A cloud communications application platform (CCaaS) is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution that companies use to manage their communications and collaboration software in the cloud. A CCaaS platform is typically used by businesses of all sizes and across all industry types, including retail, healthcare, telecoms, media and entertainment, professional services, BFSI, manufacturing, and public sector organizations.
Always-on connectivity has changed the way enterprises run their business, but it hasn’t always been smooth sailing. There were several challenges businesses had to overcome before reaping the inherent benefits of a cloud communications platform (CCaaS). These challenges include achieving better levels of collaboration and improving communications with customers and employees. However, all these challenges have been addressed by enterprise communication solutions available today with the launch of NS1’s enhanced free cloud platform, which has opened up possibilities for businesses to address increasing customer demands while reducing their operating costs.
What is CcaaS?
A CCaaS platform is purpose-built for customer communications. It is designed to provide the tools to manage all aspects of your customer communications – from defining and developing content and documents to preparing, personalizing, and managing them for delivery via all channels. By using a CCaaS provider, you gain access to all of the tools you need from a single source to focus on running your business without thinking about sourcing or managing multiple vendors.
Benefits of a CCaaS Platform
“Interactions with customers have the potential to drive a company’s growth, profitability, and customer loyalty.” However, many companies struggle with integrating disparate communications channels while providing a consistent experience across those channels. As a result, it cannot be easy to realize all of the benefits of customer communications management (CCM).
Below are some reasons why a CCaaS platform can help your company maximize its customer communications efforts:
- Better agent productivity and training
A CCaaS platform makes it easy for businesses to implement a work-from-home model for their customer service agents. Many companies have already begun shifting to this type of model due to the COVID-19 pandemic. CCaaS platforms make it easy for agents to complete tasks such as call transfers, music on hold, call conferencing, and call recordings. It helps them be more productive while working remotely.
With this type of solution in place, businesses can also take advantage of the latest training tools and resources that are available through the platform. It makes it easy for companies to provide ongoing training opportunities and insights to their agents so they can better serve customers.
- More personalized customer service
The latest CCaaS platforms offer a variety of features that make it easier than ever before for customer service agents to handle calls and messages. When agents have access to all of their information in one place, they can provide better customer service because they will be able to answer questions quickly or transfer calls. For example, these solutions help agents rapidly access essential information about each customer while speaking with them or sending back and forth messages.
- Increased reliability, security, and compliance
Cloud contact centers are hosted on secure servers by reliable providers. The system is usually monitored 24/7 for any issues, and updates get made automatically (often behind the scenes) so that technology never gets outdated. Additionally, cloud contact centers are compliant with regulations such as PCI and HIPAA, so you don’t have to worry about legal liabilities.
- Optimal customer experiences
The customer journey is constantly changing, and today’s customers expect more from their interactions with brands. It is vital to have a communication solution that can enable personalized experiences across all channels — voice, messaging, and video — while also providing agents with seamless tools to work efficiently and effectively. A CCaaS platform offers this flexibility by supporting omnichannel communications and providing easy-to-use tools for agents.
- Improved customer retention with business continuity
You get to keep your customers and make them happy by ensuring business continuity. In a world where customer loyalty is hard-won and easily lost, having the ability to offer better customer service could be the difference between winning or losing a customer. It could mean saving a customer from switching over to a competitor when a business can maintain its operations in the face of an emergency such as a natural disaster, pandemic, or any other disruptive event. It sends out an irrefutable signal that it cares about its customers’ needs and will go the extra mile to meet them—even under challenging circumstances.
- A competitive edge
CcaaS provides a competitive edge as it allows you to leverage the latest technology and innovations to offer the best customer experience at all times, improving customer retention and loyalty.
- Rapid time-to-value
The time-to-value for cloud solutions is rapid. With cloud solutions, you can have your contact center up and running quickly, scaling up or down to fit your business’ needs, often with no up-front capital expenditure.
- Increased scalability and flexibility.
Cloud contact centers allow businesses to grow without adding new servers or hiring additional staff. You can add more users or phone lines in minutes simply by upgrading your plan with the cloud.
Choosing a CCaaS provider comes down to your specific needs as a business and which solutions you need to implement. Different providers offer different solutions that might meet your needs better, so do your research before making your decision. At the end of the day, though, a CCaaS platform can help you achieve your business goals by offering many communication solutions, including unified communications tools.
