by Colin Taylor The rapid advancement of conversational AI has had a profound impact on various industries, and one arena that has been significantly affected is the contact center industry. The dialogue surrounding the potential replacement of human agents with AI-driven conversational systems has been ongoing for decades, with technology continuously evolving to redefine customer interactions. Here, I’d like to delve into the journey of conversational AI within the contact center industry, exploring its history, challenges, and its role in shaping the future of Customer Experience.  ..read more

We are excited to announce the merger of SKWeston & Company (SKW) and the Taylor Reach Group (TRG), and the acquisition of this merged company by Jerry Briggs. The merger of TRG with SKW The Taylor Reach Group is a globally recognized contact center and customer experience consulting firm, specializing in sourcing strategies, customer experience, customer service/support, and contact center assessments. TRG examines people, process, technological aspects of center operations and strategic vision, with alignment to business goals for contact centers of any size, across all verticals. TRG ..read more

by Colin Taylor I was in Las Vegas last week attending and speaking at Call & Contact Center Expo US and it was a great time. I got to see a number of familiar faces and meet a bunch of new friends. I also saw a lot of very interesting technologies. I was particularly impressed by some of the agent-assist capabilities and the real-time noise-canceling technologies. I also did a keynote presentation titled “Hope is not a Strategy” which focused on the need for a strategy and a robust plan if you want to be successful. Otherwise, you are condemned to play contact center ‘Whack-a-Mole’ as y ..read more

by Colin Taylor & Peg Ayers  Implementing a new system is one of the biggest risks in a Contact Center. The old system may not have been great, but at least we knew what it could do, and we knew how to do it. Now what? In our years of assisting clients in avoiding the risks and creating successful implementations, we at the Taylor Reach Group have identified eight keys to successful implementations.   Be thoughtful about what you need.  What are your true requirements and what are the nice-to-have features that you might be willing to live without if the price turns o ..read more

By Colin Taylor As I look at the new and shiny year ahead, I wonder what delights and innovations and opportunities may lie ahead for Contact Center operations.  I think in many ways we will finally shake the post-pandemic hangover; we just need to take two aspirin and realize that what we have been dealing with for the past two years was really a realignment. Realignment of healthcare, global supply chains, work locations, employment relationships (quiet quitting, great resignation, etc.) …  We have seen Contact Centers struggle to find and retain workers. More candidates were gho ..read more

By Peg Ayers As Supervisors and Managers, we often feel we must have all the answers. We need to share our great experience and knowledge with those on our teams. We’ve been promoted for our skills, and we need to make sure everybody understands that. This can lead to coaching conversations where we spend more time talking than listening. If your goal is to develop your people, consider spending more time listening and less time instructing. Why listen instead of talking? Buy In: Everybody’s more interested in doing something when it’s their idea. Credibility: Showing a willingness to learn ..read more

By Colin Taylor We are now into the fourth quarter of the year. Retail and ecommerce firms are gearing up for the holiday season, which means more staff. But where are they going to find more staff? It is hard to find new staff. We can blame the Great Resignation if we like, but where did all of the workers go? Have all of the frontline agents found new rewarding and well-paying jobs? Certainly, some have, but I think many people have decided to take a pause. Sure, some are opening a shop, trying their hands at gig work, changing careers, and certainly some have shifted completely out of the ..read more

By Colin Taylor [This post was adapted from a webinar that Colin Taylor delivered for Customer Contact Central on September 8, 2022. You can see the replay here while available: https://www.customercontactcentral.com/frs/22041151/top-industry-secrets-for-successful-contact-center-scripting/email] There has been a continuous evolution in scripting since we were taping printed copies onto cubicle walls. There are primarily 4 different types of scripts that are employed in contact centers and many variations on these. Traditional scripts These are the type I was writing 35 years ago. These outl ..read more

By Colin Taylor [This post was adapted from a webinar that Colin Taylor delivered for Customer Contact Central on September 8, 2022. You can see the replay here while available: https://www.customercontactcentral.com/frs/22041151/top-industry-secrets-for-successful-contact-center-scripting/email] When we think of a script a number of things can come to mind: The Cambridge English Dictionary defines it as both ”the words of a film, play, broadcast, or speech” and as “a piece of paper on which a doctor writes the details of the medici ..read more

A visionary leader in PC gaming and peripherals development and manufacturing has called in The Taylor Reach Group, Inc. (TRG) to provide an assessment of its critical Customer Service and Technical Support Contact Center Operations. The company’s global and online presence, with a highly demanding audience, means it needs to be able to create a consistent and successful customer experience across multiple brands and lines of business. The challenge they face is in coordinating multiple contact centers, with operations ranging from pre-sales to technical support. Ensuring consistent, efficien ..read more