contact center

November 13, 2018

COLLABORATION

1-800 Contacts uses Apple Business Chat with Cisco to Deliver Customer Care

I love the line for 1-800 Contacts, Delivering contact lenses to people who woke up and realized, “[CURSE WORDS], I’m down to my last pair!” since 1995. It demonstrates their customers’ urgency, with humor, for immediate help from the company. I forgot to pack my contacts several times throughout my…

August 13, 2018

COLLABORATION

Improve Retail Experience with Collaboration Technology

The way consumers buy and retailers sell is evolving rapidly. Both online and offline, retailers are embracing a data-first strategy toward understanding their customers. Data and analytics are an increasingly important element of retail landscape. Retailers have reaped the benefits of analyzing st…

July 26, 2018

COLLABORATION

The Future of Contact Center: Cisco and AI Pave the Way

When I think of the contact centers I visited in the 1990s, I remember walking into an open area where the agents worked. I noticed all the brightly colored sticky notes that dotted their workspaces. At the time, I thought it looked like chaos. But, in reality, that is how contact centers managed in…

July 20, 2018

COLLABORATION

Cisco Customer Journey Solutions for Contact Centers Now Support Apple Business Chat

If you’re like me, when you’re mobile and want to interact with a brand – for any reason – you want to do so quickly. Even if you have an app for the brand you want to engage with, you prefer fewer steps to get in touch.  And many of us want these interactions to be messaging-based with the tools we…

July 12, 2018

COLLABORATION

5 Reasons Cloud UC and BroadSoft Are Top of Mind

I had the pleasure of attending my first Cisco Live event in Orlando last month. There, my Cisco colleague Andy Johnston and I shared an overview of the cloud unified communications market to a standing-room‑only audience. We described how the combined strength of the Cisco and BroadSoft calling por…

May 29, 2018

COLLABORATION

The Customer Journey Is the Destination

Many lead singers of classic rock bands can no longer hit the notes of their youth. Enter the cottage industry of sound-alikes. Lou Gramm of Foreigner has given way to Kelly Hanson. Jason Scheff replaced Peter Certera of Chicago. Perhaps the best example is Arnel Pineda, who replaced Steve Perry in…

March 21, 2018

COLLABORATION

Messaging Helps Informal Contact Center Teams Win

As a parent with two sons active in athletics, I spend a lot of time attending sporting events. I am fascinated with how coaches evaluate the performance of their players to help them improve. At the professional level, coaches use historic data to win. One example is the way a baseball manager posi…

March 14, 2018

COLLABORATION

Enterprise Connect, Day 3: Let’s Talk about Contact Center

Rumor has it there’s more to life than #teamcollaboration. Actually, I can confirm the rumor with just a few words: chocolate, puppies, and motorcycles. You’re welcome to fill in the blanks with your own evidence. But, I digress. Teamwork is absolutely important, but even if you come up with the bes…

February 14, 2018

COLLABORATION

Artificial Intelligence in Customer Care

Workflow applications are ripe for disruption with the advent of artificial intelligence (AI). The magic of AI is tied to big data and the AI models. Customer care organizations that have access to rich datasets are prime candidates to ride the AI wave of change. Companies will always look for ways…