Tag Archives: technology

Meeting Demand In A Crisis

The urgency of the current crisis is requiring companies to adapt to the challenges of the market conditions. It’s tough to balance the challenges of battling the pandemic with the need to keep the economy going. Some people even feel that business needs to suspend during this period. We respect their perspective.

At the same time, we feel that there are businesses introducing much-needed innovation that can aid our community and make a difference in the world. These organizations need to surge their ability to reach the market, but many don’t have the communications or business development skills to reach out effectively.

We also know that there is a significant pool of business salespeople who are effectively shut down: Either their companies cannot get product to sell, their core markets are not buying right now, or the company has to furlough or let them go.

At Cue, we want to help. We want to connect companies offering critical products and services with skilled B2B salespeople. And we’re uniquely positioned to do that with our SaaS contact center platform.

Our platform enables the rapid onboarding of new virtual contact center agents with simple scripting and contact management. We come from the telesales world, so we know what’s needed to make salespeople successful. And we have the ability to quickly set upx and train these individuals to support market expansion for companies that have a significant need to reach and educate customers on solutions that will help in this crisis.

There is one caveat:

At this time, we are only offering this service to companies that we believe solve an urgent need within the market. We want to ensure that we are adding value rather than distracting many of the potential decision-makers who are working hard every day to keep their operations going and support their employees. We’ve found a number of companies like this, and we’d like to find others in critical industries such as healthcare, cleaning, automation, and others that are providing essential functions to keep our economy going.

The more we can do today to keep the economy moving, the more it will aid in recovery when we have gotten the pandemic under control.

How We Can Help Your Business

Our team is connecting organizations on the frontlines with temporary help to meet market demand and continue their work in industries that need their services now more than ever.

If your organization is facing surges in inquiries, we want to help you get out there and do the most good with the valuable resources you offer. Our rapid-response program will help you drive outreach, engagement, and expand your ability to meet demand.

And we can get you up and running on our agent desktop quickly while addressing your organization’s unique needs.

How We Can Help Agents

As industries are assessing the individual and economic impact of the global pandemic, many of us are also facing uncertainties in our careers. Many businesses’ customers are temporarily shut down. And contact center agents and business development professionals have been furloughed or experienced layoffs.

We’ve set up a program to match skilled professionals with companies that provide critical services—and need people like you to help them respond to inquiries and rapidly get in touch with the organizations that need them most.

Our platform makes it easy for you to onboard quickly and help these organizations open up their sales funnel while they do the important work of mitigating the effects of this crisis.

Cue® provides a simple agent desktop that streamlines workflow and enables phone-based agents to complete all functions of their job in one place, instead of having to navigate between multiple systems. With Cue®, agents can better assist customers, streamline training, reduce talk time, and eliminate after-call work—all with the confidence that they possess the right tools to engage every person they speak to. 

Boost Productivity With These Tools

Time is money. Most of us have been hearing that longer than we can remember. And as we go about our jobs, we’re constantly figuring out how to make the most of the limited time we do have. Time management strategies, productivity apps, or spreadsheets might be a part of your process as you figure out how to boost productivity. 

Today there are countless apps and tools out there for computers and smartphones alike, and it can feel overwhelming to navigate them all. As you’re considering what might help you, think about your own needs. Do you need to-do list tracking? Maybe you’re looking for more robust-project management. Or perhaps you need something that helps centralize all of your files and information. Once you’ve figured out what you need, you’ll be well on your way to maximizing your productivity and reducing stress.

Here are 4 apps that work for different members of our team:

Toggl

Track the time you’re spending on projects and tasks. If you’re working on project-based work, have multiple clients, or even just wear a lot of hats in your role, Toggl is a great place to start. In order to improve your time management, you have to understand how you’re spending your time—and Toggl helps you do exactly that.

Trello

This project management app works by creating cards for each item that needs to be completed. Think of it like an online bulletin board. You can move items between “boards,” like To Do, In Progress, Completed, etc., and add attachments, keep comments threaded, and assign due dates—directly to the individual task or “card.” Trello is incredibly flexible and highly visual. Some users have even adapted it for personal projects, like family activities and wedding planning.

 Slack

Where would we be without Slack? Instant, organized team communication is a must, and Slack makes it easy—no matter how big your organization is. Slack integrates with a variety of different apps so you can more easily centralize file storage, calendar management, and project management. 

LastPass

We all struggle to remember passwords, especially when security measures require us to change them on a regular basis. LastPass uses multi-factor authentication and other features to  to manage all of your logins and keep your information secure. And you can use it across multiple devices. LastPass also has features to audit your passwords and help you create better and more secure passwords. 

What apps help you improve productivity and stay focused? We’d love to hear from you.

5 Business Podcasts We Love

There are more than 700,000 podcasts out there with close to 30 million episodes. And whether it’s for business, education, entertainment, or motivation, approximately 62 million people listen to podcasts every week.

These numbers increase every day. As podcasts evolve, it can be hard to choose which ones to listen to. Here are a few of our favorites to stay current on the latest business trends, industry tips, and technology updates.

HBR IdeaCast

Many of us probably aspire to read the Harvard Business Review more often than we do. But it’s hard to find the time. This podcast is the next best thing. In each episode, HBR editors interview leaders and experts in business and management.

Business Wars

Get to know the challenges faced by the biggest brands in the world. Each season of this podcast analyzes the relationship (or even conflict) between two businesses competing within an industry—from Nike and Adidas to Blockbuster and Netflix and many others.

How I Built This

This NPR podcast takes a look at the origins of the most well-known and beloved companies in the world. With fresh perspective, it explores the struggles and success of companies. Episode after episode offers unique insights into the journeys of these companies and their owners.

The Modern Customer Podcast

In this podcast, Blake Morgan interviews with leaders from different customer-focused brands. Leaders from companies like Allstate, Microsoft, Wayfair, and PwC discuss what sets their organizations apart—from how they invest in their teams and leverage technology to leadership insights.

Experience This!

An encouraging and actionable podcast featuring companies and individual stories about exceptional customer experience. Each episode is entertaining and leaves us thinking about ways to make our customer experience even better than it already is.  

As a bonus, here’s another podcast to get you thinking about your work in a different way:

Weird Work

This fun, off-the-wall podcast highlights some of the most fascinating business professionals out there. The featured jobs are a little out of the ordinary at best. You might find you have common successes and struggles with even the most unusual jobs out there.

What business podcasts would you add to the list? Tell us on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.