Customer service and contact center
Customer service refers to the support organizations give customers after a purchase, and contact centers are the points where organizations can manage these interactions. Keep tabs on the evolution of customer service and contact center technologies and best practices to maintain service strategies properly.
Top Stories
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News
14 Nov 2024
CallMiner CEO talks generative AI, conversational intelligence
When everyone's contact center now has a CX platform, specialists like CallMiner have to make implementation more straightforward for users, said CEO and founder Jeff Gallino. Continue Reading
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Tip
14 Nov 2024
Pros and cons of a hybrid contact center architecture
A hybrid cloud architecture can provide modern capabilities to legacy contact centers. Explore the benefits and challenges of adopting a hybrid contact center. Continue Reading
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Tip
21 Oct 2022
Top 8 workforce optimization software tools to consider
Workforce optimization platforms combine scheduling features with gamification tools to help contact centers boost productivity. Top tools include Nice CXone, Genesys and Five9. Continue Reading
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News
19 Oct 2022
CRM and BPM vendor Pegasystems adds new AI features
The CRM and business process management vendor, looking to scale up, introduced new features for business users, service representatives and call center customers. Continue Reading
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Definition
19 Oct 2022
direct inward dialing (DID)
Direct inward dialing (DID) is a method organizations use to route incoming calls to specific private branch exchange (PBX) systems without an operator. Continue Reading
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News
19 Oct 2022
Qualtrics tackles contact center experience measurement
Can employee experience improvement, especially in the contact center, improve the customer experience? Qualtrics wants users to measure it and find out. Continue Reading
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News
19 Oct 2022
Oracle pushes forward with CX tech amid layoff cycle
Rumors of the demise of Oracle marketing, CRM and customer service turn out to be unfounded, as the company forges ahead with vertical-specific CX offerings. Continue Reading
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News
12 Oct 2022
Microsoft adds conversational AI to Dynamics 365
At Ignite, Microsoft Dynamics 365 users get AI-based automation capabilities with emphasis on conversational intelligence for sales and customer service. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Oct 2022
10 tips to enhance and promote self-service platforms
Self-service platforms should be visible to customers, emphasized across all touchpoints and meet customers' needs. These tips can help enhance and promote self-service. Continue Reading
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Answer
30 Sep 2022
Why is customer self-service important for contact centers?
The advancement of conversational AI coupled with customers' growing desire for empowerment has made self-service channels critical for contact centers. Continue Reading
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Feature
23 Sep 2022
Industries leading the way in conversational AI
Learn how companies in vertical markets are using conversational AI and even partnering with AI developers for software that's tailored to their unique business needs. Continue Reading
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Tip
16 Sep 2022
6 customer self-service best practices
Customer self-service best practices, such as the use of virtual assistants and omnichannel access, can reduce contact center wait times and enhance overall CX. Continue Reading
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News
15 Sep 2022
Jabra provides sentiment analysis with first AI software
The new SaaS offering voice coaches agents and provides self-coaching assessments and personalized evaluations. The vendor also introduced two new headsets. Continue Reading
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News
14 Sep 2022
Salesforce adds automation features across Customer 360
Salesforce's upcoming Customer 360 features include automation tied together with CDP data for sales, marketing, service and e-commerce. Continue Reading
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News
31 Aug 2022
DOT dashboard, Biden regs address airline customer service
The U.S. Department of Transportation's new dashboard shines light on airline passenger rights, and President Biden proposes new rules to make fees more transparent. Continue Reading
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News
30 Aug 2022
Panera's AI drive-through test addresses labor concerns
The restaurant chain is using Tori, a voice assistant from startup OpenCity. The company says its goal is to redirect employees from the drive-through lines to other tasks. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Aug 2022
9 disadvantages of self-service options
Customer self-service platforms free up live agents for more complicated issues, but if organizations don't keep this software up to date, its disadvantages can frustrate users. Continue Reading
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Feature
16 Aug 2022
Facing labor shortage, pizza franchise turns to AI phone bot
Jet's Pizza says OrderAI Talk frees up employees, keeps consumers from enduring long wait times and is an option for those who prefer using the phone to text ordering. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Jul 2022
AI chatbots don't need to be sentient, they just need to work
Chatbot users, vendors and ex-Google engineer Blake Lemoine discuss what is needed to make current chatbot tech more effective for customer service organizations. Continue Reading
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News
27 Jul 2022
Ex-Google engineer Blake Lemoine discusses sentient AI
Ex-Google engineer Blake Lemoine discusses why LaMDA and other AI systems may be considered sentient and explains exactly how much AI systems know about consumers. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Jul 2022
5 ways to use social media in supply chain management
Amid a supply chain crisis, customers often turn to social media to voice frustration. Organizations need honesty, empathy and informative content to help disgruntled customers. Continue Reading
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Tip
21 Jul 2022
Contact centers evaluate CPaaS vs. CCaaS benefits
The contact center-as-a-service market is ripe for growth as businesses move to the cloud. That's inviting a new crop of vendors -- among them CPaaS providers -- to pitch products. Continue Reading
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News
19 Jul 2022
Microsoft releases cloud contact center platform
Contact center platform technology buyers have another option: Microsoft assembles a CCaaS from Nuance, Power Platform, Teams and -- for those who need it -- Dynamics 365 tech. Continue Reading
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Feature
19 Jul 2022
15 customer service interview questions and answers
Customer service is a big industry, and it takes the right person for the job. Here are some common questions that could be asked at your next interview. Continue Reading
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Tip
15 Jul 2022
The role of customer service in the supply chain
Amid a supply chain crisis, delays can cause customer satisfaction to plummet. Organizations must use transparency, personalization and empathy to enhance customer service efforts. Continue Reading
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News
29 Jun 2022
Salesforce users get more low-code automation, including RPA
Salesforce integrates MuleSoft RPA and Composer with Salesforce Flow, which avails low-code process automation and bot creation to line-of-business users. Continue Reading
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Tip
24 Jun 2022
4 real-world customer journey map examples
Real-world examples of customer journey maps in action can help brands understand how customers feel amid the buying process and benefit customer relationships moving forward. Continue Reading
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Feature
24 Jun 2022
10 metaverse dangers CIOs and IT leaders should address
The metaverse poses many of the same risks and security pitfalls that the internet does. Here's a look at 10 of those issues and how IT leaders should address them. Continue Reading
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News
23 Jun 2022
Microsoft Viva Sales takes on Salesforce-Slack tandem
The Salesforce-Microsoft rivalry reignites as CRM applications vendors focus on employee experience by automating tasks that subtract selling time from a sales rep's day. Continue Reading
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News
23 Jun 2022
Salesforce Financial Services Cloud features focus on EX
Salesforce for Financial Services adds employee experience tools -- a nod to evolving digitization of banking, wealth management and insurance users' operations. Continue Reading
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News
20 Jun 2022
AWS Amazon Connect adds case management tools
The AWS contact center as a service, Amazon Connect, previews tools to manage cases. The features will drive more self-service workflows based on case data. Continue Reading
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News
13 Jun 2022
Alternative data, multimodal AI tech produce new insights
AI fuels the delivery of new sources of investment and corporate information, such as satellite imagery, contact center audio logs, employee sentiment and social media data. Continue Reading
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News
06 Jun 2022
Contact center orchestration features on tap from Genesys
Genesys is set to productize contact center technology from LogMeIn Bold360, Exceed.ai and Pointillist acquisitions to better compete with Microsoft, Zoom and Salesforce. Continue Reading
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Tip
01 Jun 2022
Compare pros and cons of live chat vs. phone support
Phone support offers personalized experiences, but live chat agents can answer simple inquiries more quickly. See how these service channels stack up against each other. Continue Reading
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Feature
26 May 2022
10 myths about outsourcing contact centers
Some misconceptions include greater risk of security breaches and a loss in quality of service. Continue Reading
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News
20 May 2022
Oracle plugs customer data platform into customer service
Oracle Service adds Unity CDP integration to afford contact center agents a historical view of customer interactions and new features. Continue Reading
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News
16 May 2022
Customer experience technology's next phase as teams regroup
In this Q&A, Eastern Bank CX head Rich Dorfman discusses how the pandemic shifted approaches to tech, transformation, and measurement of customer and employee experience. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 May 2022
5 upcoming CCaaS trends to watch
As organizations plan to increase CX spending over the next few years, they should pay attention to CCaaS trends, like agents changing workspaces and integrations with UCaaS. Continue Reading
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News
11 May 2022
Zendesk enhances CRM, low-code customer service chatbots
Zendesk's Answer Bot moves past the knowledge base and gets a low-code interface so that business users can orchestrate automated conversations. Continue Reading
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News
10 May 2022
SAP reboots Service Cloud, adds retail recommerce
SAP venture-backed Feather by SAP integrates marketplaces for retail users to give their customers a place to resell goods they've bought from them. Continue Reading
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Tip
03 May 2022
Best practices for initiating chatbot-to-human handoff
Contact centers perform a balancing act between AI and human agents. Support teams must train bots on chatbot-to-human handoffs and design AI aware of customer frustration. Continue Reading
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News
29 Apr 2022
Contact centers struggle to improve employee experience
AI, better workforce management tools and conversation intelligence are key technologies to help customer service teams get through the current rough patch. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 Apr 2022
How the convergence of UCaaS and CCaaS affects businesses
The UCaaS and CCaaS markets began to converge so organizations could handle internal and external communications on one platform. But integration requires planning and consideration. Continue Reading
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News
27 Apr 2022
Salesforce-Slack sales, marketing, service integrations in beta
Slack integration apps for Salesforce Service Cloud, Sales Cloud and Marketing Cloud move into beta; MuleSoft takes on API management and governance. Continue Reading
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News
27 Apr 2022
Qualtrics hardwires sentiment analysis into contact center tools
Qualtrics beefs up its contact center offering by embedding new sentiment detection tools as well as social listening across review sites, social media and other digital channels. Continue Reading
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Feature
22 Apr 2022
Top 7 metaverse tech strategy do's and don'ts
Technology and business leaders must be strategic when entering the new world of metaverse projects. Here are critical tips that help provide guidance. Continue Reading
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Feature
21 Apr 2022
UCaaS vendors take on cloud contact center market share
As the UC market matures, vendors are looking for new ways to attract customers. Some vendors have set their sights on CCaaS, but getting executive buy-in could be a challenge. Continue Reading
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News
06 Apr 2022
Salesforce Marketing, Service Clouds add, rename features
Salesforce partners with Genesys, Google for telephony; adds AWS Contact Lens natively, among a raft of new features. Some are available now; some are coming in Summer '22 release. Continue Reading
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Definition
30 Mar 2022
help desk
A help desk is the individual, group, organizational function or external service that an IT user calls to get help with a problem. Continue Reading
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Feature
25 Mar 2022
UCaaS vs. CCaaS: What's the difference?
UCaaS and CCaaS feature overlapping communication channels, such as cloud calling and messaging, but CCaaS comes with additional tools that can support a contact center. Continue Reading
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Guide
24 Mar 2022
Contact center of the future is now
AI, machine learning, NLP, advanced analytics, cloud-based tools and workforce management software are transforming the simple call center into multidimensional contact centers. Continue Reading
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News
23 Mar 2022
Oracle amps up field service management mobile app support
As customer service and field service converge, software giants still build functionality for techs visiting homes and businesses to work on devices and machines. Continue Reading
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News
22 Mar 2022
Amazon Connect updates contact center workforce management
AWS's Amazon Connect contact center as a service platform adds machine learning workforce optimization to predict customer contact volume, as well as staffing numbers to cover it. Continue Reading
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News
21 Mar 2022
Google, Twilio release CCaaS tools and integrations
Google Contact Center AI Platform bundles its own tech with partners' for a complete contact center package. Twilio, meanwhile, releases Flex Conversations. Continue Reading
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Tip
18 Mar 2022
How do experience maps vs. customer journey maps differ?
Customer experience maps and customer journey maps serve as the blueprints for buyer interactions. Despite these maps' similarities, they play different roles in organizations. Continue Reading
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Feature
15 Mar 2022
The CIO's guide to understanding the metaverse
Metaverse definitions vary as do predictions on when it will arrive. But smart CIOs should familiarize themselves with the concept and ways it might affect their company. Continue Reading
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News
15 Mar 2022
HubSpot gives customer service platform a makeover
HubSpot's refreshed contact center platform features self-service automation and Twilio telephony. The company hopes a fragmented market and user loyalty will spur its growth. Continue Reading
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Definition
09 Mar 2022
bot
A bot -- short for robot and also called an internet bot -- is a computer program that operates as an agent for a user or other program or to simulate a human activity. Continue Reading
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Definition
03 Mar 2022
Erlang C
Erlang C is a traffic modeling formula, primarily used in call center scheduling to calculate delays and to predict waiting times for callers. Continue Reading
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Opinion
23 Feb 2022
Zoom CCaaS a big bet on the future of customer service
Zoom already integrates with the most popular contact-center-as-a-service platforms. So why has Zoom come out with a CCaaS of its own? Continue Reading
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News
08 Feb 2022
Pegasystems releases contact center agent-assist tools
Pegasystems adds voice recognition and natural language processing agent-assistant 'copilot' tools for contact centers, based on 2021 acquisition of Qurious.io. Continue Reading
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News
13 Jan 2022
Genesys CEO on the future of contact center tech
In this interview with Genesys CEO Tony Bates, we discuss the intersection of empathy and technology, as well as the future of video in the contact center tech stack. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Dec 2021
How bad writing, templates and chatbots kill customer service
Leslie O'Flahavan, a writing coach specializing in contact center communications, discusses how humans, AI and bots can work together to provide good customer service. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Dec 2021
Top 5 challenges in field service management
Many organizations overlook field service management in their customer service strategies, yet this area -- and its challenges -- are critical to CX success. Continue Reading
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Feature
14 Dec 2021
Top customer service certifications and courses
Here are some customer services courses to help frontline employees provide customers with a better experience. Continue Reading
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News
09 Dec 2021
Automating customer service empathy a work in progress
Bots and AI tools can help clean up customer service texts, emails and chats -- and make them more consistent. But finding empathy is still mainly the purview of humans. Continue Reading
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News
03 Dec 2021
Amazon Connect adds quick bot setup, call summarization
AWS' Amazon Connect CCaaS offering comes into sharper focus with new features for contact center managers, agents and data scientists setting up bots. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 Dec 2021
10 customer service best practices to follow
As customer service evolves into a multidimensional force, agent training and experience, performance analysis, virtual assistance, customer sentiment and net promoter scores rule. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 Dec 2021
10 examples of AI in customer service
AI and AI-enhanced tools drive efficiency and cost reduction throughout the customer service team. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Nov 2021
15 customer service skills and how to develop them
Some customer service skills include problem-solving, empathy, product knowledge and patience. Continue Reading
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Feature
24 Nov 2021
The future of customer service: 12 trends to watch
Advanced technologies continue to shape customer service goals to streamline digital workflows, increase positive experiences, lower agent turnover and improve contact center ROI. Continue Reading
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Definition
23 Nov 2021
customer service and support
Customer service is the support that organizations offer to customers before and after purchasing a product or service. Continue Reading
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Feature
19 Nov 2021
9 steps to create a customer service plan
Crafting a customer service plan is a key step to improving customer satisfaction and building loyalty for an organization. Continue Reading
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News
16 Nov 2021
Genesys, Google bolster contact center connections
Genesys and Google broaden multi-year partnership to include running Genesys applications on Google Cloud with Kubernetes; Genesys embeds apps in Chrome browser. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 Nov 2021
The 3 types of chatbots for beginners and how to build them
Various types of chatbots exist, but three types, in particular, are easiest for beginners to learn and build independently. Find out more in this chapter excerpt. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 Nov 2021
Beginner's guide to essential chatbot best practices
In this Q&A, author Andrew Freed lays out key chatbot best practices for beginners, the biggest challenges and how organizations can tell when to adopt chatbot technology. Continue Reading
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News
01 Nov 2021
Zendesk to acquire SurveyMonkey parent Momentive
Zendesk's burgeoning customer experience platform, which grew out of a customer service technology stronghold, lands key tech to gather customer feedback. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Oct 2021
What does a customer service manager do?
Customer service managers are an integral part of contact centers. They are the team leader, trainer and policy maker. Continue Reading
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News
28 Oct 2021
Salesforce Field Service adds scheduling, Lightning web tools
Salesforce turns its attention to field service technology development, bringing mobile app and web experiences more in line with consumer-grade customer service. Continue Reading
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Answer
26 Oct 2021
How do you create a chatbot and connect it to Salesforce?
Salesforce users have two ways to create a chatbot: using an outside platform and connecting finished creations through Salesforce Lightning, or writing it in Salesforce Einstein Bot. Continue Reading
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News
22 Oct 2021
Genesys contact center cloud gets acquisition boost
Olivier Jouve, executive vice president of Genesys Cloud, and Mike Szilagyi, a senior vice president at Genesys, discuss how customer service will recalibrate after last year. Continue Reading
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Definition
21 Oct 2021
field service management (FSM)
Field service management software enables companies to manage dispersed workers and resources. These workers can gain access to schedules, work orders and customer information via mobile devices. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Oct 2021
Benefits of moving to a cloud contact center
Cloud contact centers have various benefits for organizations, including cost savings, more interaction channels and staying with -- if not ahead of -- the competition. Continue Reading
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News
02 Oct 2021
Contact center agents' post-pandemic future
The pandemic changed how contact centers operate and the technologies used to provide customer service. In this Q&A, ICMI's Brad Cleveland predicts what's next. Continue Reading
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News
30 Sep 2021
Amazon Connect adds voice ID, agent assist features
AWS adds tools to search knowledge bases for answers based on terms picked up via in-call voice recognition, as well as voice ID to confirm identities of callers. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Sep 2021
How to train contact center agents remotely
As businesses began to work remotely due to COVID-19, contact center managers had to learn how to train contact center agents remotely. Here are seven tips to get started. Continue Reading
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News
02 Sep 2021
FACE Act aims to improve government CX
The bipartisan bill that would codify the measurement of customer experience for federal agencies cleared the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs. Continue Reading
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News
28 Jul 2021
Nice expands contact center AI offering with ContactEngine buy
Nice acquires ContactEngine conversational AI technology to support customer self-service and live agent conversations across multiple digital channels. Continue Reading
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Answer
17 Jun 2021
How do omnichannel vs. multichannel marketing differ?
While multichannel marketing connects customers and companies through various forms of communication, omnichannel marketing takes it further and removes any silos. Continue Reading
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Tip
02 Jun 2021
On-premises vs. cloud contact center: What's the difference?
On-premises and cloud contact centers differ in terms of costs, staff requirements and management. Organizations must weigh both options to find the right fit. Continue Reading
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Feature
19 May 2021
ServiceNow's vision for AI, customer service management
ServiceNow's John Ball discusses the Now Platform's approach to AI, customer service and field service management, and why he left Salesforce as EVP of product for Einstein. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 May 2021
How to define contact center technology requirements
Whether launching a new contact center or updating an existing one, CX leaders must evaluate their contact center technology requirements before selecting a provider. Continue Reading
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News
04 May 2021
Pegasystems to release Process AI amid hyperautomation surge
Pegasystems will add intelligent automation features to its Pega Platform that apply event stream processing, machine learning and natural language processing to business actions. Continue Reading
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News
04 May 2021
Pegasystems enhances customer service, CX workflows
Pegasystems users get access to long-awaited Process Fabric automation tool, as well as new vertical-specific customer service tools and AI for interactive voice response. Continue Reading
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News
21 Apr 2021
Salesforce Service Cloud to add features, partners
Salesforce will announce partnerships this fall to connect new telephony providers to Service Cloud as contact centers reconfigure their teams for post-COVID-19 work. Continue Reading
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News
11 Mar 2021
ServiceNow Customer Service Management grows in Quebec
ServiceNow telecom and financial services users targeted for growth as the company expands customer service offering in Quebec, its latest platform release. Continue Reading
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Guest Post
10 Mar 2021
How AIOps investment improves customer service, boosts ROI
Before reaping the benefits of AIOPs -- such as improved customer service and easier collection of customer data -- companies need to determine if it is a good fit. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Feb 2021
4 tips for effectively handling emails in a call center
New service channels emerge, but email remains a popular way for customers to contact businesses. Call centers should use the proper email management software and strategies. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 Jan 2021
5 ways to improve a customer self-service strategy
In today's digital world, self-service options are a must to inform, engage and retain customers. Here are some ways businesses can improve those self-service options. Continue Reading
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News
27 Jan 2021
Google DialogFlow CX brings industry-specific chatbots
Google releases DialogFlow CX, a chatbot and voicebot platform geared for multi-channel enterprise customer service. It connects to leading telephony systems. Continue Reading
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News
21 Jan 2021
AWS contact center AI services expand to Salesforce, Avaya
Cloud contact center vendors that compete with Amazon Connect for customers will push AWS AI-powered intelligent search, speech recognition and language processing services. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Nov 2020
10 technologies to transform customer experience in 2021
AI-powered technologies such as sentiment analysis, chatbots and real-time transcription can help customer service organizations improve the customer experience. Continue Reading