Utilizing a Call Center as a Marketing Tool
Since their conception, call centers have predominantly been thought of as a tool for customer service. While that claim has tremendous validity, call centers can also be suitable for other business departments. One strategically important opportunity is to use call centers as a marketing tool.
It may seem as if call centers and marketing aren’t necessarily a match on the first review. After all, marketing focuses on customer acquisition, while call centers are known for customer service and retention. These are two incredibly different, yet equally important, aspects of a business. However, there are a few different ways a company can utilize its call center as a strategic marketing resource.
Cause a Stir (In a Good Way)
Causing a stir doesn’t always have to be about getting attention for the wrong reasons. Often, a “stir” on the internet or local news deals with poor service and disgruntled customers. However, a call center that can create some buzz, or cause a good stir, can be an effective marketing tool. Every time a call center representative goes the extra mile to provide excellent customer service, a business should use that to its advantage. Whether it is reposting a five-star review online or sharing a unique experience that occurred, the opportunity to garner free (and potentially viral) publicity is something that should never become a missed opportunity.
Increase Customer Engagement
Top-flight call centers help businesses connect with customers and foster a sense of community. This effective marketing tool allows a company to build brand loyalty and improve its brand image – all at the same time. Every time a representative is on the phone, they create a relationship with that customer. If it turns out to be positive, these relationships can create a loyal customer that helps build up the brand through customer retention and positive word-of-mouth marketing.
Use Content as a Marketing Tool
Content is one of the essential aspects of marketing. A business’s marketing team should always look for new content creation ideas. As the employees most directly in contact with customers, the call center has vast potential for marketable content ideas. If a business is impressing customers with superior support and experience efforts, the marketing team can source these real-life customer service examples and successes for use in online and print content.
People influence people, so why not take a page from the “Causing a Stir” section and market other people’s good experiences? If a business can show its network how trusting other customers are and how much they enjoy buying products or services, the chances of convincing others in the sales funnel drastically increase.
In the end, call centers should be all about customer service. But why not kill two birds with one stone and use it as a marketing tool as well? With all the data and communication that flows through a call center during any given day, it would be ludicrous not to utilize it for marketing in one way or another.
