Category Archives: Announcements

Connecting with Customers in the Modern World

Posted on by

Customer care used to be pretty straight forward.  You phoned the business number, spoke to the right department who hopefully resolved the problem over the phone or had someone visit your home or business to settle the issue.

These days, the competition is fierce, customers are wanting (and expecting) an ‘instant’ result.  And, instead of waiting for the train or bus and talking to the person next to them, everyone is steering down at their phones, trying to fit in as many tasks as possible.

The modern consumer has multiple channels in which to seek help – this isn’t front-page news.  So why are so many businesses stuck with old-world customer care practices?   Fear perhaps?  Or simply not knowing where to start?

Continue reading →

The Difference Between an Average Call Centre and a Great Call Centre

Posted on by

Call centres are known for dealing with and solving customer service problems.  Why? So in-house staff aren’t landed with the time, effort and expertise it takes to do it right.

 

With any business, cost is a driving factor. But like most things in life, the cheapest (or the most expensive for the matter), is not always the best choice.  To know if you are getting bang for your buck, here are some key areas to check when employing a call centre for your business.

Continue reading →

How to Meet your Customers

Posted on by

mystery shopping

 

Do you really know your customer?  Understanding their buying behaviour, needs and wants is the backbone of any business.  Mystery shopping and customer surveys is a powerful one-two punch into learning a ton from your customers and making sure they stay customers.

Statistically, a new customer costs five times more than a customer you already have. Austin-based marketing company, Outbound Engine, tell us the success rate of selling to an existing customer is 60-70%, while the success rate of selling to a new customer is only 5-20%. Big difference, right?

Let’s have a quick look at these two strategies that so many businesses underutilise and yet hold the answers to so many business question marks.

Continue reading →

New Zealand Small Businesses are Growing Faster

Posted on by

New Zealand small business

Two things New Zealanders absolutely love: 1) DIY and 2) shopping.   Can’t purchase what you’re looking for?  Well, chances are a local business has seen that gap in the market and has turned it into a small business.

Yep, New Zealanders have a strong entrepreneurial spirit which is reflected in the fact that a staggering 97 per cent of New Zealand businesses fall into the small business category.  Of this 97 per cent, 70 per cent are sole-traders and the remainder have few employees – between 1-19 in fact.

According to leading economists, it’s a growing trend.  Though small businesses employ just a third of New Zealand’s workforce, they accounted for more than two-thirds of the nations’ jobs growth in 2017-2018.

Continue reading →

How Reporting Helps Assess your Call Centre’s Performance

Posted on by

It’s hard to make good business decisions without any evidence.  Actually, that goes for all major decisions in life.  Imagine buying a home with a dollar amount you simply picked out of thin air.  You’re just not going to do it, are you?  Instead, you’ll be looking at statistics, trends and talking to the bank manager to determine where and what you can afford.

Continue reading →

Why Choose Corporate Connect?

Posted on by

call centre

 

Call centre staff wear lots of hats these days.   Long gone are the times when they answered the phone and that was pretty much that.

Today, staff deal with emails, texts, online forms, phone calls, live web chats, social media and apps.  Professional communication skills, sound technical and social media talents and being super organised are essential parts of the job.

But we don’t stop there.  Read on to explore other ways Corporate Connect is a cut above the rest:

Continue reading →

How a Call Centre can Help your Brand

Posted on by

brand perception

When it comes to building a cohesive brand for your business, customer service is usually overlooked.  And this is where the business can really suffer when not handled properly.

Brand awareness is when a potential customer recognises a brand from specific characteristics.  It could be the colour, music (jingle), catch-phrase or image the customer recognises. We all know Apple products simply by the apple image and we are heavily influenced by what that apple represents (technology, quality, price point etc).

Continue reading →

How to handle Social Media complaints

Posted on by

You really can’t get away with anything these days.

With much of the world’s population in charge of a phone, camera, video and social media apps at the ready, communication has become easier than ever.  And, so has complaining.

We want to help you handle those media complaints with some tried and true steps:

Don’t think that complaint will go away

It won’t. In fact, time is a big part of dealing with a complaint successfully. If an irate customer doesn’t feel listened to, you’re simply just poking an already angry bear. Continue reading →

Is Your Growing Company in Need of a Call Centre?

Posted on by

Business is booming, clients are placing larger orders, and everything points towards expansion on a nearby horizon.

But with those plans to expand you’d need more customers, and that voice on the phone (or keyboard) is the face of your company.  And we all know how first impressions last.

Continue reading →

How to Ensure Great Customer Service over the Christmas Break

Posted on by

Typically, Christmas is a time when your permanent staff are slowing down and planning their summer holiday.   However, Christmas is also infamous for customer care centres to be at their busiest!   Last minutes demands or scheduling appointments while retailers dealing with product returns due to the wrong size, wrong colour or wrong delivery.

To retain those loyal customers and stay on top of things here are a few tips to keep your business ticking along nicely so you can think about winding down.

Continue reading →