Dream House Design for Your Digital Support Channels

How Salesforce Can Simplify All Types of Customer Communication

You’re designing your new dream house. Equipped with an unlimited budget and endless space, you might opt for a swimming pool AND a state-of-the-art gym AND a hot tub. Why not?!

Of course, reality comes with a few constraints. As a homeowner-to-be, you have to focus on covering all the basics first, like having enough bathrooms. You’ll only get some cool perks. You might afford a finished basement or a huge backyard, but not both. Then, as your needs evolve over time, you can decide it’s time to knock down a few walls and redecorate.

Configuring your digital support channels is similar. There’s so many different types of channels, few businesses will have them all. But quantity matters far less than thoughtful design.

Modern customers expect fast, intuitive support available across channels and devices. No one wants to repeat the same question over and over. So, whatever channels you choose, they must connect seamlessly, giving you a 360 degree view of each customer. Like a well-appointed home, your communications system should be both pleasant and functional.

Salesforce can help you go digital for every kind of support channel:

Email

Thanks to the email-to-case application, support queries from customers go into Salesforce directly, as opposed to an overcrowded inbox. In fact, messages can be directed to specific internal channels when using addresses such as @sales or @support. Happily, this solid foundation is available out-of-the-box.

When agents reply out of Salesforce directly, the system is building out a customer history. So for instance, if an agent wants to review how many times they’ve supported the same customer at the end of a year, the information is easily accessible.

Since cases are created automatically, setting up internal custom routing follows naturally. Maybe for your team, you want to route by availability, make sure everyone gets the same number of cases, set up a round-robin system, or assign based on some other criteria.

Another useful aspect of email-to-case is that customers can send attachments, such as photos of defective products. These photos are then visible under the support ticket or Salesforce case.

Phone

When customers call with support issues, the calls are logged along with notes taken by agents. This way, if a customer is unhappy later, the agent can reference the recording to understand exactly what happened. So, Salesforce offers a comprehensive way to keep track of all phone interactions, whether using a custom CTI or Lightning Dialer.

When agents are using Salesforce Lightning Dialer for outbound calls, they benefit from a dialing feature, in-call notes and automatic recordings. For inbound calls, an agent won’t be able to identify a new customer, but existing customers are automatically matched with their records. Phone is a traditional channel but these added features give it a much-needed refurbishment.

SMS

SMS messaging is supported for Facebook and WhatsApp. Agents can interact with customers over these channels in real-time. For the customers this is a plus because they don’t have to navigate to a different website.

Customers can even get help from bots as opposed to agents. Sophisticated bots can understand photographs shared by customers, which makes interactions that much more efficient. Regardless of whether the conversation is with a human agent or bot, Salesforce logs the details for future reference.

Social media

When prospects or customers have a question or concern, they often turn to social media. Salesforce will automatically create cases whenever such a message is detected.

Agents also benefit from a smart list of suggested help articles, so they don’t always have to compile a new reply. This frees up time in the same way as a reliable dishwasher. Of course, Salesforce also compiles the social interactions of each customer into a detailed history.

Chatbot

You’ve probably already seen website chatbots from a customer perspective. This helpful resource answers your basic questions or transfers you to a live agent. Chatbots are all about rapidly directing prospects and customers to the right resources.

Webform

Whenever a troubled customer fills out a web form, Salesforce creates a case. The system will then route the case to the right agent. This same process works for new leads as well. Webforms are as basic as load-bearing walls, but can be executed as elegantly as Greek columns.

In the case of a mortgage company, a new lead hopeful for a loan would fill out a webform, which would automatically create a lead in Salesforce. Then, the sales team would receive an email alert. This new lead will now be part of a queue where the soonest available agent can reply, whether by phone or email.

Surveys

Building out custom surveys is straightforward in Salesforce. Companies can send links directly to customers, who are then directed to a survey page where they can fill out details. Salesforce collects this information and produces reports analyzing individual agent performance and overall customer satisfaction.

Companies can create different kinds of surveys across channels, such as in a website chatbot. Or even closing a support ticket can automatically trigger an email survey. It all depends on the blueprint that particular team has drawn.

Lightning Scheduler

Lightning Scheduler is a Salesforce product that allows businesses to book appointments with customers and prospects. For instance, a customer might want a consultation with a financial planning advisor. On the bank website, this customer inputs their ZIP code sees available branches based on distance. Once they’ve selected the branch and the reason for the appointment, they choose among all available time slots.

When the appointment is booked, the bank can send an automatic confirmation email, custom reminder emails and even options for cancelling or rescheduling. Sending these custom emails is an out-of-the-box capability with Lightning Scheduler.

Self-service portals

Much like a detached garage, portals are separate spaces. For instance, a gig economy worker would log in to an online portal to review their money earned, tax details, W2 forms and other personal information. They could also submit help requests from this page.

Note that portals are a type of community. A community is simply a website hosted on Salesforce; it can take the form of a portal, help forum, support site or even an HR center. Communities are useful because users can chat with and resolve problems for fellow members. When support groups take on a life of their own, agents are free to attend to other issues.

HVS

Salesforce High Velocity Sales is a product that defines your sales process. New leads are nurtured through a specific series of steps called a “cadence.”

This cadence saves salespeople from having to memorize each step and automates prospect communication. For instance, every new lead receives a carefully scripted call. If a particular lead doesn’t pick up, the system will automatically send out an email. On the other hand, if the lead is receptive to the phone message, they’ll get a different email featuring a special offer.

These steps will continue across phone, email and SMS, converting leads to customers. It’s another way of providing digital support to interested parties.

Inbox

An Outlook or Gmail integration to Salesforce allows agents to log emails and create a customer history. This way, Salesforce keeps track of all customer interactions.

Working directly from an email inbox is faster. Also, salespeople and support agents get the option to send appointment booking links and use email templates for custom brand looks. The difference between working directly from email and integrating with Salesforce is as dramatic as outfitting a house with solar panels and smart speakers; it might look similar but works better.

Omni-channel Routing Engine

No single Salesforce license will get you all 11 aforementioned capabilities. Happily, the omni-channel routing engine is free out-of-the-box.

Customers initiate requests in different channels, such as SMS, chat or even Facebook Messenger. Next, these support tickets or new leads go into a queue and are routed based on agent availability. Routing can even be done depending on skill. For companies with hundreds of products and services, quickly finding an agent with the correct specialization is paramount.

This free routing engine also manages priorities, capacities and availability so agents automatically receive work. Supervisors are thrilled to view workloads in real-time. Omni-channel is a lot like plumbing: you usually don’t even think about it, but if anything goes wrong it’s a real mess.

It’s Time to Break Ground

You could be totally new to digital support systems. Or perhaps you’re already using some of these communications channels and you’re ready to revamp and experiment with others.

Now that you know exactly what each channel can do, you can make an informed decision. With Salesforce, the key is that all these channels are connected, so none of your customers fall through the cracks. Support ought to be available anytime, anyplace, at the users’ convenience.

Just imagine a customer calling with a tricky support query. Life intervenes and the customer can’t stay on the line. This person might go to the website after hours and interact with a smart chatbot that provides the needed resource. Or they might send an SMS and immediately pick up where they left off. Even when interacting with a new agent, they won’t need to explain the situation all over again thanks to Salesforce working behind the scenes, surfacing the customer history to the right customer service reps. This is the type of seamless experience your team could deliver. Additionally, management will be able to dive into analytics. Insights into existing customer interactions could fuel further CX improvements.

If you’re not sure how to get started, think of us as your helpful construction crew. We can set up a system that saves time, allowing agents to focus on delighting your tech-savvy customers.