SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Building the strongest customer support team is crucial for igaming operators to glean the best insights into demands and concerns of its player base.
Dimitri Cloots (pictured below), Soft2Bet’s Head of Customer Support, explains how streamlined customer support processes can lead to “tangible company growth within six to nine months” for both its operator partners and own igaming brands.
SBC: What are the main responsibilities of a Soft2Bet customer support representative?
DC: Our agents are tasked with responding to customer chat enquiries via our chat and email software. We place a heavy emphasis on first contact resolution, which means that whenever possible players will find their query resolved with just a single enquiry.
We have developed a number of tools to help our staff in this approach and supply them with extensive vocational training in different licences and the T&Cs involved in acquiring them, as well as AML procedures and the ever-changing responsible gaming landscape.
SBC: Does your customer support department work towards KPIs when communicating with your clients? If so, what are they?
DC: Yes, they do – we test our staff’s compliance knowledge, because our company is bound by strict regulations which we closely adhere to. Another KPI our employees work towards is a strong understanding of how to market our offering, and what players are eligible for in terms of bonuses, free spins and the like.
We conduct regular refresher training sessions to make sure that everyone is up to speed, and I feel very proud of the diligence and expertise showcased by our fantastic team every single day. We also monitor the length of our employees’ interaction with customers, through metrics such as Average Handle Time (AHT), pick-up times, average daily chat responses and so on.
That’s in addition to our guidelines on tone of voice and upselling, so it’s fair to say we set high standards, but I’m proud to say that the team does a stellar job of meeting them.
SBC: Can you tell us more about the organisational structure of the department?
DC: We are gearing up to expand our customer service with new positions as well as a revamped training department. That process is designed to promote a clear structure, offering staff a well-defined pathway to career progression, and we are always on the lookout for new recruits to help take our team to the next level.
Along with a clearly defined set of goals and targets in place for each member of the team, this will lead to tangible company growth within six to nine months. We are confident that this will take our customer support services to the next level and can’t wait to continue entertaining our ever-growing player base!
SBC: What tools do you plan on using to facilitate customer support operations?
DC: We are looking into a top-of-the-range Customer Support Platform, which would maximise the visibility and transparency, both for our agents and the customer. As well as that, a new AI Chat will help to standardise the chats that staff have day to day to make it easier on them and promote efficiency, as around 70% of our chat enquiries relate to bonuses and withdrawals, so automated responses are a good way to reduce waiting times.
Of course, more complex queries will always be dealt with by one of our agents, but an automated solution could be the way to go for some of the more straightforward notifications we receive, as that kind of automation will naturally lead to an elevated customer experience.
