Dont

confuse self-service with no service

Rob Bamforth, Principal Analyst

Quocirca Comment
Quocirca has recently published a free checklist to help those looking at investing in self-service solutions. So, why might it be useful? Well, there has been a rush in the UK in recent retail situations towards customer self-service and automation. Pay at pump petrol stations, self-checkout tills and so on. The reasons for this are presented as customer convenience, but it is pretty clear that it is all too often about cutting costs and too little thought is given as to how to how it might affect the overall customer experience. Specialist retailers will argue they have to do this in order to compete with either online or other higher footfall locations such as supermarkets, hypermarkets and shopping malls. There may be some truth in this, but by simply commoditising the shopping experience, those making knee-jerk decisions to automate customer service run the risk of further business decline. Clearly something is amiss as so many major and well established specialist companies have and continue to disappear, mainly with a wail about habits have changed, its all gone online after they have narrowed stock ranges, made the stores feel like warehouses and trained the staff to be as friendly as bent nail. The best (and surviving) retailers whether online, mobile or physical stores provide service excellence irrespective of the technology or channel. Automation and self-service has a very important part to play in all these routes to the market, but it has to be delivered with the customer in mind, not simply as a cost cutting exercise. The first thing to realise is that self-service is not a standalone tool or alternative to existing processes, but has to be integrated into the wider business in order to be successful. It should be viewed as a strategic and wellresearched investment, not a simple tactical option. For this reason, the decision making process of how to implement self-service and what solutions or tools to should be implemented has to be well thought out and comprehensive. To start with, an organisation must identify why the move the self-service is being made in the first place and what the main requirements are. There may be cost reduction element, but how important are other matters such as increasing cross-channel co-ordination or improving customer service levels and internal communications? For example are customers automatically invited to chat if their website interaction indicates they might need help or can support agents see what customers have done, requested or replied in order to avoid duplication of effort on the part of the customer? However, this process may reveal that there are underlying issues with poor business systems, such as lack of a formal handover at shift changes or problem departments e.g. a technical group refusing to get involved in customer contact. These will need to be addressed separately to the implementation process as simply deploying self-service alone will not fix these internal problems. Next consider which suppliers will need to be approached and investigated. As well as taking the partisan views of the vendors themselves and some of their tame customers, dig deeper and find out the broader market perspectives from a wider mix of customers, perhaps through trade shows and conferences. Industry analyst perceptions may also be valuable, but be aware that some analyst houses may overlook specialist or niche vendors and it is best to take a broad view. The bulk of any product or service suitability assessment will come down to comparing

Dont confuse self-service with no service

http://www.quocirca.com

2013 Quocirca Ltd

features and functions, and a checklist will be useful. However, as this is an important investment, it is always important to check the people, company and its current client base of an intended supplier to get the full insight.

It is never easy going through the process by oneself, and even self-service benefits from some sort of external guidance. So for an idea of how to approach the self-service product and vendor selection process, download a free checklist. This article first appeared http://www.computerweekly.com on

Dont confuse self-service with no service

http://www.quocirca.com

2013 Quocirca Ltd

About Quocirca
Quocirca is a primary research and analysis company specialising in the business impact of information technology and communications (ITC). With world-wide, native language reach, Quocirca provides in-depth insights into the views of buyers and influencers in large, mid-sized and small organisations. Its analyst team is made up of realworld practitioners with first-hand experience of ITC delivery who continuously research and track the industry and its real usage in the markets. Through researching perceptions, Quocirca uncovers the real hurdles to technology adoption the personal and political aspects of an organisations environment and the pressures of the need for demonstrable business value in any implementation. This capability to uncover and report back on the end-user perceptions in the market enables Quocirca to advise on the realities of technology adoption, not the promises. Quocirca research is always pragmatic, business orientated and conducted in the context of the bigger picture. ITC has the ability to transform businesses and the processes that drive them, but often fails to do so. Quocircas mission is to help organisations improve their success rate in process enablement through better levels of understanding and the adoption of the correct technologies at the correct time. Quocirca has a pro-active primary research programme, regularly surveying users, purchasers and resellers of ITC products and services on emerging, evolving and maturing technologies. Over time, Quocirca has built a picture of long term investment trends, providing invaluable information for the whole of the ITC community. Quocirca works with global and local providers of ITC products and services to help them deliver on the promise that ITC holds for business. Quocircas clients include Oracle, IBM, CA, O2, T-Mobile, HP, Xerox, Ricoh and Symantec, along with other large and medium sized vendors, service providers and more specialist firms.

Full access to all of Quocircas public output (reports, articles, presentations, blogs and videos) can be made at http://www.quocirca.com

Dont confuse self-service with no service

http://www.quocirca.com

2013 Quocirca Ltd