Credit Card Issuer Transforms Customer Care With iQor’s IVR-to-Chat Options That Meet Customers in Their Preferred Channel

Omnichannel IVR and SMS Optimizes Customer Service With Swift, Seamless, and Secure Payment Experiences

Why iQor?

For nearly 20 years, a leading U.S.-based credit card issuer with a customer base exceeding 15 million has partnered with iQor for business process outsourcing services in customer care and revenue recovery.   

This enduring collaboration reflects the client’s trust in iQor’s agility, innovative custom solutions, and accessible leadership that contribute to an ease of doing business. For decades, iQor has built a reputation for providing proactive and responsive BPO solutions and thought leadership to address our clients’ business needs.  

Recognizing a rising call volume and the diverse needs of their customers, the credit card issuer saw an opportunity to optimize their service. iQor, always looking for ways to optimize CX processes for our client, suggested introducing non-voice options like chat and SMS. This strategic approach would streamline communication and offer customers more convenient touchpoints. 

Agreeing with the initiative’s potential, the client embraced this solution and entrusted iQor to develop a platform specifically tailored for their diverse customer segments.  

Our commitment to open communication—one of our core values—was paramount in expanding the credit card issuer’s digital transformation. We partnered with the client to identify priority performance metrics—in addition to CSAT—for evaluating the SMS program’s impact on customer service quality including: 

1. Quality assurance. 
2. Average handle time.  
3. Concurrency. 

iQor embraced the opportunity to streamline the client’s operations and sustain smile-worthy relationships with their customers. Our BPO solutions accomplish this by empowering frontline customer service teams through artificial intelligence, active learning-inspired contact center training, and an irresistible customer-centric culture. This winning combination enables customer service agents to consistently exceed key performance indicators and develop strong skill sets for revenue generation.

Background

iQor is an established BPO with a global footprint that offers best-in-class customer experience with a reputation for ease of doing business and thought leadership. We have a longstanding partnership with the credit card issuer that supports their business interests with irresistible customer service.  

As a major credit card company with a sizable customer base, our client receives a high volume of calls to make payments and address other inquiries. With the goal of providing their customers the option to receive support in their preferred channels, the client set a target of reducing contact center wait times and improving customer satisfaction by deploying interactive voice response (IVR) and SMS chat channels.   

iQor and the client collaborated to analyze customer segments and identify which ones consistently experience high wait times and can most benefit from expanded omnichannel SMS support capabilities. We shared a mutual goal to improve performance and increase customer satisfaction with BPO solutions that provide consumers options to choose their preferred contact channel.  

We began with data analytics to inform our understanding of customer behaviors, pinpoint the strongest area of opportunity, and guide our suggestions for optimizing the client’s customer service strategy.  

Our track record of reliable, purpose-built outsourced support solidified the client’s confidence in iQor’s ability to strategize, execute with precision, and build lasting customer loyalty.  

Business Opportunity

In lieu of an internet payment option, many of the client’s customers take advantage of the pay-by-phone service and make their payments through ACH transfers or with a debit card.   

Some customers make several small payments each month, increasing call volume. To improve response times for customers calling to make a payment, our client set up a voice-based service line for exclusive use by these customers.  

The client is intent on maintaining high customer satisfaction and loyalty through a hassle-free payment experience that accommodates customer needs in their preferred channels. Prioritizing seamless service with shorter wait times, the credit card issuer partnered with iQor to optimize their customer experience strategy while maintaining current staffing levels.  

iQor suggested the client provide alternatives to waiting on hold for customer segments experiencing higher call volumes and longer wait times. When the wait time is less than five minutes, staffing phones, taking payments, and keeping customers satisfied is a straightforward process. When call times exceed five minutes, the IVR automation system offers callers other options.  

The credit card issuer trusted iQor to recommend a way to serve customers faster through automation and non-voice options that efficiently deliver smile-worthy CX. With customer demand for non-voice and self-service options steadily increasing, iQor embraced the opportunity to create a win-win strategy for the client and their customers. 

42% of customers say phone is their preferred channel for contacting customer service, earning the top spot above email and digital channels. —Statista

Solution

The iQor team leveraged decades of customer service experience, fostering strong communication channels between our CX experts and the client’s business leaders. Our mutually agreed-upon solution was IVR technology that provides cell phone users with the option to smoothly transfer their call to chat or SMS rather than wait for a voice agent while maintaining the same level of customer support they were accustomed to. 

Here’s how chat channels and IVR enable options for concurrency and create better employee and customer experiences: 

1. While voice agents can only help one customer at a time, non-voice agents have the option to support two or more customers at a time based on the client system’s ability without additional cost to the business.  
2. Frontline agents who are empowered with the resources to effectively manage interactions experience more job satisfaction and consistently exceed KPIs.  
3. Customers appreciate access to their preferred channels with the freedom to receive service at a more convenient touchpoint, increasing overall satisfaction. 
4. Quicker response and resolution times incentivize customers to complete payments, boosting revenue generation and sustaining customer loyalty. 

Our client asked iQor to run a pilot program to evaluate their customers’ preference for chat channels or SMS options before implementing it on a larger scale. Together, we developed the best pre-configured responses to integrate into the system to ensure QA scores for these non-voice interactions were as high as for voice interactions. 

To manage the pilot program at a practical scale, we set the criteria to process specific customer inquiries across three segments: 

1. Customers who call to process a phone payment. 
2. Verified cell phone calls placed to our client’s customer service phone line.
3. Calls where enough information is available to process the payments via chat or SMS.  

iQor’s VALDI and sQan Analyze Customer Interactions and Streamline Contact Center Business Operations

To accurately identify these segments, iQor’s data experts used VALDI, our proprietary interaction analytics platform. VALDI uses cloud computing to interpret available data for real-time insights on customer behavior and agent performance.   

This data directs automation strategies that streamline business processes, recommend script improvements, and increase customer satisfaction. VALDI is critical for monitoring customer sentiment in response to the client’s new non-voice channels and guiding self-improvement through advanced machine learning capabilities.   

VALDI’s insights converge with iQor’s sQan platform to provide coaching insights for employees. sQan helps drive higher performance from frontline agents by identifying areas of opportunity and automatically recommending coaching strategies. As frontline agents transition from voice to non-voice interactions, sQan’s insights support their improvement every step of the way. 

Symphony [AI]^TM: Maximizing Employee Performance With the Power of Generative AI

iQor’s BPO solutions harness the latest in artificial intelligence to orchestrate better employee experiences that lead to direct returns in performance.  

Symphony [AI]^TM utilizes our proprietary large language models and accumulated process knowledge composed of unique organizational insights and years of experience delivering contact center services for some of the world’s leading brands.  

Symphony [AI] augments agent performance with artificial intelligence modules, including chatbots and workflow optimization, that maximize customer interactions and create more satisfying employee experiences. This empowers frontline agents and supervisors to deliver the business outcomes our clients want from a world-class customer service strategy. 

Results 

Since completing the pilot phase, the credit card issuer has achieved lower wait times and exceptional QA and CSAT scores due to customers receiving service in their channel of choice.  

iQor’s collaborative approach took the client’s needs into account and delivered irresistible BPO solutions customized to the business. The client expressed their continued confidence in our partnership and iQor’s ability to leverage digital transformation to keep their customers smiling.   

Our client is enthusiastic about the potential impact of deploying this CX solution in other lines of business. They’ve asked us to begin other pilot programs as soon as possible.  

This collaborative roadmap outlines continued investments into our client’s customer care operations, including leveraging chatbots and maximizing the potential of the IVR solution. It establishes a strong foundation for a long-term BPO partnership empowering consistent achievement of the credit card issuer’s business goals.