry sectors.
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Provide employment for unemployed,
underemployed, youth, physically disabled, people with 2nd language
proficiency, people needing flexible hours, remote workers and students
looking for part time work.
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Provide excellent training in customer
service, sales and technology.
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Act as catalysts for economic development
for all regions of the country.
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Promote an environmentally friendly
Industry.
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7. What is salary range?
Salaries range from $17,000 to $95,000 per year.
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8. What are some of the customer
contact centre applications?
There are two basic types of calls:
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INBOUND - where the customer dials a local
or 1-800 number to call in to a contact centre.
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help desk
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broker / financial
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customer service
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orders / reservations
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information lines
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tele-health
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counseling
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OUTBOUND - where the customer contact
centre calls the customer.
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telephone sales
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consumer research
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business to business
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fund raising
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customer follow-up
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collections
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renewals
There are also two types of customer contact
centres:
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In-house customer contact centres where the
company sets up its own customer contact centre to manage its customer
relations, and
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Multi-service bureaus or outsourcing
companies who contract to do the customer relations for other companies.
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9. There seem
to be a lot of different types of businesses that have customer contact
centres. Who are the leaders?
Customer contact centres exist across industries. Wherever there are
companies with customers, whether for products or services, there is the
potential for a customer contact centre to serve customers.
Some of the leading industries using
customer contact centres are:
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Information Technology
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Transportation
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Finance
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Catalogue Shopping
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Utilities - Gas, Hydro, Telephone
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Tourism
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Research
Others are joining in:
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Direct Medical Assistance
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Financial Planning
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InsuranceClaim and Applications
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Agricultural Advice Centres
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10. How did customer contact centres begin?
In
the early 1970's with the invention of 1-800 numbers, single line sets and
multi-line sets were used. Then the telephone technology evolved to include
PBX and ACD systems until the 1990's when the technology exploded to
Routing Systems, Internet, Interactive Voice Response Systems, and Network
ACD. Now we are moving toward increased internet routing, video customer
contact centres, and sophisticated database interconnection.
The Future is Now!
Multi-media Access, Global Customer contact centres,
Integrated and Electronic Commerce Functions, Skills-based Agent Selection,
Linked/Virtual customer contact centres.
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11. Am I suited for a customer
contact centre job?
Yes, if you have:
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Telephone personality
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Respect for people & their differences
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Problem solving capability
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A Business orientation
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A Customer orientation
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Professional Life Skills
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12. What
kind of job opportunities are available in a customer contact centre?
The Majority of the jobs are:
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Customer Service Representative
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Technical Help Desk Support Person
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Market Research /Interviewer
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Sales Person
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Supervisor
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Customer Contact Centre Manager
Additional Jobs include:
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Human Resource Manager
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Systems Support Specialist
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Training Specialist
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Administration Assistant
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Project Manager
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Script Writer
13. What are
the benefits of working in a customer contact centre?
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Develop customer service knowledge & skills
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Quality customer service communication
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Customer handling - problem solving
techniques
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Acquire valuable computer experience
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Create opportunity for job advancement
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Take advantage of shift work - flexibility
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Obtain training
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14. How do I prepare myself for
work in the customer contact centre Industry?
Most Customer contact centres require Grade XII as an entrance requirement.
If you think you have the personality and high school training to be suited
to the work of an agent, you may apply directly to advertisements in the
newspaper. Most companies provide in-house training for new recruits.
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