Vic Sun: All right, welcome to One Leg Up, where we discuss how you can deliver the very best customer experience and how you can achieve zero marketing waste. I’m Vik Sun, I’m the mastermind here at One Leg. Today, I have two very special guests joining me again. I’ve got Steven White and KC, uh, pronounced that correctly?
KC: Ac, it’s yeah, of course, I’m going to say yes.
Vic Sun: All right, well, if I didn’t, please tell me how to pronounce it. Is it, it could be, it could be, uh, Uriah, or it could be Urias.
KC: Okay, I like the audience better. Rolls off the tongue a little bit smoother.
Vic Sun: And and both of these two, um, really great people are our tech alchemists on our technology team. Ac, Steven, how are you guys doing today?
Steven: I’m doing fantastic other than, uh, half of California’s on fire right now.
KC: Every day here in California. Every day in California, it’s a look out the window, uh, is it fog or is it smoke experience?
Vic Sun: Yeah, and and and I know we’re we’re trucking along and doing our best. I’m glad you both are here. And I think due to overwhelming demand, you know, we’ve been, we’ve been hit up by, uh, you know, several companies for more information, right? And so, um, generally, again, we’re technology agnostic, but a number of our home improvement clients usually perfection and Five9, right? Both as CRM as a dialer. And today, we want to have like a part two, and I think we’re going to create a series of this, uh, as the as the premier experts on lead perfection and Five9 in this industry. And we want to be able to discuss, you know, some of these features that people are really having a hard time figuring out, uh, or the industry at large, or, you know, a lot of things that are overlooking, um, and therefore they’re likely missing some of these system efficiencies and how to make it effective when they start deploying them. So let’s start off with you, KC. I’m going to throw it over to you. Um, what do you, you know, today, I’m sure you’ve prepared for something, but what is that one feature today that you know companies are overlooking?
KC: Yeah, um, actually, uh, the feature I want to discuss today is the to-do list. And this feature eluded me for several years. I’ve been on lead perfection a while, and I had no idea that this feature existed, and it’s really, really fantastic.
Vic Sun: Okay, and and we know that a lot of companies, you know, know about this, but do do not use it or do not use it the way that, um, makes it, you know, a maximum super efficient way of communicating with both their teams or clients internally and externally. So what’s, let’s start off with, you know, the front end of things. You know, can you give examples of how, you know, you’ve been able to utilize it and how you’ve been able to basically, you know, crack this little Easter egg, you know, for some companies who aren’t using it or maybe haven’t been using on the front end of things, you know, before a sale takes place?
KC: Yeah, uh, so, um, one of the things that people, I’ve noticed, uh, have used it for, our clients have used it for in the past is, um, uh, the the reps on their team, sometimes they do need additional training. And rather than go into a full training session, the to-do list can be a very quick, uh, review that is directly on the CRM. So a lot of people are used to getting to-do lists that are on a different platform than their CRM. That’s what makes this one so special is you can assign those to-do tasks directly to the lead that they pertain to. So maybe you have a new rep that’s coming in, they’re struggling to keep up with their customer, maybe they’re not looking at the information correctly on the lead, you can attach that to-do tasks to the lead directly, which is great because then all they do is they click on it and they go right there, and they can immediately start on that task. And it also gives you notifications when they are working on it and when it’s complete, just like any other to-do list.
Vic Sun: Okay, perfect. So so essentially it sounds like, you know, it it’s like a virtual, uh, post-it, these yellow posted, but it’s virtual, and you get to remind or assign tasks to people to be able to complete that’s very specific to a lead record, um, and and it tracks when that is being completed or, you know, when it’s being worked on, and then and you can go ahead and utilize that instead of like manual emails or or text.
KC: Yes, that’s correct. And what’s great is it appears right on the dashboard for most people. Um, so it helps say, okay, these are your to-do list, and it’s counting down. It’s like, this one’s going to be coming up really soon, you better take care of it. And then they have another list, like, all right, these two dudes are past due, or there’s been a lot of time that’s passed between this time. And it also connects to the employee’s email address. So not only, um, when they’re working on their CRM are they getting those reminders, but they also can be getting the reminders through email. So if they say they didn’t see it, I don’t know where they’re looking.
Vic Sun: Right, right. So I, it sounds like it’s a really useful tool for team collaboration, communication. You know, we we get a lot of requests for automation, but this is, you know, some form of automation, but it requires really that team effort. You know, I I see a lot of call centers, um, and you guys have been working with with quite a few of them where, you know, they’re really too reliant on automation, and some of these very simple nudges really bring about, you know, conversion rates, uh, that are so much more higher than if you were to just rely on automation. Um, I think what I really like about it to do tack, and we’ll have a little clip of this where we can show an example and how that workflow, uh, takes place, right? So that the, you know, our audience can, for those of us who actually want to see how we’ve been able to customize that for and train people on how to use it, uh, works, right? Um, but I really like the idea of, you know, training and using this is quality, like you brought out, you know, it’s like, okay, well, you know, my call center agent’s not very good at, you know, being able to go and provide the value of the visit or or these particular elements, or maybe sending the client an email with a link to somewhere, you can always as a manager or as an admin go, hey, do this. And and can can teams actually do this as well where maybe I’m going to be out of the office, and I am the consular agent in the morning, and I spoke to this client, but they said, hey, call me in the evening, and can I go ahead and assign that to the evening shift agent, you know, my counterpart? Can I do that?
KC: Of course, you can assign it to individuals, or you can assign it to a team. Uh, so anybody who is in that call center group or who is in that sales group, it goes out to that whole team on a sort of group to-do list. And it doesn’t feel as abrasive as saying, oh man, now I have to sit through a training session. It’s like, oh, my, my manager assigned to me a task. Okay, I better get that task completed. It’s just a much quicker, more effective, interactive way for your rep to get better at whatever you’ve assigned.
Vic Sun: And can you actually send them links as well? Like a Loom video, for example, like a link to a loot video and say, you know, uh, watch this so that I can explain to you what’s going on with this client? Is that, is that possible, KC?
KC: Yeah, it’s not only Loom videos, you can also attach screenshots, images. Um, what’s great about lead perfection is it is very, very, um, forgiving when it comes to putting in external sources. So anything that you want to include in that message, yes, absolutely.
Vic Sun: Okay, all right, great. So so that, so that’s, that’s covering, you know, the front end of things, marketing. Let’s talk about sales for a minute, right? And and what, like what have you done in the past for clients where this to-do tasks, these to-do lists have been useful? Just give one really good example that that most clients do not do, and then when they’ve done it, they’ve seen a lift in in whether it’s sales efficiencies or effectiveness and communication.
KC: Yes, so we had one client who their biggest thing that they kept bringing up over and over and over again is, my team cannot remember to go get the permits that they need. And they drive all the way to the customer’s house, and they don’t have the necessary paperwork. The to-do list can help that team member remember to do that. In fact, I mean, if I was the manager, every single time I would be having my team go out to a customer’s home and permit as needed, I would just use the to-do list every time because it’s something that’s really easy to set up, but it’s something that you can repeat. So it helps keep track of all the customer’s paperwork, and it also makes sure that when they get arrived at the home that they are prepared.
Vic Sun: Yeah, so it sounds like you can use it as a checklist of some sort, but also it it really, you know, it really, the way that you phrase it, what I like about that is that it sounds like you’ve cultivated it for the particular user. You know, sales people, installers, they’re out in the field, they don’t have time to be in front of a desktop like searching for things, and you know, they’re out there with their tablets or their mobile devices, and that to-do tasks being assigned to them simply creates that, um, you know, really, really easy nudge because it’s not only an email, but it’s also from within the platform that they’re working.
KC: Yeah, and within the platform also means the salesman app. If they’re utilizing that, on those to-do tasks will also pop up on that app. So if they’re on the go, they can easily see what they need to complete.
Vic Sun: Perfect. So so so it’s really on an omnichannel level between emails, uh, I think, you know, um, we’re working on custom texts, right, for nudges, but that’s that’s something custom that we can, you know, we’ve customized it’s not out of the box, and it’s not easy to do on your own. But at least the emails, you’ve got the nudges on the mobile app, salesman app, and you’ve got the ability to go and log in for any browser really, whether it’s for your mobile device, your tablet, or your laptop, or your desktop. Um, thank you. So we’ll pop in some videos or, you know, some some small little place where we can show both of those, um, and you’ll be able to see that on on these videos. And actually, you know, um, later on, you can hit up, hit us up for some of those links, and we’ll post them, you know, uh, on our LinkedIn account, Facebook, and everywhere else where you can find us. Let’s go to Steven. Steven, let’s talk about Five9 because, um, I think we were inundated with a lot of Five9, uh, questions. A lot of companies with big call centers, we’re like, okay, so what can you do with Five9s? We’re having these issues. So let’s start with one because, I mean, I think we’re going to have a series of these, uh, podcasts over the next couple of weeks or months. What’s that one thing you want to talk about today that you felt over the last maybe last three conversations you’ve had with other companies, this was the the biggest ask or the thing that they couldn’t figure out?
Steven: Yeah, and thanks for bringing it over to me. I’ve been dying to get this, uh, to get this out. What’s, what is most important, I think, to a call center is, uh, the conversion time. If you have somebody that’s sitting, you know, waiting to be contacted after submitting their information, maybe they missed that first phone call, what a lot of call centers are seeing is, uh, it’s difficult to have that follow-up, especially on the first day. Using lead perfection in Five9, it’s just, uh, the way that it’s set up, it’s difficult to do that second follow-up call within a day. And, uh, people try to circumvent it in different ways, but I think I’ve finally clocked the right solution to it.
Vic Sun: Okay, and and so you talked about a couple of things there, but it sounds like you’ve got the, you know, speed in which you communicate, you know, to someone who’s provided their information, uh, namely their phone number and their information so you can call them, and how you can connect with them quickly. And then the other part was, well, once you’ve connected with them, if you don’t get a hold of them, for example, like like you do because, you know, you get leads through all parts of the day, the system doesn’t seem to refresh or allow for you to go and control that so you can call them a few other times. Is that it? Is that, like, the big issue there?
Steven: Yeah, yeah, I think I think you hit it on the head. One of the, uh, one of the tools that’s available is this thing called the ASAP list. It’s pretty much just a, I don’t want to go too detailed on it, but as soon as a lead comes in to lead perfection, it’s fired off into Five9, and it gets that quick first phone call. The problem is, uh, the way that that list works is it, um, limits the, well, since that list doesn’t refresh every day, and sometimes people do have it, so it’s, uh, it’s tied into lead perfection, uh, it constantly piles and piles and piles and piles until, you know, that list is just untouchable. You’ve got this list of 5,000 numbers. You know, some people do go in every evening and try to try to reset it manually, but it’s just long process. Some people have, you know, uh, multiple phone calls go out in a day, something that we in the industry like to call double tapping your lead, or or maybe they just write it down on a post-it on their desk and then try to remember to call it later there, or they forget. Uh, there’s just too many factors. You know, we try to make this as seamless as possible, and and we figured out a way to make it so that, uh, this is an automatic, easy way to, uh, to improve your call center’s ability to contact people on that first day.
Vic Sun: Right, yeah. So I mean, it’s it’s it’s not only important to be able to get back to your clients on a timely fashion, right? Because, you know, they’re they’re moving on to somebody else if you’re not reaching out to them. A lot of homeowners, you know, do get several bids or want to get several perspectives from different companies. But it sounds like the the the general crutch of this, which is I think a major problem for a lot of companies, is that once, especially when you get a lot of inbound leads, they go through it once, and then there there’s no way that they’re able to do it, or they don’t know how to program their list so that, you know, these new ones get prioritized. And if you don’t reach them, you’re able to automatically, you know, send them to the right agents over a period of time or trigger rule, like maybe call them back in two hours or in four hours again, and with that sending a text message. And I think from what it sounds like, it’s just piling up, and a lot of companies are basically having to do a lot of manual work to try to get through that same list that they didn’t get, um, get a hold of, and those are the newest ones. And every day that just kind of becomes com, it just compounds every day when you don’t, when you don’t fix the automation. So, you know, um, what what do you think is the, you know, what makes it so difficult to do that? I mean, if it’s Five9, lead perfection, there’s a lot of users for Five9 elite perfection. What’s making that so difficult where people just kind of live with manually doing it for years?
Steven: Well, to get down into it, it’s, uh, trying to navigate the labyrinth of resources that Five9 has available, or they say they have available. If you’re, if you’re at all familiar with contacting Five9 support, it’s a, it’s a, it’s a long and arduous process. If you need to book yourself out for the entire morning just to have a conversation with one of the representatives and communicate your problem to somebody that more than likely has not experienced the problem you’re experiencing, they’ve never heard of lead perfection or maybe a combination of both, they just don’t know how to solve these problems. And in order to explain the problem and then follow up to solve that problem is, is you’re looking at an entire day’s worth of work just to get that one issue out of the way. And, uh, after you’ve done that, maybe they haven’t even solved the problem, or or they’re not familiar enough with your system or the combination of lead perfection and Five9 that their solution has caused two or three more problems. And that’s just, I mean, if if you want to run as an efficient call center while using lead perfection, you just don’t have time to experiment, or else you’re going to run into, like I mentioned, a couple more problems. You know, when I’ve, I’ve experienced that before myself, and I’ve talked to owners that have had that experience, and at the end of the day, you’re pulling out your hair, as you can see, right?
Vic Sun: Well, let’s let’s be honest, that pulling out your hair wasn’t part of this, but I get your figures. So I think part of this, what’s fun about this is really kind of the the struggle. It sounds like you’ve you’ve put together this, you know, this really nice story of a collage of your experiences where companies have just gotten to a point where there’s, you know, our call center manager is very, very busy, we’re busy, we’ve got a lot of leads, we don’t have time, you know, meddling with this thing, breaking things, trying to fix it, spending hours at a time. Um, but, you know, they kind of live with it because they’ve never really had a company like us come up, uh, and say, we can actually do this for you, and you pay us because we’ve already have the experience in the time. But I think one of the things that also stand out, which is a big issue, is that there really isn’t a one silver bullet solution that you use for this because, you know, we’ve really seen it where some call centers have, you know, these rules versus another call center that have a different set of rules, right? Some call centers want, you know, their their their their inbound leads or all these web forms should be called every hour, while some call centers, you know, that’s that, you know, we’ve seen that that’s pretty, uh, that’s pretty bad, district, terrible customer experience. But some call centers are like, well, I want some very complex rules where if I leave them a message and I send them a text, if they, you know, respond to the text, don’t call them. And this is where you come in, and you go and say, let me find out what your customer journey looks like, and then let me go ahead and fix this problem to align with your internal process, right? Um, and and I think that’s that’s really the value of having, you know, uh, a collaboration with somebody like you, or at least you’re having an ally, you know, to do all that, uh, additional work while your business continues to run, right? And of course, you know, if something goes wrong, we blame you. So how often, by the way, do you do you encounter these tests, or when you start trying to fix things, you know, it doesn’t go the right way? And what do you do when that happens? Because this is very, you know, don’t get it, I mean, I don’t want you getting technical stuff too much, but, you know, you do the testing, it’s like, oops, you know, something broke. Like, when do you do them, and how do you fix that?
Steven: Well, you know, when it comes to testing, uh, one of the features of testing is is breaking, and also just communicating what you’re testing on so that whoever, all the players involved can be aware that there may be a break along the way. And when they do run into the break, you know, they’re like, you know, I know where the break came from. You know, it’s it’s easily fixed. Usually, it only takes a few minutes just to revert back to a previous iteration of be it settings or or one way that we had, uh, in the past, maybe we’re calling somebody more than once that probably shouldn’t be called more than once. It’s just a quick fix to get it back into place. But we keep the communication really tight. So when, uh, the brakes do come about, when, um, you know, everyone’s, everyone’s aware, and we can clean up the mess, clean up the mess very quickly.
Vic Sun: And then and of course, you know, there’s an advantage of being in the West Coast because we we’re we’re usually three hours behind. So by the time you do the testing later in the day or in the evening, everybody’s asleep, right?
Steven: Right, that as well. Also, off hours are, you know, no one wants to call from 7:00 to 8:00 or 8:00 to 9:00, but, you know, legally, we can. So make a few calls, uh, after hours, very possible. I even wake up sometimes super early. I don’t mind making it at 4:00 AM to do some calls, uh, but that’s just that when you test out some of the systems you work on.
Vic Sun: Exactly. Okay, well, you know, again, we’ll pop in some some sample links to that, and and as well to show people like, like, you know, look, this is potentially something that could work. But I do want to caution our audience that a lot of these use cases are bespoke to each company because when you talk about systems, you know, a lot of the times owners, I mean, owners don’t really even care about, you know, what we what we’ve just discussed, like you’re breaking the system. They just want to know you’re fixing it. You know, you fix it. I don’t care whether you break it, just make sure you fix it by the time, like, we’re using it. And that is the really the advantage of having companies do for your agency like us do it for you as opposed to you tinkering with it and and and then breaking it yourself, and then now you’re, you know, your whole business is is kind of, you know, has been disabled, right, by, uh, by this particular thing. And of course, there’s a lot of time, um, involved, right, trying to solve these particular issues. So, you know, we’ve run out of time. We talked about, you know, really two very key things. Um, we’ll pop in on the links and in the description, you know, what we’ve discussed today. Um, really, really thank both of you guys for for for spending your time and sharing your knowledge here. Um, that’s it for us for today. We hope that you’ve enjoyed our chat and learned a couple of things. And as always, we here at One Leg, you know, we believe poor marketing pollutes the planet, right? And poor systems do that also. And that business is full of tired and outdated, indistinct, unremarkable, and underperforming, you know, marketing and technology that that sucks. But what sucks even more is that many companies have forgotten the most important thing of all, and that’s the customer. So we’re in a mission on behalf of our clients as customers to change that. To learn more, go to zeromarketingwaste.com where you can subscribe to our blog, it is very podcast, and of course, you can find us and follow us by looking for Mingo, our flamingo, and the One Leg handle wherever you socialize online. Take care. We’ll chat with you guys very soon. See you next week.
