Author Archives: Brad Cleveland

Social Media: Channel or Strategy?

Posted on April 26, 2012 by Brad Cleveland

Terms related to social media are quickly evolving, and must be used and interpreted in context. For example, I’m often asked for advice on shaping a “social strategy.” It’s an important question — but without further definition, can be overly … Continue reading →

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What’s Driving Change in Customer Services?

Posted on March 14, 2012 by Brad Cleveland

The most significant developments to date have been on the organization’s end. Examples in contact centers: The invention of 800 number (toll free) service and ACD routing systems in the late 1960s and early 1970s; the introduction of workforce management … Continue reading →

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The Contact Center’s Opportunity to Deliver Strategic Value

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Brad Cleveland

By harnessing what’s learned from interacting with customers, contact centers (call centers) have enormous potential to provide valuable intelligence and support to other parts of the company. Consider the value when the contact center: Helps operational areas or manufacturing units … Continue reading →

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Thriving Customer Relationships

Posted on November 12, 2011 by Brad Cleveland

What’s the formula for success in the new era of customer relationships? Boiled (waaayyy) down: 1. Connect. Listen to your customers, wherever they are, in whatever channel they choose. Join the conversation. 2. Engage. Interact with them, appropriately, proactively; put … Continue reading →

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The Measures Every Contact Center (Call Center) Should Have

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Brad Cleveland

The Measures Every Contact Center Should Have By Brad Cleveland These key categories of measures and objective are as important for Facebook and Twitter interactions as they are for traditional contact channels. Establishing the right measures and objectives is one … Continue reading →

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Trends We are Watching: Call Centers are in a Growth Mode

Posted on September 13, 2011 by Brad Cleveland

Call centers (contact centers) are growing. Here are a few samples of recent news stories: WLBZ2, Maine: http://tinyurl.com/3lcf93c Times and Transcript, New Brunswick:  http://tinyurl.com/3dnfm4r ABC News: http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/jobs-call-centers-back-us-14243481

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The New Era of Customer Relationships: Are You Ready?

Posted on September 1, 2011 by Brad Cleveland

We are seeing the emergence of the greatest customer movement in history.  Is your organization ready?  Are you ready? Studies reveal that the vast majority of consumers now use search engines, social communities and feedback sites to better understand a … Continue reading →

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Shaping Your Customer Access Strategy for Social Media

Posted on August 15, 2011 by Brad Cleveland

(Note, a full version of this post recently appeared in ICMI’s Global Report on Call Center Practices.  To subscribe, see link at bottom.) While social media projects often begin as marketing initiatives or as the responsibility of newly established cross-functional teams, the contact … Continue reading →

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Perspective on First Call Resolution

Posted on August 1, 2011 by Brad Cleveland

First-call resolution (FCR) is an increasingly popular performance measure in customer contact environments. And that’s a good thing: Unresolved contacts are a common source of customer dissatisfaction, and the organization tends to incur many additional expenses (e.g., repeat calls, rework, … Continue reading →

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Leading organizations are restructuring for better service

Posted on July 15, 2011 by Brad Cleveland

Many organizations are restructuring so that all channels of contact with customers are under the same management umbrella.  This is causing enormous internal structural change that involves IT, HR, marketing, operational areas – and virtually every other department.  Whatever the … Continue reading →

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