Report: Automation in contact centers increases to 95%

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According to a new study by Replicant and Demand Metric, 95% of contact center leaders have either already adopted, are implementing, or plan to use automation within the next year. This figure shows how contact center automation is transforming a variety of industries. The “Automation in the Contact Center” report also explores the priorities and challenges of today’s contact centers, as well as the channels being deployed by contact center leaders. 

Consumers have grown to expect seamless and fast customer service, while at the same time contact centers have had to contend with hiring challenges and unpredictable call volumes. Based on surveys conducted by Demand Metric of more than 300 contact center leaders, 77% of respondents said that improving customer service is a top priority and 60% stated that addressing workforce issues is a chief concern.

The report also details budget and investment data surrounding contact center automation. The top challenges contact center leaders face are high or increasing costs (54%), followed by hiring enough agents (49%), agent turnover (39%) and handling call volume spikes (39%).

Indeed, the combination of dwindling customer patience and a shortage of workers has resulted in the perfect storm of hours-long wait times and employee turnover. But contact centers that have adopted automation are seeing immense value through reduced wait times, improved customer satisfaction and happier employees.

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For those still in the planning stages, a majority are looking to implement contact center automation soon — 80% of study participants say they’re evaluating automation and intend to invest in it within the next 12 months. Almost all contact center leaders (91%) report that automation is a critical or important priority in the next year.

While new automated customer service tools are now common, such as chatbots, a surprising 87% of study participants indicate that voice interaction remains the channel with the highest perceived value.

Understanding how contact center leaders are responding to automation is critical as organizations continue to seek a competitive advantage in customer service.

This 2022 Contact Center Automation survey was administered online from June 29th, 2022, until July 7th, 2022. During this period, 372 responses were collected, and 305 were qualified and complete enough for inclusion in the analysis.

Read the full report from Replicant.

Originally appeared on: TheSpuzz

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