Comments on: Call Abandonment Basics http://www.serviceuntitled.com/call-abandonment-basics/2009/10/21/ The blog about customer service and the customer service experience. Tue, 16 Mar 2010 19:31:02 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Larry Streeter - VP Customer Support http://www.serviceuntitled.com/call-abandonment-basics/2009/10/21/comment-page-1/#comment-1040815 Larry Streeter - VP Customer Support Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:09:01 +0000 http://www.serviceuntitled.com/?p=1208#comment-1040815 Great article on what is, next to customer satisfactions scores, the most effective measurement of your call center performance! I would place our company in that category of "customer -centricity" as we offer a very quick average speed of answer and therefore, low abanondon rate (4.2% for October as I write this!). The one caveat I would offer is to not be afraid to promote alternative channels on your hold messages. Changing demographics have shown that some generations prefer these channels (live chat, knowledge bases access) over the the traditional phone channel but may not know your company offers such. We regularly promote that our live chat channel is also available on our phone hold messages so that customers can make intelligent choices as to how they would like to interact with us. As a result, we've seen slow, steady growth in these alternative channels with customer satisfaction scores that rival, and even at times exceed those of our phone channel! Great article on what is, next to customer satisfactions scores, the most effective measurement of your call center performance!

I would place our company in that category of “customer -centricity” as we offer a very quick average speed of answer and therefore, low abanondon rate (4.2% for October as I write this!).

The one caveat I would offer is to not be afraid to promote alternative channels on your hold messages. Changing demographics have shown that some generations prefer these channels (live chat, knowledge bases access) over the the traditional phone channel but may not know your company offers such. We regularly promote that our live chat channel is also available on our phone hold messages so that customers can make intelligent choices as to how they would like to interact with us. As a result, we’ve seen slow, steady growth in these alternative channels with customer satisfaction scores that rival, and even at times exceed those of our phone channel!

]]> By: Service Untitled http://www.serviceuntitled.com/call-abandonment-basics/2009/10/21/comment-page-1/#comment-1040530 Service Untitled Sat, 24 Oct 2009 21:00:44 +0000 http://www.serviceuntitled.com/?p=1208#comment-1040530 Justin, Thanks for your comment and your good points. I think target abandonment rate varies on the industry and the type of service the company wants to provide. 3% and 10% are numbers I hear pretty often, but a lot of it depends on the math. A company with a really aggressive calculation method might see a high abandonment rate, whereas a company with a very relaxed methodology might see a really low one. Justin,

Thanks for your comment and your good points. I think target abandonment rate varies on the industry and the type of service the company wants to provide. 3% and 10% are numbers I hear pretty often, but a lot of it depends on the math. A company with a really aggressive calculation method might see a high abandonment rate, whereas a company with a very relaxed methodology might see a really low one.

]]> By: Justin http://www.serviceuntitled.com/call-abandonment-basics/2009/10/21/comment-page-1/#comment-1040074 Justin Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:42:11 +0000 http://www.serviceuntitled.com/?p=1208#comment-1040074 I agree that abandonment can be a very tricky, yet valuable metric. The only other thing that I would add, is that in my experience abandonment is almost always tied directly to queue time. I wouldn't go as far to say that there is a direct correlation between the two, because as you mention there can be a number of reasons the caller hangs up, but typically the longer the hold times, the higher the abandonment rate. A support organization that is efficiently staffed, can usually decrease their abandonment rates quite drastically. I would also separate IVR disconnects from abandonment rate. If a caller disconnects while listening to a recorded message/IVR options, they are most likely gaining some sort of value and information. Only if they take the time to work their way through the IVR, and begin their hold time, does this count towards abandonment rate. But as you mention, every organization has their own math associated with this metric, and most others, so it's up to them. Would you say there is a target abandonment rate that support organizations should shoot for? I agree that abandonment can be a very tricky, yet valuable metric. The only other thing that I would add, is that in my experience abandonment is almost always tied directly to queue time. I wouldn’t go as far to say that there is a direct correlation between the two, because as you mention there can be a number of reasons the caller hangs up, but typically the longer the hold times, the higher the abandonment rate. A support organization that is efficiently staffed, can usually decrease their abandonment rates quite drastically.

I would also separate IVR disconnects from abandonment rate. If a caller disconnects while listening to a recorded message/IVR options, they are most likely gaining some sort of value and information. Only if they take the time to work their way through the IVR, and begin their hold time, does this count towards abandonment rate. But as you mention, every organization has their own math associated with this metric, and most others, so it’s up to them.

Would you say there is a target abandonment rate that support organizations should shoot for?

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