Call Center Software and Helpdesk Sales!

Think a call center employee just answers technical questions? Not any more! The role of call center agents / helpdesk staff is continuously changing. Several years ago, agents working in call centers were responsible for very few products and processes let alone sales, yes - sales!

Call Center Software Agents

Today, agents must to be multi-talented and multi-tasked in order to respond to the company's demands while managing to survive in today's business environment. Making it even more difficult is dealing with a large variety of functions, from problem solving, conflict resolution and sales.

No Call Center Software Needed

Call centers and the role of the call center jobs have suffered major changes during the last few years, primarily due to the entry of self-service solutions into the call center market. Customers now have the ability to resolve many issues by themselves, by searching the solution online, and a great number of users actually prefer answering their own helpdesk problems this way. The basic questions can, this way, be answered without any helpdesk staff at all and contributes to the series of ramifications on the part of the agents.

Since the problems agents deal with are no longer 'basic' in nature or easily solved by the use of an online solution, they have to resolve increasingly challenging issues; this in turn implies a higher degree of training and awareness in technical areas and the company's policies.

Drawn out Trouble Calls

Also, due to the ever-growing complexity of the issues that need to be solved, agents tend to handle problems on the first-call basis, dedicate to them as much time as it takes and not offer a solution which could imply a call-back. That is why, entry-level call center agents might have problems when intending to accurately answer questions which actually imply a simple reply, answering e-mails and handling chat conversations, at the same time.

Sell, then Solve Helpdesk Calls

Some outsourced agents are now being required to sell products during service calls. Some organizations expect their agents spend more time selling their products, services and add-on accessories, while other companies employ agents who are more skilled in sales then resolving help desk calls with the idea of providing technical training later.

Regardless, the focus has to be on training representatives, both the recently hired and the veteran agents, as they need the additional skills to accurately respond to complex technical issues while delivering a good 'sales pitch'. First call resolution and incremental revenue building have turned into the number one focus of the activities of many modern call centers - a trend quite popular during the last several years, which does not appear to be changing.

Best Call Center Software

In order to perform the best service possible, agents have to be given access to the most advanced tools and best call center software available on the market, in order to correctly diagnose the problems from a wider range of projects. The company should have a compensation system dedicated to the agents, which should reward them not only for minimizing escalations, but also for accurately solving an issue on first contact.

It is also important for the agents hired specifically for the purpose of selling products (as opposed to providing technical support), to receive training and access to any sort of tools, which could contribute to a possible sale provided the customer would is interested in such an offer. Agents also have to be evaluated and motivated according to their selling results.

Helpdesk - Just not the Same!

Today's help desk job is not just a matter of providing support, technicians must have training in sales and be skilled in negotiations if they are to work for the big firms. It's a tough world in the IT support arena, and it's not getting any easier.