Knowledge base, one of the most critical elements of the self-service capabilities of a company, is a vital aspect of delivering a quality experience. Knowledge management software is one of the effective tools for telecom service providers that ensure consistent & accurate self-service support.
Why Existing Knowledge Bases Fail?
Almost every customer service provider begins working on its own knowledge base with a relevant list of files and documents. With time, this turns into a source of information with widespread information of lesser relevance, which needs to be edited & amended by experts.
However, such expert human resources are not able to dedicate much time to regularly update the database, due to other job duties aligned to them. So, an in-house knowledge management in the contact center transforms from a customized, useful solution to an outdated & expensive collection of less useful information.
Creating & Deploying an Effective Knowledge Base
If you are planning to deploy your first knowledge management system or upgrade an existing one, you should be ready to invest significant time & money.
lPlanning & Assessment: The first stage includes assessment of the specific reasons for use and the goals that you can target & measure. Based on the implementation and goals, you should plan the development and deployment of your knowledge management solution.
lGathering & Collating Information: The next step comes to finding out, where the relevant information is available and can be sourced from. This also includes dedicating specific resources for the creation, maintenance and timely update of the knowledge base with up-to-date information.
A contact center agent might find the job of developing and maintaining a database, interesting & fruitful. These knowledge workers should have access to the subject matter experts for the required knowledge, and need not be experts themselves. However, a senior management person should get involved in the process to help knowledge workers reach subject matter experts easily.
lImportant Features: Another important factor involves the consideration of necessary and required features of a knowledge management software. The functionality of the desired tool should include:
Semantic or natural language search
Multi-channel access to the knowledge base
Automated organization of documents
Article rating for accuracy
User profile-based information available
Predefined process for edits & approval
FAQs
Cost of Implementation: As discussed above, implementing & deploying a knowledge base needs service providers to invest significant costs, which depends on:
Deployment model choice
Customization level
Changes required for the appearance and user interface
Design of the database
Need of any upgrade to hardware or infrastructure
Integration with existing CRM, mobile apps, websites, and back office systems
lOngoing Maintenance: Once created, knowledge base needs regular updates that can be done by gathering feedback from customers as well as agents. Some databases might need dedicated resources to manage, verify, and update information, while updates for others can be automated.
Large businesses will generally have a number of products, services, and/or departments with separate editors to raise, verify, and publish suggestions.
The 80/20 Rule
This rule states that 20% of the content of a knowledge base can answer or resolve 80% of queries. This 20 % of documents will be dynamically updated with time, and service providers should plan on how to solve the remaining 20% of queries as well. Here, integrating knowledge management software with existing support means, including contact centers, communities, and forums, filling the knowledge gap.
Thus, developing, deploying, and implementing a knowledge base the right way is essential to quality customer experience. Further, continuous monitoring, update, and publishing of the accurate information is the key to a successful knowledge management system.
And, the quality self-service solution relies to a great extent on an efficient knowledge management solution.