The complete guide to First Call Resolution (FCR)
The first call resolution (FCR) rate is a key performance indicator for call centers and customer service departments. It measures the ability to resolve customer issues on their first contact.
Let's explore the impact of FCR, how to measure this KPI, and what actions to implement to improve it.
The benefits of a good FCR
Achieving a good First Call Resolution (FCR) significantly improves the customer experience by reducing the effort required to resolve issues. Customers are more satisfied, which strengthens their trust and loyalty to the brand.
Loyal customers are more inclined to share their positive experiences with others, thereby improving the Net Promoter Score (NPS).
It is also an opportunity to use resources more efficiently. Resolving more issues on the first call reduces the number of incoming calls, meaning the support team can handle more requests and improve the quality of customer relations.
Finally, a good FCR can have a positive impact on employee satisfaction, which often leads to better customer service.
Causes and impacts of a poor first contact resolution rate
According to an Accenture study, having to contact a company multiple times for the same reason is the primary cause of customer dissatisfaction.
A poor FCR can be due to several factors, such as:
- The complexity of the issues: Some issues may be too complex to be resolved in a single call, requiring multiple interactions for complete resolution.
- Insufficient internal documentation: The absence of clear and accessible documentation on common issues and their solutions can prevent agents from providing effective responses.
- Agent training issues: Poorly trained agents may lack the skills or knowledge necessary to resolve customer issues on the first call.
- Lack of monitoring and analysis: Failure to monitor and analyze the reasons for repeated calls can prevent the identification of recurring issues and the implementation of effective solutions.
Failing to respond quickly to their needs has multiple consequences, such as decreased customer satisfaction, which affects brand reputation and long-term customer loyalty.
40% of customers turn to a competitor because FCR was not achieved with their initial provider.
In addition, the additional influx of support requests leads to an increase in operational costs, as more resources are needed to manage the increase in support tickets.
Agents may experience high stress due to increased workload, potentially leading to decreased productivity and increased turnover. This results in additional costs associated with recruiting and training new employees.
We discuss this in more detail in our article on the impact of a high customer call-back rate.
How to measure your customer service's FCR?
Calculating FCR (with example)
The FCR calculation involves dividing the number of requests resolved on the first call by the total number of calls received, multiplied by one hundred.
Imagine a call center that receives 1,000 calls and resolves 720 on the first contact. The rate would then be 72%.
According to the SQM Group, a good first contact resolution rate is between 70% and 79%, with the average being just under 70%.
Different measurement methods
To maintain or improve your quality of service, regular performance evaluation is essential. There are many ways to obtain a realistic overview of your FCR performance, such as:
- Post-call telephone surveys
- Post-call email surveys
- Post-call inbound and outbound IVR (Interactive Voice Response) surveys
- Surveys conducted by an advisor during the call
- Automatic detection of multiple calls
- CRMs and ticket management
- Speech Analytics (artificial intelligence for quality monitoring automation)
None of these methods are perfect when used alone. It is therefore essential to combine several methods to overcome their respective weaknesses.
We detail the advantages and disadvantages of each method in this article to help you make your choice.
How to improve your First Contact Resolution score?
Anything that is not measured cannot be improved. That's why the first thing to do is to have access to telephone call data in order to implement concrete strategies.
You can turn to a speech analytics solution like Batvoice, which automatically analyzes all the calls from your customer relationship center to extract actionable data. By doing so, we can automatically identify recurring problems for your customers and assess the quality of interactions in order to adjust your FCR strategy.
In our article on our 5 tips for improving FCR, we recommend that you focus on the following actions:
1. Identify recurring problems in your customer journey
The analysis of call topics makes it possible to trace the recurring elements of customer speech, such as frequently asked questions and irritants, and to categorize these topics for a better understanding and improvement of the customer journey.
2. Prioritize high-risk customer churn requests
Leveraging AI technology like Batvoice AI, you can use semantic and emotional criteria to identify customers at risk of churn. This allows you to prioritize callbacks based on the intensity of the irritants detected, thereby preventing customer loss.
3. Define a real-time alert as soon as a high-risk call is detected
Detect high-risk calls by defining relevant criteria, such as CSAT score or specific keywords, to be alerted in real time and act quickly. For example, keyword detection rules allow you to monitor calls in which critical terms are mentioned.
4. Offer personalized training based on the needs of your advisors
Identify and offer targeted training to call center agents to better manage situations that cause customer callbacks. This streamlines processes through improved customer interaction.
5. Regularly monitor the impact of your actions
Create a dashboard to track the impact of your actions on FCR, customer irritants, and the quality of advisor interactions over time or during a specific period. This allows you to adapt your strategy based on the evolution of your performance.
