As we know, contact centers use different mediums such as live chat, SMS, and WhatsApp to communicate with their customers, making messaging a key element for client interactions. Irrespective of the type of organization or business you work for, there are generally a handful of common questions that you need to ask every one of your clients. It is a very common phenomenon that we find ourselves typing the same thing over and over again.
Messages sent out to customers generally require similar questions to be asked. For instance, agents could ask for a customer’s name, a/c number, phone number, or other contact details in order to look up customer records in the system. It would get really hectic for agents to type out the same type of questions to every customer they deal with throughout the day.
We all know that one of the most important aspects of good customer service is speed. Customers today expect prompt responses to their inquiries, and anything less can negatively affect your business. 3CX encourages its users to use quick response templates. Quick response templates can be a huge time-saver for agents, as they provide pre-written responses to common customer inquiries. This means that agents can simply copy and paste the relevant template into their reply, rather than having to type out a response from scratch each time.
3CX Version18 Update 5 includes a new message template facility – Quick Response Templates – to allow quick responses to customer messages. These templates can be used during any chat conversation including SMS, WhatsApp, Live Chat, or even internal conversations with single or groups of agents.
Sounds interesting? Let’s dig into the details of this new 3CX feature.
Creation Of Quick Response Templates
As the name implies, the 3CX Quick Response Template makes it easy to create and manage quick responses. The creation of quick response templates is super easy for any user with ‘Manager’ permissions. This is applicable for both – StartUP & Dedicated instances –
StartUP:
- Go to “Office settings” & then “Users”
- Click on the “+ Add user” button if you are creating a new user or to edit an existing user, click on the pencil icon.
- Click the drop-down list under the ‘Role’ heading & select “Manager”
- Click “Save”
Dedicated Instance:
- Log in to the 3CX Management Console
- Go to “Users”
- Select “Your User” & navigate to the “Rights” tab
- Click the drop-down list under the ‘Role’ heading & select “Manager”
- Click “OK”
New Template Icon In The Chat Bar
- Once a manager has access, simply click on any chat message
- Next in the Response bar, click on the ‘Template’ icon
- Now you will be able to click the ‘+ Add Category’ button to start setting up your templates and organizational structure.
Different Templates For Each Team
Every business has different departments or teams, e.g. – operations, sales & support. The content in every quick reply template is unique and their requirements, as per the departments, are all different. That is why 3CX has created template categories. This will enable its users to design each template into separate categories thus resulting in agents viewing their team’s responses easily and effortlessly.
Not 1, Not 2, But 16 Different Language Categories…!!
Yes, you’ve heard that right. Quick response templated or messages can not only be split up into unique defined categories but can also be created in 16 different language categories. Businesses that work globally across all time zones need to respond to their customer in their respective languages. This is a key component as responses in different countries will require and have a different tone or manner when responding.
Quick Lookup Search Box
Now that we’ve learned to create and categorize these quick response templates, we also need to make sure that they are sorted and organized.
How can that be done? Well, each template should be given a template name and the agents can use the search box to find the desired message quicker. The search box doesn’t just search template titles but also enables agents to search the message text, meaning an agent can obtain the relevant customer information like the name or other contact information easily in order to resolve the query.
Placeholders - To Give Responses A Personal Touch
3CX’s basic motive behind creating these quick reply templates is to enable agents to service customer requests as quickly as possible. As enchanting as it may sound, we can’t ignore the fact that with speed, the customer may feel that they are being fed canned responses by some chatbot (which is a usual instance on many websites).
Enter – Personalized Placeholders to overcome this issue. By setting up your templates to include these placeholders, businesses are empowered to make the customers feel valued quickly and easily without compromising on the conversation’s personal touch. The available 3CX placeholders are:
- %CustomerName% – Replaced with contact name.
- %CustomerEmail% – Replaced with contact email.
- %AgentName% – Replaced with agent’s name.
- %AgentEmail% – Replaced with agent’s email.
- %AgentPhone% – Replaced with agent’s phone.
For instance –
Mr. A has sent an inquiry via WhatsApp text message on a company’s ABC website. Agent X is the first to respond and clicks the ‘Take’ button and accepts the message. Agent X then selects the ‘New lead’ welcome message template which has already been set up as below –
Hi %CustomerName%, thanks for reaching out to ABC. My name is %AgentName%, how can I help?
Mr. A would then get the following message –
Hi Mr. A, thanks for reaching out to ABC. My name is Agent X, how can I help?
Easy Click, Edit & Send
Quick response templates are created to make customers’ replies quicker. An agent, however, does not have to use all the content of a templated response as it is. It should be noted that upon clicking or selecting a response, the message is not immediately sent out. The response bar is loaded with messages giving room to agents to make any last-minute changes if needed.
Upgrade To 3CX V18 U5 Now & Save Time!
We can sum up that if implemented wisely, quick reply message templates can prove to be a very valuable tool. 3CX Version18, Update5 doesn’t just include this template feature but also has improved and simplified SMS / MMS configuration and the addition of WhatsApp integration.
So, if you are an existing 3CX dedicated instance user, and have not upgraded, you should upgrade to U5 without any further delay. If you are new to 3CX, why not get it free forever for up to 10 users with 3CX StartUP and explore the possibilities of 3CX.
Bits Secure IT Infrastructure LLC is a leading and award-winning platinum partner of 3CX in the UAE and other middle eastern regions. We have certified and highly skilled engineers who can help achieve your requirements on 3CX deployment, softphone, desk phones, video conferencing, 3CX PBX, 3CX SBC, 3CX Gateways, and overall unified communications solutions.
Contact our support team right away if you need assistance with the 3CX V18 Update 5.
