Call centers need a way to efficiently and effectively direct calls. Otherwise, their agents can quickly end up overwhelmed. That’s where call routing.
With call routing, a contact center can ensure their customers speak to precisely the right person without excessive hold times or transfers. Call routing software automatically distributes incoming calls based on a wide rang of criteria, ensuring your customers talk to the right person at the right time.
Let’s talk about how call routing works, the types of call routing, and the benefits of call routing.
What is Call Routing?
Call routing is a sophisticated call management feature that automatically directs incoming calls to a specific person or group in a call center based on pre-established rules and criteria.
Also known as Automatic Call Distributors (ACD), call routing systems streamline customer communications, resulting in faster calls and a higher first call resolution rate. Leveraging call routing can also help a contact center significantly improve agent productivity.
How Does Call Routing Work?
A call routing system manages inbound calls through several key phases: qualification, queuing, and distribution.
Qualifying Phase
The call routing process starts the moment a contact center receives an inbound call. Customers identify themselves and their reason for reaching out via user prompts, typically delivered by an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system or an auto attendant.
Queuing Phase
Once the phone system has identified the reason for an incoming call, it places the call into the appropriate queue. Most routing strategies prioritize calls based on several call attributes, including customer details, criticality, and agent availability.
Finally, the call is delivered to the most suitable agent according to the rules and criteria set by the contact center or team. This structured approach ensures that calls are managed efficiently and directed to the right person, minimizing wait times and improving customer satisfaction.
Some common call forwarding criteria include:
Inbound Telephone Number
Using the area code and prefix, the call routing phone system can determine where the caller originates then match them to an appropriate representative to take their call.
Originating Time Zone
Similarly to analyzing the incoming number, the call routing system can determine the time zone where the caller originates and direct their call to an agent in the same time zone
Interactive Voice Response
IVR allows the caller to speak their needs then the call routing system uses artificial intelligence analysis to determine where best to route the caller.
Automated Option Selection
An automated virtual attendant offers the incoming caller options to select from to inform the system why their calling. Based on which options are selected, the call routing system transfers the caller to the appropriate agent.
Intelligent Call Routing
The call routing system’s artificial intelligence matches the caller to an agent based on that agent’s strengths and skills — sort of like an advanced form of skills-based routing.
How to Implement a Call Routing System
Clear call routing rules are essential for maintaining strong customer relationships, ensuring customer issues are resolved quickly and without wait times. In most cases, it should take just a few minutes for a caller to have their problem solved.
Here are a few options to choose from:
Agent Queue
As each agent wraps up a customer call, they are placed into an availability queue. Incoming calls route to the agent who has been available the longest.
Simultaneous
When an incoming call is received, every available agent’s phone will ring. The first person who answers their phone first gets the call.
Weighted
Each agent is assigned a percentage of incoming calls. Calls may be weighted through skill-based routing, percentage routing, or how frequently each agent achieves a first call resolution.
Direct Call Routing
This strategy routes calls to a specific agent or team, ensuring that callers are connected with the right person immediately.
Automated Call Routing
Utilizing an IVR system, this method gathers information from the caller and routes the call to the most appropriate agent based on their needs.
Skills-Based Call Routing
Calls are directed to agents based on their specific skills and availability, ensuring that callers receive the best possible assistance.
Intelligent Call Routing
This advanced strategy uses defined rules, such as agent skills, priorities, and geography, to route calls intelligently.
Time-Based Routing
Calls are routed based on the agent’s business hours and region, ensuring that calls are handled during appropriate times.
List-Based Routing
Calls are directed to a fixed list or prioritized agents, ensuring that high-priority calls are handled first. This is also known as sequential routing or fixed order routing.
Round-Robin Routing
This method distributes calls evenly among agents in a circular manner, ensuring a balanced workload.
Least Occupied Routing
Calls are routed to agents who have the lowest talk time, received the fewest calls, or have the most available time, optimizing agent utilization.
What Are the Benefits of a Call Routing Strategy?
Have you ever dialed into a company’s customer support line only to be transferred multiple times and still not receive help?
Then you understand the frustration poorly-implemented call distribution can create. How effectively your system routes callers can well make the difference between retention and churn. Contact centers that consistently direct calls to the right place deliver both an improved customer experience and a better agent experience.
Here are a few reasons why:
Reduces Hold Times: Most call centers will want to deploy a business phone system that routes callers to the best contact based on a combination of agent availability, skill level, and customer preferences.
Efficient Management of Inbound Calls: Reduced waiting times aren’t the only way call centers can offer a better customer experience. IVR systems and automated call routing can even further streamline the customer support process.
Balanced Call Flows: A contact center with long call queues or a routing engine that repeatedly directs calls to the wrong agent creates a poor customer experience, directly impacting your bottom line.
Limits Calls Outside Regular Business Hours: Closed overnight or on the weekend? Call routing can prevent evening callers from overwhelming your system by requesting they call back during business hours, forwarding them to voicemail, or connecting them to third-party support.
Best Practices for Call Routing
To ensure effective call routing, consider implementing the following best practices:
Check Your Rules: Establish clear and precise rules and criteria to ensure calls are directed to the right agent or team.
Use IVR Menus: Implement IVR menus to gather information from callers and route calls to the most appropriate agent based on their needs.
Monitor Call Volume: Regularly monitor call volume and adjust call distribution to prevent agent overload and ensure efficient call handling.
Provide Custom Greetings: Use custom greetings to inform callers about how to route themselves to the right department, enhancing the caller experience.
Set Fallback Options: Establish fallback options for unanswered calls to minimize missed opportunities.
Use Analytics: Leverage analytics to track call volume patterns, average speed to answer, missed calls, and call duration. Use this data to refine the IVR menu and improve call routing.
Integrate with CRM: Integrate call routing with CRM systems to automatically log activities and calls, providing a seamless experience for both agents and customers.
Provide Multilingual Support: Offer multilingual support to cater to diverse customer needs, ensuring that language barriers do not hinder customer service.
Offer In-Queue Callback: Provide in-queue callback options so customers have an alternative to waiting on hold.
By following these best practices, businesses can optimize their call routing systems, deliver a better customer experience, and enhance overall operational efficiency.
The Positives of Inbound Calls Are Plentiful
Boost productivity with agent-friendly solutions that provide an intuitive experience for your customers.
Direct call routing offers a streamlined—and cost-effective—opportunity to engage your customers better and boost productivity in the workplace.
Are you tired of losing business because you can’t handle higher call volumes or transfer calls to the right people fast enough? Define a clear call routing strategy and precise call routing rules to ensure calls are directed to the correct agent or team. Call routing will help, and Momentum can help you implement it.
Contact Momentum today to get started.
