How to buy CRM and call center technology and teleservices for the new millennium

Call Center Solutions, Dec 1999 by Tehrani, Nadji

Selecting technologies for CRM (customer relationship management), the call center, and e-sales and e-services contact centers, as well as choosing teleservices offerings is more complex than ever before.

When choosing technologies for setting up what I call the next-generation of call centers, you will face many variables and multiple choices, and you will need to keep in mind compatibility and convergence issues. On the services side, you will also need to evaluate compatibility between your company and the teleservices agency or application service provider, thoroughly scrutinize their service offerings, including e-sales and e-service, and most important, establish trust.

As the crucially important voice and data technologies for call centers converge to make CRM and e-commerce possible, myriad new products and services are offered on a daily basis. Making a decision on what is right for you and your call center is staggering. Having anticipated that, TMC(TM) (Technology Marketing Corporation) management and staff established the TMC(TM) Labs, where our engineers test the validity, compatibility, functionality and interoperability of the multitude of technologies that are presented every week to our engineers in the laboratory. This is becoming an overwhelming task, but we believe that TMC(TM)'s capable staff is up to the challenge. As the magazine that was called by The Wall Street Journal "The Bible of the Industry" and the magazine that Alex Fraser of Hewlett-Packard called "The only credible source of information on the industry," we do not take our responsibility lightly. Our editors, TMC(TM) Labs engineers and TMC(TM) management work extremely hard to separate facts from fiction and reality from hype. Our test drives and product reviews represent market offerings as we see them. Strong and weak features of every product are indicated in every review so that you, our valued readers and buyers of products and services promoted and presented in our publications, do not make costly purchasing mistakes. I think you can appreciate that this is a monumental task and I am proud to say that our fine staff has lived up to your expectations.

By virtue of our three print publications, C@LL CENTER Solutions(TM), Communications Solutions(TM) (formerly CTP(R) and INTERNET TELEPHONY(R), as well as several products we offer on the Web (see www.tmcnet.com), we reach hundreds of thousands of people each and every month. Our trade shows, Communications Solutions(TM) EXPO (formerly CTI(TM) EXPO) and our phenomenally successful firsttime show, INTERNET TELEPHONY EXPO(TM), add considerable light to the decision-making process to help you buy the "right" products and services for your call centers. The comprehensive seminars as well as numerous Learning Centers and a host of free educational demonstrations on the exhibit floor, not to mention extremely knowledgeable exhibitors, can shed plenty of light on the tough decision of buying the right product. Believe me, there is no other way to buy products and services judiciously. In a nutshell, to ensure satisfaction with your purchasing decisions, it is imperative to read every pertinent article and TMC(TM) Labs review published in C@LL CENTER Solutions(TM), stay abreast of our Web site information and updates, and be sure to attend Communications Solutions(TM) EXPO (formerly CTI(TM) EXPO) and INTERNET TELEPHONY EXPO(TM). By doing so you can make multimillion-dollar purchasing decisions based on sound, reliable and objective information, which has been the hallmark of TMC(TM) publications and trade shows for the last 18 years.

To provide you with necessary purchasing guidelines and help you assess the variety of options available to you, I have asked the outstanding TMC(TM) editors to share with you their words of wisdom on judicious selection of products and services for your CRM, call center, e-sales and e-service needs. Call centers of today are drastically different from those of the past. Certainly technology has afforded the call center manager with an arsenal of products and services whereby he/she can cut costs and overhead while drastically enhancing the capabilities of the call center; it also has made the buying process more complex.

Following are important factors to consider when evaluating the products and services you will need to prepare your call center and thus your company for the challenges of the new millennium. Good luck and best wishes in your shopping.

Our Purchasing Guidelines

Before you begin to make any decisions on purchasing any products or services, remind yourself of the old maxim: Talk is cheap. That is not necessarily a bad thing. Sure, when it comes to product or service hype, it's important to be cautious and read between the lines and thoroughly investigate all claims.

But talk can also be invaluable, especially between colleagues and others who work in environments similar to yours. Make a point to communicate with as many of your team members as possible. Find out what they feel will help them to improve their own performance and what will help the company become more profitable. Discuss technology and service features you are thinking about implementing and get your coworkers' feedback. This can help you avoid making wasteful purchases. New millennium or not, the bottom line is customer service; so make sure that technology purchases are aimed at increasing customer satisfaction, rather than purchasing technology for technology's sake.