Optimizing Customer Experience: The Role of Inbound Call Center Software in Banking

No organization can escape from customer calls. Some get a huge number of incoming calls while others receive less number of incoming calls. But when it comes to banks and financial institutions, the nature of customer calls is quite different.

Customers not only call to seek information but also to conduct transactions and request checkbooks. Call centers play a massive role in conducting transactions and resolving customer problems at banks and financial institutions.

That’s why banks and financial institutions need to invest in the right inbound call center software specifically designed for them. This blog post discusses what role the right inbound call center software plays for banks and financial institutions. Read on to know more.

Role of Inbound Call Center Software In The Banking Sector

Starting from providing self-service options to directing calls to suitable customer service representatives, inbound call center software plays a huge role in handling and streamlining the customer service operations of banks and financial institutions. Here are some functions:

1. Routing all incoming calls to the right agents

When customers call banks and financial institutions, they not only want their problems and queries to be resolved in the first call itself but also expect prompt and reliable service. As per a famous study, four out of every five customers expect a one-call resolution. That’s where connecting customers with the right agents is extremely critical.

Equipped with sophisticated features such as automatic call distribution and skill-based routing, high-quality inbound call center software can easily connect customers to agents who have the right skills, experience, and expertise to resolve the former’s problems and queries. Not just that, it can shorten the call time as customers get quick solutions to their problems and queries.

2. Providing self-service options to customers

Would you be surprised to know that a majority of customers would prefer solving minor problems by themselves to dialing a customer service phone number and waiting for an agent to answer? Just imagine yourself as a customer who is looking for a solution to a common problem or query. You have two options—the first is to get the solution with just a click of a button and the second is to take the help of a live agent. What would you do in this case? What would you choose?

The latter, of course. That’s precisely what a majority of customers would do. As per a study conducted by Dimension Data, seven out of every ten customers would choose self-service options over contacting customer care numbers for simple and minor issues, on any given day. That’s why banks and financial institutions must make sure that they provide self-service options to their customers. And that’s where sophisticated inbound call center software can help banks and financial institutions.

3. Keeping track of every customer interaction

In the past, when customers would call customer care numbers, they would be treated as if it was the first time they were calling the number. That’s because there was no way call centers could know if a customer was calling their numbers for the first time or the second (or third) time. But the invention of CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software changed that. Call centers that use CRM could know whether or not the caller (read customer) is calling for the first time. And if that’s not the case, then what is the status of the query or request that they made in the first call?

That’s where cutting-edge inbound call center software can help by seamlessly integrating with some well-known CRM software and preventing call centers from investing in a completely new CRM. By doing so, they keep complete track of every customer interaction.

4. Omnichannel support

Did you know that four out of every five customers would prefer contacting banks and financial institutions via email, live chat, social media, and another channel instead of normal calls? As per Capgemini’s 2021 World Retail Banking Report, almost 80 percent of customers expect an omnichannel banking experience. That’s compelling enough for banks and financial institutions to invest in omnichannel communication.

Banks and financial institutions need to focus on omnichannel support. They need to think beyond conventional phone and video calls and offer communication support across a wide range of channels such as email, chat, and social media. Different customers use different channels as their preferred mode of communication. When banks and financial institutions focus on omnichannel support they show that they care about all customers. By this, they ensure that no customer is left behind.

5. Enhanced agent productivity and making data-driven decisions

Would you be surprised if you got to know that sophisticated inbound call center software can enhance agents’ productivity by leaps and bounds? No. That’s because inbound call centers that leverage cutting-edge software have a tool that automates every manual and repetitive task. From answering all incoming calls to creating detailed call reports, agents don’t have to do any of that manually. When they are freed from mundane, low-value, and time-consuming tasks, they have ample time to focus on new, high-value, and impactful tasks.

Now, coming to the next point, can inbound call center software help in making data-driven decisions? You bet! You see; present-age inbound call center software comes with inbuilt reporting and analytics tools, which enable them to generate automated reports. The analytics and reports show if the customer care service is up to the mark or not.

How to Select the Best Inbound Call Center Software for Banking Business?

When it comes to handpicking the right inbound call center software for the banking business, you can get overwhelmed by the “problem of plenty,” which is the sheer number of choices you get from the market. But just as it’s important to separate the wheat from the chaff for exquisite and healthy bread, it’s just as important to research and shortlist a few genuinely good software providers to make an informed choice. These are the steps that can guide you well while making the buying decision:

1. List the necessary features and set a reasonable budget

Now, when you want inbound call center software, how can you not list the key features you need in it? The features can be:

• IVR
• Automatic call distribution
• CRM integration
• Call recording
• Skill based routing
• Call queuing
• Analytics and reporting, and more

After listing the features your inbound call center software must have, you must determine a reasonable budget for the software. Setting a budget is crucial. You see, there are different types of inbound call center software in the market. Some of them are of superior quality and others aren’t. Setting aside a reasonable budget will prevent you from over-investing or under-investing.

2. Look for software that is tailored for the banking and financial sector

Now that you have determined the features you want in your inbound call center software and the money you are willing to spend to buy high-quality software, it’s time to look for the best options available in the market. And what’s the best way to do that? Simple, just take out your smartphone and type some high-intent search terms such as “best inbound call center software for banks and financial institutions,” “top inbound call center software for the banking sector,” “reliable inbound call center software for banks,” and more.

Alternatively, you can use some location-specific keywords such as “best inbound call center software for banks in the US,” “best inbound call center software for banks in Canada,” “best inbound call center software for banks in the UK,” “best inbound call center software for banks in Australia,” “best inbound call center software for banks in South Africa,” and “best inbound call center software for banks in India.”

3. Visit different websites and compare specifications, features, prices, etc.

After pressing the enter key, you will get about a dozen results on the first page alone. You don’t need to look further. Simply click on some top six to seven websites and you will have a lot of companies to look into. Some of the websites will belong to software companies, while others will belong to aggregators such as SoftwareSuggest and G2.

In the former, you will get a lot of information about the company’s software, the company’s story, mission, vision, and values. You will also get some crucial information about the pricing plans, whether or not the company offers a free trial, and contact information. In the latter, you will get a bird’s-eye-view of many leading software providers’ software and all crucial information such as features, prices, pros and cons.

4. Shortlist a few inbound call center software providers

Once you compare the features, prices, and pros and cons of different inbound call center software, it will be easier for you to create a shortlist of a select few software providers. After that, contact each of them and ask questions such as pricing plans, after-sales service, and free demos. If any of them refuses to provide a free demo, end the call politely and move on to the next brand on the list.

Repeat the process until you find a software provider that’s willing to provide a free trial for a reasonable number of days (say 15 days or a month). After that, introduce the software to your team and seek their honest feedback.

Summing up,

With the volume of calls that banks and financial institutions receive daily, it’s extremely important to have the right tool that can route all incoming calls to the customer representatives who are most suited to resolve the issues on the very first call. Apart from that, banks and financial companies must equip themselves to handle communication across a wide range of channels. That’s where the role of reliable and sophisticated incoming call center software becomes extremely important.