Have You Hit the Limit with Your Contact Center?

Loyalty. It’s a word often used in a customer experience context. To stay competitive, companies must strive to create a loyal customer base. Employee loyalty is an essential ingredient for providing a competitive level of service.  And, remaining loyal over time to reliable vendors builds consistency and is regarded as a smart business decision.

Yet, there are times when remaining loyal to an aging contact center solution may prove to have a far-reaching, negative impact on your customer experience, competitive positioning, and business results.

Known for his humor, baseball legend Yogi Berra, once said, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.” This clever one-liner comes to mind when I’m facing a complex decision. However, decision-making is no joke for companies at the crossroads of meeting soaring customer expectations and maintaining an outdated contact center. The dilemma is whether to continue to invest in technology from an existing vendor with an uncertain future or make a forward-thinking decision to choose a future-proof contact center solution from a provider that shows a track record for success, innovation, and financial stability.

Is It Time to Make the Shift?

When evaluating the current and future success of your contact center, there are many factors to consider. If you don’t have a plan to support omnichannel customer engagement, you are already on track to limiting your customer experience.

Does your contact center provide service on multiple communication channels? Do you maintain multiple agent desktop applications and reporting tools for your supervisors? Are your teams using different systems for routing, self-service, outbound communications, workforce optimization, and digital channels?  If so, without a single, integrated platform in place, you’re creating fragmented customer journeys and limiting agent efficiency. At the same time, you’re taking on significant IT and operational challenges. You also lack the omnichannel visibility necessary to make insightful business decisions.

Along with the operational issues caused by an aging contact center solution, there is the growing cost of maintenance, upgrades, and integrations. Once you’ve calculated the true cost of keeping your existing contact center infrastructure, you’ll discover it’s substantially higher than investing in a new cloud-based solution that also offers the measurable benefits of driving increased revenue, customer satisfaction, and better business outcomes. You also can learn from your peers’ experiences and independent studies on the financial benefits of upgrading your contact center solution.

Why Your Vendor’s Financial Strength and Commitment to Innovation Matters

Once you’ve reached the conclusion that your existing contact center is no longer aligned with your current business needs and future vision, the question is where to start your evaluation.  The quick, but not always best, approach is with your existing solution provider. However, because contact center investments are substantial and long-term, it’s important to closely evaluate any vendor for its current and future innovation, technology investment, and financial stability, as well as its roadmap. Vendors showing signs of instability—such as reports of declining revenue or weakening financials—may not be around for the lifespan of your system, nor will they have the financial strength necessary for investing in the innovation that keeps pace with growing customer expectations.

Are You at the Crossroads?

If your contact center is reaching the end of its lifespan, it’s more important than ever to carefully evaluate your existing vendor’s roadmap. A roadmap is more than a piece of paper: it is backed up with proof of leadership and customer successes before making any decision. It’s also wise to obtain a competitive bid from a next-generation contact center solution provider that has a dedication to innovation and a clear plan for you to sustain a long-term competitive advantage.

Use tools like Forrester Wave™ Contact Center Interaction Management for Large Contact Centers to identify specific requirements for your business and rely on the insights you find during your evaluation.

And, contact us today to learn how Genesys can help you reach new heights of customer experience success and profitability.