Glossary of Terms

Since a call center is so dependent on people being available to answer phone calls and resolve customer issues when workers are absent it increases the workloads for other agents who may already have lots of work to deal with.

is the art of using words and phrases to communicate a positive, supportive tone to your customers (or anyone else for that matter).

To calculate agent productivity take the total time the agent is working (answering calls, doing administrative work, doing after-call work) and divide by the time the agent was scheduled to work, then multiply by 100.  Formula = (Total Output / Total Input) x 100 = Labour Productivity

retail applications today focus on helping consumers experience brands and products without having to go into stores.

ACD is a telephony system that recognizes, answers, and routes incoming calls to the terminal or agent that is best suited to handle the caller’s needs.

is a metric that monitors the number of calls transferred to another department, a supervisor, or a different queue. 

is the average time spent by an agent in handling customer issues or transactions.

refers to the average amount of time wherein a call is required to be answered.

is software that ingests business data and presents it in user-friendly views such as reports, dashboards, charts, and graphs. BI tools enable business users to access different types of data — historical and current, third-party and in-house, as well as semi-structured data and unstructured data like social media. Users can analyze this information to gain insights into how the business is performing.

enables agents and managers to record inbound and outbound calls.

is a management process that routes calls as per categories, which are based on predefined business rules, wait time, and customer value. This allows agents to prioritize calls that need to be answered first based on their value, urgency, etc.

helps agents follow a dialogue template for easy reference. They can fill their responses directly into the customer relationship management tool (CRM) to design workflows.

A CMS is most helpful for outbound contact centers. The software provides the agent with a contact list, or other info needed to reach out to the right people.

CTI is a type of technology that enables computer and telephone systems to interact together. Contact centers implementing CTI can use computers to manage all telephone calls, which in turn leads to increased efficiency and better results.

The contact center manager sets objectives in service quality and analyzes metrics to see if the objectives have been met.

metric refers to the expenses related to running a contact center (i.e., operational costs, wages, benefits). To calculate the average cost per contact, the total cost associated with operating the business is divided by the total number of contacts handled.

is the study of how verbal and nonverbal communication takes place among individuals from different backgrounds, geographies, and cultures.

Being customer centric means that every department in the company understands that the customer comes first and everything they do is to obtain, retain, and build relationships with customers.

is a way of doing business that fosters a positive customer experience before, during and after the sale in order to drive repeat business, build customer loyalty (who refer others), and increase business growth.

refers to the percentage of customers you have lost over a certain period of time.

are effective in measuring service accessibility and the quality of customer experience.

is the result of an interaction between the customer and the company.

Companies should gather customer insights before producing products customers won't want, like, use or buy.  They can do this in many ways, including holding focus groups, conducting surveys, gathering customer feedback, tracking website clicks and emails, and observing trends.

is the complete sum of experiences that customers go through when interacting with a company and its brands.  It considers the complete path from brand discovery to purchasing and beyond. The focus in not on purchases made, but rather on how the customer feels about the interactions throughout their journey with the company.

is a visual depiction (diagrammed or written) detailing the path the customer takes from the time the customer first discovers the brand, to purchasing, and beyond.

is one of the key statistics to track as part of a customer experience program. CLV is a measurement of how valuable a customer is to your company, not just on a purchase-by-purchase basis but across the whole relationship.

refers to the different methods and strategies that a business can use to forge, improve, and manage all interactions with its customers.

CRM software gives agents the 360° customer info they need to solve customer needs as quickly as possible. Contact center agents can also use the servicing application to document customer interactions that can be brought up if the caller needs more help in the future. Having a record can help agents resolve customer issues more efficiently.

refers to the percentage of existing customers or users that are still part of the organization’s pool of consumers over a certain period of time.

A great indicator of customer happiness is the Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT).  This metric is calculated by asking a question that pertains to the customer’s feedback on a particular interaction with an agent, “How pleased were you with your experience?” or “Was the agent able to handle your concern satisfactorily?”

is the assistance and advice provided by a company to customers throughout the customer journey; before, during and after the sale.

Setting customer service goals can serve an important role in managing service teams.  Set SMART goals. Good goals focus attention on the right things, while poorly shaped goals focus attention on other things.

means that as an employee you are able to display positive attitudes and behaviors, and demonstrate an awareness of the importance of meeting or exceeding customer needs and expectations.

is a shared mission for your support team, a set of guiding principles that ensure you’re upholding your core values with every customer interaction

A customer service representative (CSR) – also called an agent – is a person who works in a call or contact center and helps customers with their issues. They may do this using a variety of channels, including phone, chat, email and social media. Customer service representatives (CSRs) play an important role in influencing the customer experience.

refer to the performance that customers can expect from the company. It encompasses various factors, like speed, accuracy, transparency, accessibility, empowerment, efficiency, and friendliness of the staff.

Investing the time and money in customer service training can prove to be an invaluable investment for businesses of diverse sectors and sizes. Teaching members of staff the competencies, knowledge and skills required to increase customer satisfaction and therefore customer retention is a shrewd way for businesses to ultimately increase their sales performance.

impact the experience the customer receives and they help to define the personality and attitude the business is trying to put forth. Often companies offer training to employees on how to uphold these values. 

A customer service vision statement provides meaning and direction for employees. It is the statement that outlines the type of service that agents are expected to provide to customers. It tends to be quite idealistic and ‘big picture’ thinking, needs to be clear and unambiguous, and it should be easily understood by both employees and customers alike.

The first section of a customer service philosophy is a customer service vision statement, which Jeff Toister defines as “a statement that clearly defines the type of customer service employees are expected to provide.

is a point in time when the company connects in some form with the customer (e.g., website, phone, email, social media, retail store, returns, service, and products).

is the integration of digital technology into all areas of a business, resulting in fundamental changes in the way a business operates and the value they deliver to their customers.

empowers agents to answer customer queries and manage requests across platforms, such as email, chat, or mobile apps, from a centralized interface.

means giving employees the authority, right technology, systems, and freedom to go the extra mile to make customers happy.

are the customers who purchase products or services from the company.  Employees who work in job positions that require them to interface with external customers directly might be referred to as front-line/front-facing/front-end/customer-facing employees.  Those that work to serve internal customers are working in back-end/back-office/behind-the-scene job positions.

metric shows how many customer requests were solved during the first contact.

sometimes known as “zoomers,” is the demographic cohort that comes after millennials and proceeds Generation Alpha. Members of the Gen Z years were born between 1997 and 2012. So as of 2023, the Gen Z age range is anywhere from 11 to 26. They are commonly referred to as the first fully “digitally native” generation.

Inbound contact centers primarily deal with incoming customer calls and tend to focus on assistance for customers who need instructions, a technician, problems solved, questions answered, or other assistance with products, services, and orders.

IVR is an automated telephony system that interacts with callers before routing them to the right agent or department, based on the required expertise. The feature aims to ease the situation for callers.

are the company employees who need support, information or action from other employees.  These internal customers may work just down the hall, in another building, or in another country, but they are still part of the company and working to help satisfy external customers.

is made up of billions of smart, connected devices, and gives any “thing” a voice through the data it gathers, produces and distributes.

measure how effectively a company is achieving its goals against a set of targets, objectives, or industry peers.

KMS is a computerized system designed to support the creation, storage, and dissemination of information. Such a system contains a central repository of information that is well structured and employs a variety of effective and easy to use search tools that users can use to find answers to questions quickly. 

is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) and computer science that focuses on the use of data and algorithms to imitate the way that humans learn, gradually improving its accuracy.

is a method of measuring something, or the results obtained from this. The right metrics or key performance indicators (KPIs) should effectively measure a business’s specific capacities.

sometimes known as Generation Y, is a demographic cohort that follows Generation X and proceeds Generation Z. Millennials were born between 1981 and 1996 (although this age range may vary depending on the source).

allows customers to contact a company not just via calls, but across whatever channel they choose.

is a customer loyalty metric that businesses use to gauge how their customers feel about them. It measures your customers' willingness to recommend your company, product, or service to others. Companies with high a NPS are more likely to achieve long-term profitable growth.

refers to gestures, facial expressions, eye contact, body language, posture, and other ways people can communicate without using language.

A multichannel contact center allows a business to contact or stay in touch with customers over a variety of channels. For example, video calls, phone calls, email messages, and social media messaging. On the other hand, an omnichannel contact center not only allows the business to interact with customers over various channels but also collates all the data onto a single platform.

With onsite configurations, contact centers are owned and operated by the company itself.

In an outbound contact center, agents call potential or existing customers rather than receiving calls from them.

has become integral to the customer journey and is now a key driver of brand loyalty across all channels. Consumers are much more likely to buy from brands, both in-store and online,  when offers are personalized.

are fictional customer types created to represent real target customer groups.

is a mindset that helps you see and recognize opportunities. It is not always easy to stay positive especially when things do not go as planned, or when dealing with angry customers.

is the art of using words and phrases to communicate a positive, supportive tone to your customers (or anyone else for that matter).

A predictive dialer automatically dials from a list of phone numbers. This saves agent time as the dialer will detect busy signals, voicemail messages, disconnected phone numbers, and when there is no answer. Predictive dialing is applicable across channels: mobile, text, social, chat, and email.

provides you with concrete, easy to remember steps you can work through when faced with any issue, customer service related or other.

is simply the attributes of a product or service.

QM applications give managers insight into employee performance so that any areas of weakness can be identified. Managers can also use QM to ensure that agents are adhering to internal policies and procedures.

refers to the total number of calls where a caller hangs up before an agent answers.

is also referred to as telework, telecommuting, mobile work, flexible workplace, flex-hours, or e-commuting and is a work arrangement in which employees do not commute to a central location instead they work outside the office location from various locations.

occur daily in all types of organizations. They happen whenever the product or service delivered fails to meet customer needs, wants and expectations.

in an organization means putting customers at the center of the business model, developing policies, procedures, values, norms, and beliefs that are centered around focusing on customer satisfaction and understanding their needs and wants.

To calculate the Service Level, divide the total number of calls answered within the threshold by the total number of calls and the total number of abandoned calls.

is a company's resolution of a problem from a dissatisfied customer, converting them into a loyal customer. It is the action a service provider takes in response to service failure.

are guidelines for employees to follow when interacting with customers.

is the agreed-upon, documented, level of service between a vendor and a client. Numerical metrics are often assigned to determine the success or failure of the agreement, along with clear repercussions for failing to meet the service level standards. It’s most commonly used by technology and customer service providers.

lets your agents listen to customer issues online using predefined keywords and hashtags on social media. Social media posts are immediately routed to agents and prioritized so that they can provide immediate resolution to customers.

tools help understand what people are saying about you on social media. Insights like this paint a richer picture than simply relying on traditional media.

are for the requirements, specifications, guidelines, or characteristics established for customer service.

Mobile devices have become indispensable tools of the twenty-first century. Studies show that two-way text messaging systems offer a more direct and expedient means of contacting call centers.

A ticketing system collects customer support requests from all the sources and centralizes them with the customer data about contact history. Integrating ticketing software with a call center system allows your agents to respond to all the queries efficiently.

TDM was developed in 1870 for large system telegraphy implementation. The technology transports contact center interactions by segmenting multiple data streams and then putting them in a single signal. IP has replaced TDM as the primary mechanism for transporting contact center transactions. IP offers easy access and value-added services such as instant messaging, video calling, and making phone calls directly from websites – all while moving through a less costly network.

Toll-free or "800" service lets customers call the company free of charge. The company or agency pays the phone bill for all incoming calls. There are different levels of service, and depending on the package selected, it can accommodate callers from the U.S. and U.S. Territories, and Canada.

is focused on voice calls. Even if a call center provides some multi-channel customer service, the interactions are siloed in the individual channels.

Used in the context of contact centers, a basic “trunk circuit” is a telephone line connecting the phones at the contact center to the telephone network. Each circuit can handle one phone call at a time. The number of circuits required depends on the number of simultaneous callers the contact center wishes to accommodate.

A Text telephone is a special device that lets people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or speech-impaired use the telephone to communicate.

refers to the ability of a customer service representative to think of the right words in order to appease a customer and provide a solution

Web chat is a real-time communications system between agents and the company's customers that uses a simple, Web interface. Users need browser access in order to use the service. It allows agents to handle multiple chat sessions at the same time.

Companies benefit from the work-from-home agent setup as it makes it easier for them to provide customer service across multiple time zones. Since the customer service team is working from various locations, businesses with remote call centers can provide coverage during off-hours without having to put employees on different shifts. This makes employee scheduling significantly easier for companies that provide 24/7 customer support.

WFM is used to forecast the volume of customer voice and digital channel interactions.  Contact center managers can use the forecasts to hire the optimal number of agents to ensure customer transactions meet a certain standard of service. WFM systems often tie into other workforce optimization solutions to provide the tools to empower contact center agents.

Contact center workforce optimization is a consolidated environment of technology, strategies, and processes to maximize agent efficiency, productivity, and quality to enable the contact center to perform at the highest level.