Machine learning refers to many different techniques, from the statistical, mathematical, and computer science communities. But at their core, these methods are all about creating data models that help us understand and predict the world.
It’s important for SMEs not to run predictive analytics as a standalone initiative. For maximum impact and success, the results of your analysis need to be fed directly into your business processes to enable better decisions to be made.
The ability to analyse voice as well as other forms of data taps some of the most valuable insights a business can ever own. Australian communications company Call Journey recently launched a voice analytics platform which extracts information and facilitates a deeper understanding of how people communicate at the most intricate level. It decodes the human voice and conversational content, what people say, who’s saying it and how. Pinpointing exact details like keywords, plot generation – even emotion and sentiment.
Call recording solutions start from as little as $10 a month and businesses can use the software to listen to their customers and find out exactly how they feel about the product or service they receive. Mid-sized businesses can also listen and analyse old recorded conversations to assess customer sentiment over time.
Setting up search definitions based on specific business goals and criteria within a speech analytics interface to uncover poorly handled calls, or incidences of low customer satisfaction, allows a business to quickly identify areas that need process improvements in order to achieve those goals. By analysing calls in real-time, the software can search for triggers, such as churn and the propensity to upsell and alert the operator with offers and suggestions.
Despite the common misconception, mid-sized businesses don’t necessarily need vast tracts of data to benefit from analytics. Statistically, outcomes and findings will not change with a larger volume of data. But before you jump into analytics, have a look at the data available to you and define the business objective. All analytics activity should be based on the fundamental question of what the business wants and how data can support that.
Cameron Wall, managing partner, C3 Business Solutions
Andrew Sadauskas is a former journalist at SmartCompany and a former editor of TechCompany.
