When a customer contacts your company, they need help solving an issue, and they need that help right now. If a customer contacts your company multiple times about the same issue, their satisfaction with your company will decrease and they will be more likely to churn.
In fact, according to a study from Harvard Business Review, 33% of customers who had to make more than one call to a company to resolve their issue will consider switching to a competitor.
When a customer contacts your company, your goal should be to solve their issue as quickly and efficiently as possible. The first time your customer contacts you should also be the last time they need to contact you.
That’s where first contact resolution (FCR) comes in.
What is First Contact Resolution (FCR)?
First Contact Resolution (FCR) is exactly what it sounds like: the ability of a customer service team to resolve a customer’s issue on the first point of contact. This could be a phone call, email, chat, or in-person conversation.
First Contact Resolution is one of the most important KPIs for customer service teams to track and improve. Raising your FCR rate can lead to higher customer satisfaction, increased loyalty, and even higher revenue.
Why is First Contact Resolution Important?
We’ve all been there: you call a company’s customer service line with a simple question, only to be passed between multiple agents, placed on hold, and forced to repeat your question over and over again. It’s a frustrating experience that leaves you feeling like your time and concerns aren’t valued.
That’s where first contact resolution (FCR) comes in. FCR is a key performance indicator (KPI) that measures the percentage of customer service inquiries that are resolved in a single interaction. In other words, it’s a measure of how well your agents are able to resolve customer issues the first time they reach out to your customer service team.
So, why is first contact resolution important? Let’s take a look.
Strategies for Improving First Contact Resolution
First contact resolution is one of the most important customer service KPIs, but it can be difficult to improve. It’s important to remember that FCR is not a one-size-fits-all metric. Instead, it should be tailored to each individual business and its customers.
Here are some strategies for improving first contact resolution:
- Train your agents to deal with complex issues: Many businesses focus their customer service training on how to handle simple, routine issues. However, it’s equally important to train your agents on how to deal with complex problems. This can help to improve FCR and reduce the number of times customers need to contact your business.
- Use customer feedback to identify common issues: One of the best ways to improve first contact resolution is to identify and address the most common customer complaints. You can do this by collecting and analyzing customer feedback. This will help you to identify the root causes of issues and develop strategies for resolving them more efficiently.
- Provide self-service options: Self-service customer support tools, such as knowledge bases and FAQs, can help to improve first contact resolution by allowing customers to find the answers to their questions on their own. This can reduce the number of times customers need to contact your business and improve overall customer satisfaction.
- Monitor and measure first contact resolution: It’s important to monitor and measure your first contact resolution rate on an ongoing basis. This will help you to identify trends and patterns, and develop strategies for improving FCR over time.
- Use customer service software: Customer service software can help you to improve first contact resolution by providing your agents with the information and tools they need to resolve customer issues more efficiently.
1. Understand the Most Common Customer Issues
The first step in improving your first contact resolution rate is understanding the most common customer issues. This will help you identify any recurring problems and develop strategies to solve them more quickly.
One of the best ways to understand the most common customer issues is to look at your customer support data. This can help you identify any trends or patterns that may be causing problems for your customers.
You can also use your customer support data to identify any potential issues before they become major problems. This can help you develop proactive strategies to solve customer problems more quickly and effectively.
2. Implement a Knowledge Base
If your support team is answering the same questions over and over, they are not resolving issues efficiently. They are wasting time, and your customers are likely becoming frustrated.
One way to avoid this is by implementing a knowledge base. A knowledge base is a centralized repository where your team can store information about your products, services, and policies. It allows you to create articles, guides, and videos that answer common questions and provide solutions to common problems.
When a customer reaches out to your support team, they can search the knowledge base for an answer and provide it to the customer. This allows your team to resolve issues more quickly and effectively, and it also frees up time for them to focus on more complex issues.
In addition, a knowledge base can help you improve your first contact resolution rate by providing your customers with a self-service option. This allows them to find answers to their questions and solutions to their problems on their own, without having to contact your support team.
3. Use a Help Desk Ticketing System
One of the best ways to track customer issues and ensure they are being resolved effectively is to use a help desk ticketing system. These systems allow you to create a ticket for each customer issue, which can then be assigned to the appropriate team member for resolution.
With a ticketing system, you can easily see which customer issues are still open and need to be addressed, and which have been resolved. You can also track how long it takes to resolve each issue, which can help you identify any areas where your team may need to improve.
In addition to tracking customer issues, a help desk ticketing system can also help you better manage your team’s time and resources. By assigning tickets to specific team members, you can ensure that everyone is working on the most important issues and that no customer problems fall through the cracks.
4. Train Your Support Agents
Training your support agents is a great way to ensure they have the skills and knowledge they need to resolve customer issues quickly and effectively. Make sure your agents are familiar with your products and services, as well as your support processes and procedures.
You should also provide ongoing training and team-building activities to help your support agents stay up-to-date on the latest developments in your industry and your business. This will help them provide more informed and helpful support to your customers.
In addition to training, you should also provide your support agents with the tools and resources they need to do their jobs effectively. This could include access to a knowledge base, customer support software, and other resources.
5. Monitor First Contact Resolution
Monitoring your FCR rate is key to understanding how well your customer service team is doing. If you notice your rate is low, you can take steps to improve it, such as providing additional training to your team or investing in new technology.
On the other hand, if you notice your FCR rate is high, you can use that information to help you identify what your team is doing right. You can then use that knowledge to help you improve other areas of your business.
6. Ask for Customer Feedback
A great way to gauge your team’s performance and improve your customer service strategy is to ask for customer feedback.
You can do this by sending out customer satisfaction surveys after a customer’s issue has been resolved.
You can also ask for feedback on your team’s performance during the resolution process itself.
For example, you can ask customers if they felt that their issue was resolved quickly and effectively.
By asking for customer feedback, you can identify areas for improvement and make sure that your team is delivering top-notch customer service.
7. Provide Self-Service Options
Many customers prefer to find answers on their own. The quicker and easier it is for customers to find answers on their own, the higher your FCR rates will be.
Self-service options include FAQs, knowledge base articles, video tutorials, and more. Make sure your self-service options are easy to find and easy to use. For example, you can create a search bar on your website where customers can type in their questions and find answers.
You can also provide self-service options in your IVR system. For example, you can set up a system that allows customers to type in their questions and get answers. This can help you resolve issues quickly and effectively.
8. Use a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System
Finally, you can use a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to keep track of all of your customer interactions and data.
A CRM system is a technology that lets you manage all of your company’s relationships and interactions with customers and potential customers. It helps you stay connected to customers, streamline processes, and improve profitability.
By using a CRM system, you can easily access all of the information you need to resolve customer issues quickly and effectively. This can help you improve your first contact resolution rate, as well as your overall customer satisfaction.
Conclusion
First contact resolution is one of the most important KPIs for customer service teams. By resolving customer issues efficiently and effectively on the first call, you can improve customer satisfaction, reduce customer churn, and increase the likelihood of customers referring your business to others.
