Customer service organizations usually offers multiple channels to nurture customer relationships, and more channels such as virtual agents and chatbots are being added due to the digital transformation. When customer service organizations offer many channels, they often struggle to meet customers’ demands for excellent and consistent service in each of them. By 2023, Gartner® predicts that organizations at advanced stages of digital transformation will find that poor customer experience will be their biggest barrier to further success.

Let’s take a look at the importance of a healthy and successful long-term customer service strategy that ensures a seamless and consistent customer journey across channels.

Reusing collective knowledge

The need for customer self-sufficiency is ever increasing, and with the COVID-19 pandemic, organizations have realized that siloed knowledge can be a hindrance to doing business. Collective knowledge has become more important, and we must have the right tools to support a new way of work.

Customers expect support and service that is prompt, qualitative, and helps them to address their needs and expectations 24×7. By offering support through different support channels, you can empower your customers to get what they need, when they need it, quickly and easily, using the support channel they prefer.

Consistent support and service is key, and it requires the ability to quickly deliver high-quality answers through each channel. By utilizing a knowledge base that continuously captures, structures, and improves your organization’s collective knowledge, you can reuse that knowledge to provide consistent answers to your customers. That’s important, because if customers find inconsistencies between channels, they may doubt the quality of customer support, which can then damage your organization’s brand, as well as customer satisfaction and loyalty.

A centralized knowledge base is key

The reuse of knowledge is directly related to its findability. Many large organizations have built their channels in a siloed way using several knowledge bases, which makes it difficult for customers and agents to find it; reuse it in other channels beyond where it was initially captured; and provide the same quality of service in all channels.

A successful long-term customer service strategy includes establishing a common knowledge management workflow and a centralized knowledge base connected to all channels. A backbone of a consolidated knowledge management infrastructure includes powerful APIs and ready-to-use connectors and apps. It will improve the speed of knowledge being created and released to multiple channels; shorten the time to train the machine learning (ML) and natural language processing engine; increase the validation and accuracy of the knowledge; and ensure a seamless customer journey with consistent support and service across channels.

An example of a centralized knowledge base is building a knowledge base that is connected to the software used by customer service agents; adding it to a virtual support agent; and using it for customer self-service on a website that includes a web chat feature or a chatbot.

The value on the investment (VOI) in knowledge will increase when multiple channels reuse the same knowledge base, and each knowledge article will increase in individual value. Customer service organizations will also be able to save maintenance costs because there’s only one master knowledge base.

Ready to build a successful multi-channel customer service strategy?

BMC can help, with our knowledge management software, BMC Helix Knowledge Management, and our knowledge management training that offers guidance in establishing efficient working methods and processes.

Source: Delivering Relevant Content Knowledge to Customers Is Key to Great Customer Service”, 2019, Gartner

Delivering Relevant Content and Knowledge to Customers Is Key to Great Customer Service, Refreshed 9 April 2021, 5 December 2019, By Drew Kraus, Olive Huang Et Al.

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

Delivering high-quality customer service and support is often a challenge when your products are complex and when there are ongoing changes in the general environment. With BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround, the Customer Care Center at Volvo Car Sweden always has access to the latest, most accurate information and knowledge and has improved customer experience and satisfaction by getting answers to customers faster.

Volvo Car Sweden is seeing a clear trend for improved customer satisfaction [Net Promoter Score (NPS) and Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI)] and an increased problem resolution rate. Onboarding new employees in the Volvo Customer Care team is also easier and faster with the ready availability of all the relevant and up-to-date knowledge.

Niklas Byvik is Product Manager, Accessories – Communication & Education Specialist at the Customer Care Center at Volvo Cars. He lists four factors for establishing a successful knowledge management initiative.

1. Use specialized knowledge management software

If your customer care center has difficulty answering questions in a timely way, then you need specialized knowledge management software. This has helped Volvo Car achieve its goals of following the customer journey and increasing customer satisfaction. Agents will get more work done because they will have more time to help customers and influence the excellence of the brand and service experience.

“We’ve been able to respond to customers quickly, and everyone now has access to the same information at the same time,” says Pia Johansson, Senior Manager Customer Care Center at Volvo Car Sweden.

2. Establish processes and routines

Knowledge management is complex. You need processes and routines in order to work on a large scale and to have up-to-date, relevant knowledge. Otherwise, you risk having knowledge that is unusable and unfindable. Use an established knowledge management methodology, get assistance from knowledge management experts, and get agents involved when you’re creating the processes and standards for knowledge creation.

3. Agree on a common goal and intended benefits

You need a tight team to be successful. Clarify the purpose and benefits of knowledge management. Agree on a common goal that measures the effects on end customers. Work becomes more fun and your customers are happier.

4. Have a customer-centric mindset

When handling knowledge in the knowledge base, your focus should always be on helping customers. Always have the customer in mind when writing knowledge articles, so that the articles will be findable and relevant to the people you are serving.

“BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround has helped us to improve customer satisfaction. They are the key to success and continuing our journey in a positive direction,” says Niklas Byvik, Product Manager, Accessories – Communication & Education Specialist in the Customer Care Center at Volvo Car Sweden.”

Prepare for tomorrow with knowledge management

Analysts and industry experts agree that an established knowledge management process and foundation is critical to the success of a knowledge management initiative. Seek out a knowledge management solution that not only supports the way you work today, but that is prepared for the needs of tomorrow as well.

To learn more, visit the web pages for BMC Helix Knowledge Management and BMC Helix Digital Workplace.