What is Call Center CRM?

Call center customer relationship management (CRM) refers to a software tool that call center agents use to enhance the customer experience and increase efficiency. Call center CRM systems store records about customers, such as account information and contact history. Because they store history, they may be viewed as a case management tool. Agents use the information in CRM systems to personalize customer contacts and understand a customer's history with the organization.

Call center CRM applications become more powerful in the contact center when integrated with call center technology. This allows, for example, a CRM screen to automatically pop up for the agent when a call is sent to them. This improves efficiency and allows the agent to focus less on data entry and more on helping customers with their issues. Other possible features of integration include automatically adding contact records (from multiple channels) to the CRM system and producing tie backs to call recordings so they can be listened to from within the call center CRM application.

The proliferation of cloud technology has made integration between call center CRM applications and call center software much easier than it was in the past. Companies such as SalesForce offer cloud-based CRM solutions that integrate seamlessly and painlessly with call center technology, such as NICE CXone. Integration is key to driving customer experience success in the contact center.