Predictive Diallers – They’re Only as Good as Your Data
A dialler will call a list of telephone numbers that have been uploaded to it and then connect the call to a person that works within the call centre, typically referred to as an agent. A predictive dialler takes this concept a step further by using complex algorithms that are designed to reduce the amount of time that an agent will spend waiting for the next call, whilst reducing the chances of a call being made to somebody and there being no agent to speak with them.
Whilst it is clear that there are significant efficiency gains to be had by using a predictive dialler, the success or failure of the agents working within the contact centre will depend almost exclusively on the quality of the data that has been uploaded to the dialler for the various campaigns of the call centre. Below are four things to consider in this regard:
- Agent productivity will be higher with quality data
Whilst predictive diallers have been proven to improve agent efficiency significantly, if the data is bad in respect of inactive numbers, an agent is likely to be waiting much longer for a call to be passed through to them. - A call centre will need more capacity to dial bad data
If your dialler is dialling bad data, then it is going to have to work much harder, and dial through much more data in order to get a call answered and patched through an agent. Even if a call is made to bad data, it is still a call that needs to be made and capacity provisioned for calls such as this. - Call costs could be higher
Bad data will typically have mobile phone numbers that aren’t active, or go straight through to a voicemail service as the number is no longer being used. As a consequence of this, if the call connects to a voicemail service, then the call will still be charged even though an agent hasn’t had an opportunity to speak to somebody. Therefore, bad data can increase the costs of calling. - More data will be required to hit targets
If a predictive dialler is running through data quickly because the data is bad, then logic would dictate that you are going to need more data in order to achieve the targets set within the call centre. Data costs money, and if you are running through data without getting the contact rates you would expect, then this money is being wasted.
Overall, it is strikingly obvious that the better data you use, the more productive your agents are going to be, the less capacity your dialler will use, the less you will spend on call charges, and the less data you will need to achieve targets. In summary, data needs to be managed carefully in order to ensure a call centre remains efficient.