 The
Art of Conversation
by Fiona Mathieson
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Fiona is
involved and manages projects covering call
centre, Internet, Digital Radio, iTV and CRM
research projects, advising clients how they
can help improve and build their relationships
with their customers and therefore enhance their
strategic direction.
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NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Service
Companies), who work closely with the Indian government
to build the local IT industry, recently projected
that the call centre industry in India will create
2 million new jobs by the year 2008. However, the
role of these new employees will be an extremely complex
one; not only will they need language skills, listening
skills and diagnostic skills, but also knowledge of
the impact of different cultures on the style of conversation
they employ.
Contact Centres worldwide record information about
the individuals that they speak to, but research is
emerging that shows there are significant differences
in reactions to using personal information in different
parts of the globe.
In order to provide repeat customers with personalised
servicing two things are needed; firstly, a record
of the relevant data, and then secondly a knowledge
of how to use the information without making customers
feel uncomfortable.
There are two types of information that can be recorded
for personalised use:
· Personal Data – name, address, telephone
number
· Conversational Data – account information,
details of previous contact
Both types of information have the capability to
alarm the customer if handled in the wrong way.
The UK population, for example, is generally happy
to provide personal data and expects the contact centre
operator to know relevant account history information.
Recollection of personal data is particularly expected
in all forms of contact: 77% of those surveyed are
comfortable with companies recording this data. This
UK population are quite sophisticated in their understanding
of contact centres and the role of marketing, and
are typically not averse to receiving, for example,
special offers based on their personal information.
However, the personal information gathered has to
be sensitively used: UK callers expect contact centre
operators to answer their queries, not engage in conversation
about callers’ conversational data. This immediately
implies a ‘Big Brother’ scenario to the
caller, whereby unknown amounts of conversational
data seems to be held by unknown individuals. Only
68% of those surveyed were comfortable with this information
being recorded.
Southern Europeans, on the other hand, do not like
giving up their personal data at all, but do expect
a highly personal conversation that draws on their
conversational data. Ideally, Southern Europeans would
like a face-to-face conversation, but in the absence
of this, the conversation has to tease out personal
data without directly asking for it or alluding to
it. Only 42% expected the agent to be able to recall
their address when they make further contact, yet
81% expect to be recognised as existing customers.
Worldwide, the recollection of customer names during
subsequent conversations is a bedrock of expectation:
for example, 91% of Australasia & South Africans
and 90% of Scandinavians expect their name to be recalled.
Yet, as another example of the sensitivity required,
only 56% of these same Scandinavians are comfortable
handing out that information.
And furthermore, these data types are open to further
differentiation: as the personal data recalled becomes
more in-depth (data like address and telephone number)
the expectancy of recollection by the agent can change.
With Australasia & South Africa for instance,
expectancy of recollection fell to 72% for address
and further to 57% when concerning telephone number.
As contact centres become increasingly globalised,
the art of conversation becomes ever more complex.
The biggest problem being faced by recruiters for
contact centres in India is getting the right people
for the job. Research suggests their range of skills
must be even greater than originally thought.
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