CAN A BUSINESS WITH LIMITED DIGITAL SELF-SERVICE TRANSFORM TO DCS?

If digital self-serve is limited and online experiences are more informational (the customer simply visits the website or mobile app to learn more but can't do much other than read or watch content), then the value of DCS will depend largely on the volume of customers that engage in these digital experiences. When traffic is substantial, DCS is still very valuable. It empowers the business to serve customers where they are (in their primary entry point). All that said, if the business has no digital presence, then DCS will be limited to powering a Messaging / Social approach (SMS, Apple Business Chat, WhatsApp, etc.).

Robust digital self-serve experiences greatly amplify the OnScreen Enhancements that an organization provides. When customers have the opportunity to complete processes online, DCS introduces virtual or live assistance right at the point of need. The customer is on the website, portal, or app working through an issue, and a bot or agent can jump right into the process with context. This creates a much lower-effort experience for customers and contributes to greater customer loyalty.

HOW WILL DCS OPERATE IF OUR COMPANY HAS AN EXISTING CRM PLATFORM?

When we consider how DCS fits with CRM systems (customer relationship management), the same logic applies to any system of record (such as a policy admin or ERP platform). DCS acts as a nimble layer on top of any information source or database by integrating and surfacing the right information and exporting it back – in some cases to an agent, and in others directly to the customer. Since many organizations have systems of record in place already, they prefer to layer DCS on top of those systems as a system of interaction.

For example, in an OnScreen Voice interaction, the DCS platform could analyze the conversation, detect that the customer has made a similar purchase in the past, and surface information from the CRM about that specific transaction to the agent. Once the interaction is over, the transcript of the conversation is exported back to the CRM. Instead of the agent digging through the CRM to find the details needed for the customer, DCS provides an intelligence layer to retrieve and export the information that is necessary.

It is worth noting that some CRM systems offer certain elements of DCS natively or are partners with DCS vendors to offer some OnScreen Enhancements. However, it tends to be far more effective to specialize DCS within its own interface because CRM systems are not optimized as systems of interaction.

HOW DO CHATBOTS FIT IN WITH DCS?

Chatbots (both agent-assistant as well as the customer-facing bots) are a fundamental part of OnScreen Automation within DCS. As described throughout the book, DCS is not about offering every possible digital channel. It is assembling the necessary ingredients and then determining “which dishes to cook” (or in this case, which customer journeys) based on customer preferences in any given process (as determined by the degree of Exploration Preference and Autonomy Expectation).

Some organizations may have digital processes that are better suited for virtual assistance, some may opt for primarily live assistance – or (as described in Chapter 5) “hybrid” interactions. The most important consideration for the deployment of chatbots (or any form of OnScreen Automation, Collaboration, and Communication) is that bots must fit seamlessly into the other DCS elements that the company provides.

HOW DOES AN EXISTING KNOWLEDGE BASE FIT IN WITH DCS?

Much like CRM, knowledge bases (KBs) are systems that hold information about the business and its products/services. Sometimes, a knowledge base can be a part of a DCS platform and other times organizations have already invested in these systems independently. Much like with an existing CRM system, DCS acts as a nimble layer on top of any existing information source by integrating, surfacing, and exporting the right information at the right time.

For example, an agent is interacting with a customer about an issue with a change of address request and the knowledge base entry is automatically “popped up” to the agent for their reference.

It is worth noting that the most advanced DCS organizations are rebuilding their KBs using chatbots. The reason for this is that KBs are traditionally long-form and static content. However, chatbots are short-form, conversational, and dynamic – making the experience of accessing support information more effortless for customers and agents.

HOW DOES AN SMS/MESSAGING FOCUSED STRATEGY FIT IN WITH DCS?

SMS and messaging are increasingly popular with consumers and are important elements of the OnScreen Communication offerings within DCS. When a business has several digital processes in which customers have high Autonomy Expectation, then SMS and messaging are critical. They allow the customer to request quick assistance while still continuing with their preference to self-serve. These communication options are also especially important when interaction efficiency is the primary key performance indicator (KPI). They allow for multiple interactions to take place at the same time and to continue conversations where they left off, in an asynchronous way at a customer's convenience.

HOW IS DCS DIFFERENT FOR SPECIFIC INDUSTRIES?

DCS is a universal approach regardless of industries (including B2Cs, B2Bs, and hybrids). The main variable is the maturity of digital transformation at each company to date, which tends to vary based on industry. Companies are either digitally “native” or digitally “migrant,” but DCS can lower operating costs and improve customer experience in either case.

For instance, an e-commerce retailer that was established in the last 10–20 years will most likely have a much higher degree of transformation maturity than a brick-and-mortar retailer established in the 1950s. Digitally native organizations tend to operate most processes with the assumption that the majority of customers have high Autonomy Expectation so their DCS approach leans toward virtual instead of live assistance. But since DCS can be activated in a variety of ways that accommodate any industry or company, it can create the same kind of success with any customer base.

HOW DOES DCS WORK IN A “MOBILE” ENVIRONMENT?

DCS is completely device independent. If there is a screen the customer is using to visit your company in any way, OnScreen Enhancements can and should be offered. As more organizations optimize their customer-facing experiences to mobile websites and apps, DCS will become even more essential to create the optimal customer experience. Mobile devices do offer some interesting advantages over desktop DCS interactions. For instance, FaceID, thumbprints, and other biometrics can now be used to speed up the authentication process.

HOW DOES DCS COMPARE TO CCaaS?

Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS) is the term used to describe cloud-based software that powers contact center operations. It is traditionally a “phone-first” approach and offers some digital capabilities (typified by the “Digital-Also” approach described in Chapter 4).

DCS is effectively digital-first CCaaS since it powers the entirety of the contact center (including agents who are taking off-screen phone calls) by introducing OnScreen Enhancements to every interaction. At first, DCS will integrate with CCaaS, but eventually – as organizations strive to digitally transform customer service – DCS will likely replace the CCaaS system.

HOW DOES DCS COMPARE TO AN “OMNI-CHANNEL” CONTACT CENTER?

An omni-channel contact center would be defined as one that offers a variety of options beyond telephony-based contact (chat, email, social, for instance). As such, the contact center is practicing “digital customer service” but it may or may not be achieving true DCS. Vendors that provide omni-channel contact center solutions are mainly phone centric, and the challenge is that digital enhancements are offered in a “bolt-on” fashion. As such, the customer often has to disconnect from one interaction type (such as chat) to start another interaction type (such as voice or video).

DCS platforms are built from the ground up to support digital interaction types. In order for the predominant modality of contact to be considered DCS, OnScreen Enhancements must be available for every type of interaction and the contact center must be focused on “meeting customers where they are” in the midst of their already-digital interaction. Another important aspect of DCS is the ability to move between interaction modes seamlessly, which may not be possible in an omni-channel contact center.

HOW DOES WFM / WFO (WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT / OPTIMIZATION) FIT IN A DCS WORLD?

Most WFM solutions work well with DCS solutions via standard APIs. WFM solutions can get the scheduling data they need from the DCS system. Since DCS agents are generally deployed to handle all types of modalities (text, voice, video), scheduling the workforce is simplified compared to an omni-channel contact center.

WFO solutions can be modified to treat text, voice, and video part of interaction as one engagement. With this modification, analytics and QA processes can be handled as usual with text. Voice and video insights that include a combination of text, voice, and video interactions are available at the engagement level.

HOW WILL IVR TECHNOLOGY CHANGE WITH DCS?

The need for IVR will dissipate as interactions move to DCS. All of the routing, authentication and context formerly offered by those systems will become automated. There is no longer a need to ask a customer if they are looking for Sales or Service, or to enter their customer number, as all of that information can be gathered from their screen experience before the customer ever asks to speak to a representative. As more and more customers use DCS, fewer customers will begin an interaction through IVR.

HOW DOES DCS FIT IN WITH AN ON-PREMISES CALL CENTER?

DCS is not inherently a cloud-based offering (although the best solutions tend to be available as cloud deployments) and can co-exist with an on-prem call center. There are certainly “digital-also” options for DCS that can be utilized by on-prem contact centers and, if the organization is open to it, there are options to offer OnScreen Enhancements from the cloud in an on-prem environment as well.

WHAT ARE SECURITY, PRIVACY, AND COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS FOR DCS?

In a DCS environment, the possibility of data theft is minimized to the lowest level of risk. For instance, an agent should never have to directly request a customer's personal data, because by the time an agent enters an interaction with a customer, that person has likely already been authenticated through the company's website or mobile app. In addition, any text a customer enters is displayed to the agent in real time, but sensitive personal information is automatically masked. Overall, higher levels of data security are achieved by enabling the customer to remain in the digital journey they have already initiated – instead of switching to another system.

HOW WILL AR/VR OR FUTURE TECHNOLOGY CHANGE DCS?

Because DCS is a system that supports customers on their screen instead of the phone, it is a future-proof framework. Newer technologies like AR/VR are simply another screen or entry point where organizations are able to meet the customer. By incorporating OnScreen Collaboration, Automation, and Communication from within AR/VR, it is possible to extend DCS to these experiences.