A contact center is a business’s backbone that facilitates first level interaction between the company and a customer. Being on the frontline, contact centers have to brave through many challenges that accompany customer service.

In fact, many studies suggest that customer service affects brand loyalty considerably. A contact center isn’t just about answering customer calls, it entails building and sustaining customer relationships which are based on the foundation of superior service and adding value.

But how do you establish a consistent performance standard for your company’s contact center? The answer lies in setting up metrics which can be used to measure performance and impact.

Here are a few important metrics which can help in gauging your contact center’s performance.

#1 FCR or First Contact Resolution

FCR is a crucial part of managing customer relations in a contact center. It reflects the efficiency of the agent to resolve customer issues and answer questions in the first call itself. This particular metric contributes to customer loyalty and even a business’s profitability.

FCR can be adequately measured while tracking agent performance. When clear goals and conclusions are set, FCR automatically improves.

#2 Cost Factor

Cost, particularly cost per contact is referred to the expenditure that is incurred on running a contact center. If we want to calculate the cost per contact, we need to divide the total cost of operating the business by the number of interactions handled in the contact center.

This metric enables us to determine what all channels are effective in handling customer interactions. These channels include SMS, phone, email, live chat, and social media networks. Integrating all channels to a single platform bring in efficiency thereby reducing costs.

#3 Abandon Rate

As high as 65% of the customers hang up the call while they wait for a resolution and answer. The most common reasons behind this are long waiting times, inefficient IVR systems and unnecessary hold times.

This is an important metric which directly affects the contact center’s performance and business reputation.

One method to reduce the number of abandoned calls is to prioritize the caller on the basis of their category or provide an option for auto callback to avoid the long wait time and abandon calls.

#4 Customer Retention Rate

Customer retention rate refers to the average percentage of existing customers or users that have been retained or are still a part of a company’s customer base within a stipulated time frame.

Retained customers form an important part of metrics that affect a contact center’s performance. These metrics determine the capability of the contact center to retain customers by delivering outstanding customer service.

A research study has revealed that increasing customer retention percentage by just 5% can lead to an increase in profits from 25% to even 90%.

#5 Customer Satisfaction Score

By far the most important metric is customer satisfaction score since this is the ultimate goal of every contact center. Customer satisfaction and happiness is equated with the business success and profitability.

When you are able to consistently track your contact center’s performance, you get to know immediate areas of focus and attention. Understanding certain metrics and having the right tools can enable you to provide the best customer experience and accelerate the growth of your business.

Contact Center Software with powerful features helps contact/call centers to improve FCR, AHT, reduce abandon rates and bring in more efficiency in the system. Customer retention rate and satisfaction score automatically goes up with enriched customer engagement.

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