Co-browsing: a next-gen first call resolution solution | #customersupport #supporticket

Highlights

• Co-browsing allows agents and customers to share their screens.
• Providing co-browsing options for customers who may respond better to visual help enables agents to provide a better customer experience.
• RingCentral offers a comprehensive co-browsing tool to enhance customer experience and satisfaction.

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What are the odds that all of your customers are tech-savvy enough to find what they’re looking for on your company’s website?

No matter how much information your website may have, it’s all for naught if it can’t be found. Many customers may abandon their search out of frustration, but with a little guidance rom your contact center agents, customers can properly navigate web pages as if they’re in the same room thanks to a handy feature called “co-browsing.”

What is co-browsing?

Collaborative browsing – also referred to more simply as co-browsing – is a form of technology that allows agents to access a caller’s web browser. Both the agent and the customer can navigate the same web page at the same time. In this way, agents can guide callers appropriately and accurately, which can lead to faster and more efficient support.

Rather than leaving online customers to navigate a web page on their own, agents can interact directly with callers to help them find what they’re looking for. Agents can help resolve customer issues in real time. In turn, this can help improve customer engagement, reduce customer frustrations and effort, cut down on the average call handle time, and even boost online sales and conversions.

Three ways to co-browse with customers

Contact center agents can begin co-browsing sessions with customers in three different ways: live chat, video chat, and telephone.

Live chat: With this feature, agents will ask the customer if he or she would like to initiate co-browsing, after which a co-browse button will appear for the customer to click. Next, the customer will click “Yes” to share the web browser. At that point, the agent will be able to see the customer’s computer screen and begin assisting with page navigation.

Video chat: Again, the agent will ask the customer if he or she would like to grant the agent permission to share a browser via video chat.

Telephone call: If the conversion between the agent and customer is taking place via phone call, the agent can suggest a co-browsing session to better assist the caller. While on a telephone call, the customer must be given a PIN from the website. This code is then read aloud to the agent, who will then enter this number into the system before the customer’s browser is shared.

Once the co-browsing session is done, the customer can click “Stop” at any time. At that point, the agent will no longer have access to the customer’s screen. This process is easy, secure, and effective for both agents and customers.

How can co-browsing be used in a contact center?

Co-browsing can be used by contact centers in multiple ways, including the following:

For technical support

Customers in need of technical support may have trouble articulating to the agent what they are seeing when they encounter a particular problem. Co-browsing allows agents to see exactly what the caller is seeing, thereby understanding the problem the customer is having more quickly. In many cases, the agent can show the customer exactly how to solve the problem or can solve the problem for the customer on the spot, taking immediate action on the customer’s behalf.

To complete online forms and applications

Depending on the form being completed, there may be certain fields that can be a bit confusing for customers. With co-browsing activated, agents can see exactly what the customer is filling out and guide them accordingly. Further, if there are any fields that the agent notices are mistakenly left blank or filled out incorrectly, the agent can highlight these areas so the customer knows where their attention is needed.

This helps ensure that forms and applications are completed entirely and accurately to avoid any delays that may stem from form errors.

To upsell

If a company’s website sells products or services, agents can use a co-browsing tool to direct customers to specific items that may suit what they’re looking for. Agents may also use this feature to display certain marketing materials to give customers more information on what they may eventually add to their shopping cart. Ultimately, agents can use co-browsing to help customers make better purchasing decisions.

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Features to look for in a co-browsing tool

There are many co-browsing solutions available for contact centers. Before choosing a specific one for your contact center, look for the following features:

Omni-channels: Co-browsing can be initiated via several channels, including live chat, video chat, and telephone call.

WebRTC-based: For co-browsing to work, it must allow real-time communication on both mobile applications and web browsers. That means no downloads, plugins, or installations are needed for both agents and customers.

Co-browsing PIN: A code will be needed to initiate a co-browsing session if the customer is communicating via telephone call.

Data masking: To keep customers’ sensitive information safe — such as passwords, SSNs, and credit card numbers — data masking will hide it from an agent’s view.

Named cursors: These separate the agent’s actions from the customer’s actions to avoid any confusion.

Session controls: While agents may be able to see the customer’s browser, they are only given as much control as the customer allows. With session controls, the customer is in full control over the co-browsing session.

Integrations: Co-browsing can be integrated with a contact center’s existing customer relationship management system.

Mobile SDK: This feature allows agents to help mobile app users without the need to switch to a mobile browser.

Annotation tools: Agents can use this feature to write text, highlight, and draw on the page as needed to provide visual instructions to the customer.

RingCentral co-browsing

RingCentral offers co-browsing as an add-on feature that’s available on RingCentral Engage Messaging. Key features of RingCentral’s Co-Browsing feature include the following:

• No installation required for contact centers or customers
• Guidance to help agents effectively direct a customer to a new web page
• Unique codes that allow agents to access customers’ web browsers
• Content sharing for both agents and customers
• Protected fields

Setting up co-browsing in your contact center can improve your customers’ experience and overall success. Find out how RingCentral’s co-browsing feature can help your contact center. Request your free demo today.

Originally published Mar 14, 2022