By: Ray Barata, Solutions Architect, SER Solutions, Inc.
Mark Twain once said, “Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.” The same can be said for outbound calling. Rather than retiring into the shadows after do-not-call regulation, outbound has emerged with fresh vitality by taking on a new role - building sales and brand loyalty among existing customers. Academic research has found that it typically costs five times as much to acquire a new customer as it does to grow business from an existing customer. Many products and services are reaching the saturation point. Even once hot markets in North America like Internet service and wireless phones are reaching the point where just about everyone who wants the service already has it. The smart companies are recognizing that they need to invest in customer retention as well as customer acquisition.
According to the well-known consulting firm, Bain & Company, every four years a company can expect to lose half of its customers. And why do they defect? It’s not because they are dissatisfied. In fact, 80 percent of defecting customers were “satisfied” with their previous provider. Often, it’s because they were simply forgotten – taken for granted – until a competitor came along that promised and delivered more than simple satisfaction.
Satisfaction is a very low threshold. Everyone expects to be satisfied. What they don’t expect – and - will long remember – is delight. Customers are delighted when a company goes beyond the expected and provides truly memorable service. Bank of America discovered that customers who are delighted are four times more likely to recommend Bank of America to their friends and family and three times more likely to open new accounts than customers who are simply satisfied.
And how can the contact center contribute to building customer delight? Easy – do the unexpected. Call customers before they call you. Call them with good news, or even bad news. But communicate. We call this “warm calling.” There are three situations when this makes sense: positive reinforcement, alerting, and warning.
Reinforcement - It is common for buyers to question whether or not they made the right decision. Behavioral scientists call this “cognitive dissonance.” Most off us call it “buyer’s remorse.” A phone call from the service provider or manufacturer thanking them for their business and reminding the customer of all the great benefits of their purchase will be reassuring and drive positive referrals.
Alerting – Wouldn’t it be great to hear in advance that a special promotion will soon begin on a product or service that is just right for you? Or have a bank actually notify you in advance that a check has been presented for which you have insufficient funds? Or that the hot concert tickets you have been waiting for are about to go on sale? E-commerce companies like Amazon.com and 1-800-Flowers are very smart at using technology to understand purchasing preferences and notifying customers of new products ideally suited to their individual tastes. E-mail is fine for companies that do a big part of their business over the web. But most companies don’t. Nothing is more effective and more personal than a telephone call.
Warnings - Even if you have bad news it is always good customer relations to get it out quickly and accurately, before the rumor mill twists and distort the facts. Examples are targeted campaigns to dealers advising of a product recall or calls to pharmacies warning of new side effects of popular medications.
Today’s consumers are savvy and have grown up in a world of customization and service. Companies seeking to treat customers as commodities and not as their most critical asset will wither on the vine. Outbound calls to your most valuable asset, whatever the reason, provide the warm connection that allows you to manifest their positive feelings into dollars. Are you ready to take the extra step? Are you ready to connect? Are you ready to make a call to your customers and keep them for life?
Cold calls annoy people with information they don’t want. Warm calls do just the opposite. By targeting calls with precisely framed messages you can build customer satisfaction and revenues without stretching your contact center resources.