Unlocking the next level of call center optimization
In the past few years, artificial intelligence (AI) advancements have revolutionized customer service. Many organizations have successfully leveraged AI for call center optimization to automate routine interactions, streamline operations, and dramatically reduce call center costs.
But as budgets shift and cost-savings plateaus loom, customer service leaders face a critical question: How can they continue to innovate and enhance the customer experience without losing sight of efficiency?
If you find yourself with the opportunity to invest strategically and a mandate to drive even greater impact, consider this: investing in an engine to collect, analyze, and share feedback from real people can provide the insights you need to further optimize your call center and self-service channels.
The customer service optimization challenge
AI has proven to be a game-changer for call center optimization by automating repetitive tasks and deflecting simple inquiries. Yet, challenges remain:
- Unmet customer expectations: Automated systems often lack the human touch, leading to frustration and dissatisfaction.
- Blind spots in self-service: Companies struggle to identify where customers drop off during self-service or why certain queries escalate to live agents.
- Quality assurance at scale: Ensuring consistent agent performance and uncovering training opportunities can be labor-intensive.
- Navigating complexity: As call centers handle more nuanced issues, it becomes harder to pinpoint what’s working and what’s not.
Metrics to watch:
- Escalation rates: High volumes of escalations from self-service tools to live agents can indicate gaps in your self-service design or functionality.
- First call resolution (FCR): A low FCR rate suggests that agents may not have the tools or information needed to address customer concerns effectively on the first interaction.
- Customer satisfaction scores (CSAT): Consistently low CSAT ratings might point to frustrations in navigating your support channels or the quality of agent interactions.
- Containment rates for chatbots/IVRs: If chatbots or IVRs are unable to resolve a majority of inquiries, customers may not find these tools helpful or intuitive.
- Call volume trends: Spikes in call volume may indicate unresolved issues in your self-service channels or product experiences.
Behaviors to analyze:
- Drop-off points in self-service: Monitor where customers abandon self-service interactions to identify friction points.
- Recurring customer complaints: Analyze patterns in complaints to uncover systemic issues in your processes or support tools.
- Agent feedback: Gather insights from agents to understand common challenges they face when assisting customers.
Overcoming these challenges requires more than automation—you need actionable human insights that uncover what truly drives customer satisfaction. This is where UserTesting can make a difference.
How UserTesting helps optimize customer service and support channels
UserTesting offers a unique approach to improving call centers and customer support experiences by delivering real-time human insights from your actual customers or people like them. Here are the key ways UserTesting adds value:
1. Enhancing self-service tools
Empower customers to help themselves more effectively. With UserTesting, you can:
- Conduct usability testing on FAQs, chatbots, and knowledge bases to identify confusing content or navigation issues.
- Gather qualitative feedback from customers to understand their pain points in self-service journeys.
- Iterate and improve based on actionable insights, ensuring your self-service tools meet customer needs.
2. Reducing escalation rates
Identify why certain queries escalate to live agents and address root causes:
- Use think-aloud testing to hear directly from customers why they chose not to resolve their issue through self-service.
- Test IVR systems and chatbot interactions to uncover frustrations or dead ends that drive escalations.
3. Improving agent performance
Ensure every customer interaction with a live customer service agent is a positive one:
- Analyze real-world interactions to identify training opportunities.
- Use guided testing to evaluate the effectiveness of scripts and agent tools.
- Capture video feedback to understand how agents can better convey empathy and resolve issues faster. Here's a sample of real world support agent feedback captured through UserTesting:
Remote video URL
4. Proactively addressing customer needs
Stay ahead of emerging trends and expectations by:
- Testing new service models or support tools before deployment.
- Understanding customer sentiment and expectations through live feedback.
- Identifying patterns in customer behavior that indicate unmet needs.
Real-world results: driving impact across industries
These strategies aren’t just theoretical. Companies across industries have leveraged UserTesting to achieve measurable improvements in their customer service operations.
BT Group
BT Group, a leading telecommunications provider, partnered with UserTesting to optimize its chatbot, Aimee. Aimee, designed as a personal assistant for BT Group’s app and website, initially struggled with resolving customer questions about roaming, successfully addressing only 16% of related inquiries.
Using UserTesting’s platform, BT Group researchers identified key pain points and developed improved prototypes leveraging generative AI to predict travel destinations and roaming costs. Post-implementation, Aimee achieved a 75% increase in chatbot containment rates, a 50% click-through rate increase from the roaming calculator, and a 2.4% decrease in calls to the contact center, becoming a major success for the brand.
Watch the video below to learn more.
Remote video URL
Costco Travel
By leveraging UserTesting, Costco Travel achieved an 82% reduction in support calls while improving customer satisfaction and loyalty. Insights from UserTesting helped identify and address key usability issues in their online platform, enhancing the booking experience for customers.
Leading software company
By leveraging UserTesting, a leading software company achieved a 36% reduction in support calls while maintaining high customer satisfaction. Through onsite training and the use of UserTesting’s Live Conversation feature, they identified key areas for improvement in their customer support portal. Actionable human insights empowered the company to refine support flows and provide more relevant information on key pages.
The competitive advantage of investing in insights
These success stories highlight the transformative power of human insights. By investing in UserTesting, your call center can stay ahead of the curve.
With AI handling the basics, your call center is now the frontline for complex, high-value customer interactions. Investing in human insights ensures that:
- Your self-service tools continuously evolve to meet customer expectations.
- Agents are equipped to provide empathetic and efficient support.
- You maintain a laser focus on delivering experiences that drive loyalty and retention.
Take action today
Now is the time to take action and elevate your customer experience. With human insights, you can drive meaningful change that delights your customers and empowers your team.
Don’t miss the chance to invest in insights that will keep your call center at the forefront of customer experience innovation. With UserTesting, you can:
- See the customer journey from their perspective
- Identify opportunities to reduce friction and delight customers
- Ensure that every interaction—whether with a chatbot or a live agent—meets and exceeds expectations.
Ready to elevate your call center experience?
Request a demo today and discover how UserTesting can transform your customer service operations
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