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CSS announces pilot with Cue to improve call center performance

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CUNA Strategic Services (CSS) announced a market feasibility pilot with startup Cue, an innovator in sales and service scripting software. The Cue solution offers credit unions turnkey access to make call center staff more effective and productive, improving employee turnover, reducing training costs and enhancing overall member experience.

“Cue offers a powerful solution that aligns with our mission of helping credit unions improve their bottom line while enhancing their member relationships,” said Barb Lowman, president, CSS. “We are excited to offer credit unions an opportunity to work with an innovative startup that provides a platform to address member experience and staffing; key components of any successful call center.”

“For the past 3 years, credit unions have been challenged to meet increasing member expectations,” said Michael Wilson, founder at Cue. “We’re on a mission to help credit unions do what they do best—improve financial lives and strengthen communities. We do that by equipping the credit union’s first line of service, their call center staff, with the tools to improve their work and member experiences.”

Cue software allows call center staff to simplify what they do so they can focus more on what they say. Credit unions that use Cue are able to orchestrate all systems needed before, during and after calls. On average, Cue’s overlay has resulted in a 50% decrease in call times and a 21% increase in conversions.

Instead of forcing call center staff to hop from system to system while servicing a member, Cue brings all solutions to the representative, resulting in better call compliance, 5-star performance reporting and an overall streamlined process producing powerful stats.

For more information, visit Cue’s provider page on the CSS website.

Objection Handling: Common Sales Objections & How to Respond

If you’ve worked in sales for any length of time, you’ve probably faced at least a few objections from prospects and customers. Objections don’t always have to be a hard no. In fact, when a prospect gives a reason, they’re presenting you with an opportunity to clarify or reiterate the value proposition and address their specific concerns. But objection handling is truly an art, and you have to make the most of these moments when they present themselves. Usually you only have a brief opportunity to communicate and clarify before the call or meeting comes to a close.

Here are a few common objections and some thoughts on how to address them:

We already work with [competitor or similar product].

It’s so important to understand why you’re unique—to understand why what you offer is unlike anything else—and be able to explain it in clear terms. We’re all busy people, and something made your prospect think of an existing vendor or software. This is your chance to change their mindset and explain why they need the specific value only you can provide. Make it clear you don’t want to send their current tools or process into upheaval, but you would like to take time to explain the value. 

But does your product do a specific thing or have a certain feature?

More than an objection, this can feel like an obstacle to qualifying or setting up the next appointment. It can be hard not to climb into an in-depth conversation about features, benefits, and example scenarios. Take questions like this as a sign of interest and offer to set up the next appointment with a specialist who can answer these questions and more as they come up.

Email me the information. I’ll get back to you.

If this feels like they’re brushing you off, it’s because they are. But that doesn’t mean it’s futile. Depending on when it comes up in your conversations, there’s still opportunity to get and hold their interest. For example, if you’ve already delivered your value proposition and talked about what you do, they might still be interested. But whenever it comes up, you need to understand where they are. You can ask specific questions to understand their specific needs more clearly, figure out if they don’t understand the value, or aren’t ready to discuss making a purchase. Once you understand where they are, you can respond accordingly.

Let’s connect another time/next quarter/etc.

Like you, prospects are busy and trying to make the most of the limited minutes and hours we have in a day. If they can push a call to another day, they will. But you can briefly express the value of your solution and ask them to make the time. Perhaps even clarify that it isn’t a buying conversation—you just want to show them what you do or set up a demo, and if they’re not interested then they don’t have to worry about you continuing to reach out.

But don’t forget: It’s important to know when no really does mean no. If they hear you out and still say no, it might be time to let it go. You can’t qualify a prospect against their will, and you don’t want to make them uncomfortable. 

At the end of the day, an easy-to-navigate, dynamic database of these questions and objections can help you and your team ensure and increase success. If you’d like to see what Cue can do for you, from handling objections to providing a wealth of other resources, reach out to us for a free trial.