09.02.2022 |
When it comes to contacting a company, even today the choice often falls on a traditional channel: The telephone. The popularity of the telephone as a communication channel can sometimes lead to high call volumes in the contact center.
To manage this volume and ensure an optimal customer experience, the use of an ACD system is a good idea. In our guide, you will find all the information you need on how an ACD solution works, where it is used and the benefits it offers.
How ACD works
ACD stands for Automatic Call Distribution and refers to the intelligent distribution of calls based on individual requirements. The distribution is carried out according to certain rules and can be based on various factors such as call volume, telephone number or skill profile of the call center agents. For example, analyzing the caller number can ensure that the caller is connected directly to the agent responsible for him or her. Thanks to the cloud infrastructure, it does not matter where the agents are geographically located: All locations merge into one virtual call center.
Use Cases of Automatic Call Distribution
ACD systems can be used in all companies and organizations – regardless of industry or size. Automatic call distribution plays a key role in making workflows in the company efficient and smooth. ACD makes optimal use of resources in the company to provide the best possible customer experience and to meet increasing customer demands.
For example, an ACD solution is suitable for reducing waiting times for callers and internal forwarding by agents. Callers reach their destination without delay and their query can be resolved more quickly. An ACD can also be used to ensure an uniform workload for employees internally. In this way, calls can be specifically assigned to agents who have not received a call for the longest time or who have the least call time.
Automatic call distribution is also ideal if centralized communication via a call center is required. With a call center ACD, all processes can be managed and monitored in one system.
Another field of application for intelligent call control is the topic-specific distribution of incoming calls. This means that the caller is assigned to the employee with the required expertise. For this purpose, the topic is queried in advance, e.g. by an IVR menu, and the answers are matched with the employee’s skill profiles. This type of Automatic Call Distribution is also called skill-based routing.
Agent control via API: Uniform & central
To enable an even easier handling of the ACD, it may be useful to link it to third-party systems. TENIOS offers such an interface: Systems can be connected via the Voice API, simplifying agent control within the ACD. Third-party systems can be customer systems such as CRM, ERP, ticketing, sales or other customer service systems. Through the connection, settings from the customer system can be transferred directly to the ACD.
This integration enables central agent control: If a call center agent logs on to the company’s internal customer system, the information is transferred directly to TENIOS and the agent is also activated here. This means that no additional configuration is required in the TENIOS web interface to use the ACD. The figure shows the link between the two systems:
The “access-key” is used to authenticate the request. The e-mail address is used to assign the agent between the customer/third-party system and the TENIOS ACD.
The following request is sent to activate an agent:
In this case, the status to be assigned – here “READY” – is sent along with “access-key” and “email”. The parameter for deactivating an agent is “NOT_READY”.
What are the advantages of an ACD?
In addition to control via Voice API, the TENIOS ACD system offers a number of other benefits that can improve your call center management a lot.
+ Best accessibility anytime & anywhere
Intelligent call distribution allows a constant service level to be maintained and your callers benefit from a consistently high level of availability. The use of skill profiles also ensures that the customer ends up directly with the right contact person. The use of the ACD reduces the load on your own telecommunication resources significantly, as incoming calls can be processed directly within the network.
+ Saves connection costs
The ACD also scores in regard to cost efficiency: If there is an overflow of calls to other locations during high call volumes, there are no forwarding costs. Furthermore, the introduction of ACD does not require any investment in complex technical systems.
+ Satisfaction for all parties
By using automatic call distribution, customer inquiries can be processed more quickly, as unnecessary forwarding is avoided. This increases customer satisfaction and reduces the workload of your service staff.
+ Flexibly scalable according to your needs
The TENIOS ACD is characterized by flexibility and scalability and can be configured to meet your individual needs. Our user-friendly web interface allows you to make adjustments to your ACD system at any time in case your requirements change.
The benefits of our ACD solution at a glance
- Improved accessibility
- Faster issue handling
- Skill-based routing
- Agent control via Voice API
- No forwarding costs
- No initial investment
- Increased customer satisfaction
- Flexible scalability
You would like to manage processes in your contact center centrally and distribute incoming calls in the best way possible? With TENIOS ACD, calls are distributed fully automatically to your call center agents according to your individual requirements. Contact us, we will be happy to advise you.