How can companies leverage the digital age to better action complaints?

EM360 TECH

Published on
20/04/2020 01:53 PM

As much as businesses would like to, you simply can't please everyone. Despite any company's best efforts, mistakes happen, failed technologies happen – even natural disasters happen, all of which can result in delayed delivery and unhappy customers. If a customer's experience has left a bad taste in their mouth, they may decide to make a complaint.

However, today, businesses can action complaints in a way that is much more useful to them. In an era of digital transformation, companies are all striving to become more insights-driven. Of course, complaints fall under the insights bracket, meaning that organisations should be looking to leverage new technologies to make the most out of them.

Always be there

When a complaint comes in, a businesses's priority first and foremost should be to rectify the problem. One way to ensure that you can be there round the clock is to take advantage of automated services. Chatbots are a great example of this, as they can deliver a quick back-and-forth with the customer 24/7. If, of course, the complaint is too complex, the chatbot can escalate the issue to a human agent.

For example, if a customer's delivery hasn't arrived and has passed the due date, the (albeit disgruntled) customer could speak to a chatbot or robo-advisor that would be able to quickly confirm the status of the delivery. If, on the other hand, the customer is experiencing a more specific issue, the bot will know to refer them to a manager.

Whether or not the issue is resolved, customers will appreciate a quick response rather than waiting for bank holidays to pass before they can hear back.

Socialise

Social media is a thorn in the side for many businesses. Once a customer has made a public complaint on, say, Twitter, there's no putting that genie back in the bottle. It's out there for their followers to see, and many more.

Organisations today will often have agents answering complaints on social media. However, you can also leverage these platforms to communicate when your business is having a rough patch. For example, in the face of a storm, it may be difficult for businesses to dispatch orders from their warehouse. Of course, customers afar may not be aware of weather conditions local to the warehouse. Using social media, businesses can alert their customers quickly of their circumstances and advise that there may be delay.

Analyses

Organisations can use voice analysis to improve customer complaint management. In particular, voice analysis harnesses artificial intelligence to improve emotional intelligence. Speech analytics software can detect emotions and tones in customers' voices and help advisors determine how best to handle the complaint.

Solutions such as Cogito offer in-call speaking guidance through intuitive alerts. These alerts tell agents whether they need to speak with more empathy or confidence to help them better connect with the customer. If a customer is having a poor experience, the software can alert the supervisor so they can proactively intervene.

Using such software encourages emotional awareness among the agents, which will be a valuable tool going forward. Not only that, but if offers deep insights into how the business handles complaints and how customers respond to them. Thus, organisations can better strategise and learn from complaints going forward and enjoy better customer retention in return. Customer complaints are never going to be a good thing, but you can soften the by making the most out of them!

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