Traditionally, the data received from phone call-based customer service has been fairly one-dimensional: The agent asks, receives and transcribes information from the customer on the call, which may be recorded and is inputted by the agent into the CRM, with some subjectivity.
Until now, the phone call-based customer care model has remained somewhat stagnant, at least in a technological sense.
Enter: Speech Recognition Technology
New speech recognition technology is evolving the standard of phone call-based customer service. Here’s how it works:
- Through natural language processing, phone call files are transcribed from voice to text.
- Within that translation process, an intelligent platform performs a “sentiment analysis.” The platform mines for a series of keywords or statements, as well as the demographics of the caller (including gender and, possibly, age).
- Post-translation, that data is categorized and classified, ready for analysis.
So, what does this mean for brands that rely on call data to improve their customer care operations?
Insight into Customer Emotion
Aside from the demographic data points, speech recognition provides a look into the caller’s sentiment and emotions. Did the customer’s voice indicate frustration during the interaction? Did the tone seem to suggest satisfaction with the resolution?
This data is key to learning how customers feel about a product or service, how transactions are handled, and the ways in which the experience can be improved. At the aggregate level, you can better understand trending sentiments across hundreds or thousands of calls.
Enhanced Data Integrity
Conventionally, the integrity of call data lies within the hands of the agent. Speech recognition adds another layer of “data protection,” so to speak. The data entered by the agent can be verified by the voice analytics to ensure there were no discrepancies. It can also help uncover product quality complaints or adverse events that were not originally detected by the agent.
More Structured Data
The speech recognition platform moves call data from an unstructured to a structured system. A text script of the call is searchable, able to be mined for keywords and other information that could be useful in the long term.
Convenience of Data Access
From an operational standpoint, this intelligence technology is simple to implement and offers outstanding convenience through a private, cloud-based solution. All data is available and presented in an integrated, single view, with the ability to toggle between individual data sources as needed for contrast and comparison. Because this data is maintained and tracked in a structured environment, it is available to be viewed and used at a later date. This aggregate data is of particular value, such as in the case of product or safety recalls or in new product development.
Speech recognition technology is sure to have tremendous implications in CRM data management and insights. It also shows promise in pharmaceutical and life sciences applications. Being able to accurately capture what is occurring and being said — and who is saying it — during customer and patient calls is critical to improving the quality and safety of packaged goods and pharmaceutical products.
