Tag Archives: cloud-based-call-center

Catch Fonolo at the 19th Annual Customer Contact Week in Las Vegas

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Catch Fonolo at the 19th Annual Customer Contact Week in Las VegasIf you’re deeply invested in the customer service industry, you already know this one fact: June will be an exciting, educational month thanks to the 19th Annual Customer Contact Week, held this year from June 18-22 at The Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Known as Call Center Week since its inception in 1999, the annual event has rebranded as Customer Contact Week in 2018, in acknowledgement of omni-channel technologies improving customer experiences in the industry as a whole.

CCW is regarded as the #1 event in the industry, this year attracting an estimated 2,500 attendees from over 900 companies, and featuring over 175 expert speakers. It also celebrates industry leaders via its CCW Excellence Awards in categories including CX Leader of the Year, Best in Class Contact Center, Best Contact Center Culture, and CX Innovation of the Year.

 

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The Twilio / Amazon ‘Stack’ Will Dominate the Next Call Center Era

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The Twilio Amazon ‘Stack’ Will Dominate the Next Call Center Era

Today’s cloud-based call centers are increasingly built on top of platforms created by Amazon and Twilio. That includes newcomers like TalkDesk and Serenova, legacy vendors like Avaya and Genesys and companies from adjacent sectors expanding into call center like ZenDesk. For better or worse, this “stack” is going to define the contours of the next generation of call center. That raises a lot questions and suggests some predictions too.

Is this ultimately going to help or hinder innovation? Raise or lower prices? What should we make of the fact that both platforms are now offering their own call centers (Amazon with “Connect” and Twilio with “Flex”)? Is that a caution against building on top of platforms that may end up competing with you, or is this simply the new reality of the software universe?

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Avaya Accelerates its Cloud Pivot with Reorg and Spoken Acquisition

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Avaya Accelerates its Cloud Pivot with Reorg and Spoken AcquisitionLast week was a big one for Avaya as they held their first customer conference since emerging from bankruptcy at the end of last year. The newly public company (NYSE:AVYA) was eager to show strength and forward momentum. By all indications, they stepped up to the plate and convinced analysts and partners that they are on track for success.

On day one, they blasted out of the gate with a major announcement: the acquisition of Spoken. This deal gives them a boost in their effort towards becoming a more cloud-oriented business.

The pivot-to-cloud was a pervasive theme throughout the show. For example, the company has a new “Cloud Business Unit” helmed by Mercer Rowe, who joined the company just a few weeks ago.  But there are always two sides to a “pivot” – if you’re putting more weight on one foot, the other foot is getting less weight. What is Avaya willing to leave behind in its effort to accelerate towards cloud? I think I know… Continue reading →

Legacy Call Center Vendors Jockey for Position

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Legacy Call Center Vendors Jockey for PositionLast week I wrote about the cloud-based call center gang. This week, let’s look at the “legacy” gang. Yes, the term “legacy” is used in a negative way these days, but I don’t mean it that way. I just want to group together companies that have been selling call centers for many years, compared to the relative new-comers. (If there’s a nicer term, someone please let me know in the comments.)

As you would expect, the large call center vendors are jockeying for position fiercely. Avaya’s recent bankruptcy created an opportunity for competitors to pounce. Meanwhile, they are all worried about the threat “from below”, i.e. newer cloud-based competitors that started by focussing on small business, but are moving steadily up-market.

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Catch Fonolo at Customer Contact Week!

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Catch Fonolo at Customer Contact Week!Fonolo is excited to return as a sponsor for this year’s Customer Contact Week (CCW), January 22-25th, 2018 at the Hyatt Regency in New Orleans, Louisiana. CCW will provide delegates with the tools and insight to deliver world-class service.

Started in 1999 as Call Center Week, CCW is the world’s largest customer contact event series. This is the place where customer care, CX, and contact center leaders come together! In 2018 they introduced a new brand, Customer Contact Week. Continue reading →

Catch Fonolo at the ICMI Contact Center Demo & Conference

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FonoloCatch Fonolo at the ICMI Contact Center Demo & Conference is excited to return as a sponsor for this year’s Contact Center Demo & Conference, happening September 25-27th at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Contact Center Demo & Conference is produced by ICMI – a trusted advisor in the contact center industry – and is an independent, forward-thinking program focused on future contact center trends.

Attendees will have the opportunity to solve new challenges facing the call center space, chat with industry recognized thought leaders, and speak to vendors about the latest solutions.

At this year’s event, Fonolo will be showcasing its brand new feature-rich customer portal, equipped with scheduled call-backs, improved call-back metrics, and a more simplified way for international contact centers to deploy call-backs. Continue reading →

5 New Contact Center Metrics for 2017

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5 New Contact Center Metrics for 2017We live in a world filled with numbers. From our personal lives to our professional habitats, metrics always tend to find their way in. Our understanding of which metrics are the most relevant, and the most up-to-date, is where we typically stumble.

It’s no different in the contact center space, in fact, it’s amplified. This world lives by benchmarks and call center professionals are always seeking to find the latest numbers to follow.

In light of our recent whitepaper, Top Contact Center Trends in 2020, here are the top 5 metrics to watch for in 2017. Continue reading →

Avaya Did Good with their Spotlight Moment This Week

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Avaya Did Good with their Spotlight Moment This WeekAvaya’s annual customer conference (“Avaya Engage”) just wrapped up and I believe they made good use of a unique moment in their history. Under normal circumstances, this type of conference is a high pressure situation. Avaya is in complete control of the content and production so if they can’t look perfect here, that’s bad news. If there are missteps or flubbed announcements, or if the crowd isn’t enthusiastic, analysts are quick to take note and turn that into a story.

That’s under ordinary circumstances; this no ordinary time for Avaya. Having declared bankruptcy just 3 weeks ago, the pressure was doubled. Luckily, they stepped up to the challenge.

 

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