subject: What Is Fcr And Why Should Call Center Owners Care [print this page] Improving first call resolution is a buzz in the answering service industry right now. If you are unfamiliar with the term, it describes the steps that call center agents take to resolve calls which should be the shortest "distance" you need to travel to resolve a problem. In other words, any call center wants to hear from you once if you have a problem, and only once. They want to resolve that issue in the shortest amount of time making you a happy customer and keeping their customers invoices as low as possible so they continue to use their service. High first call resolution (FCR) keep invoices down and harbors better customer relations, it helps the contact center agents to bond better with the customers and build a rapport of trust. Better FCR means the customer is confident in the agents working on behalf of the company and trust the service / product they are calling about.
FCR refers to a process in which the product as well as service related query of the customer is resolved in the very first contact made by the customers. Unlike the mom and pop telephone answering services of the past, the call centers of today know the customer is key. There are too many options out there for customers to not put the concept of FCR in the limelight. This is because FCR helps in enhancing the goodwill of the firm by attracting more and more customers (also termed as lead generation). Better FCR helps the call center as much as the customers they are answering for. The agents can answer more calls, they come across as more professional, and the call center increases their profits. It's a win-win-win situation!
Think of FCR like a great psychologist. The clients flock to that psychologist because they are able to get to the root of their issues quickly and solve them. The great call center is much like a great psychologist & attracts customers because they accomplish the same feats. The call centers executives are trained professionals. They are trained to tackle any kind of situation that comes before them and the employers at the contact centers make it a point to train the staff well to improve their footing within the contact center industry.
An enhancement in the FCR percentages essentially leads to increased levels of customer satisfaction, reduced cost of operations, as well as an improvement in the revenue generated by the call centers. FCR stands as a decisive determinant of the customer care metrics and of the success of a call center. But, there is a dark side to only considering FCR in the success of a call center. With more resolution comes more time on the phone during the initial call. If you don't have the staff to support all of your other clients, you will fail. The more time an agent takes in resolving the issue, the handling time increases. FCR and call handling times are inversely related to each other; as one rises, the other falls and vice versa.
However, there is another factor in improving your first call resolution and not having it hurt other customers - it's called automation. The role that technology has played in the contact centers is one that cannot be forgotten. The advancements in telecommunications have helped the contact center agents resolve the concerns of customers without even picking up the phone. If your call center invests in a robust programmable IVR system that can interact with a customer's database, and if you can convince your customers that IVR is not a turn off, you will be successful.
FCR is a great metric but it's not the only element to analyze when trying to get a grasp on the success of any call center. Every other measurable instance must be taken into account like call handling time, abandonment rate, and average cost per call. While technology increases FCR percentages, it can be a tough sell to customers who are looking for a 100% live solution.
