Customer Service Glossary

Your go-to resource to brush up on your customer service vocabulary

Activity Log

An activity log is a recorded log of how time is spent. Within organizations, activity logs…

Agent Collision

Agent collision happens when multiple customer service agents respond to the same ticket at once, causing…

Asynchronous Messaging

Asynchronous messaging, sometimes called “async messaging”, refers to people using messaging platforms to contact each other…

Automated Customer Service

Automated customer service uses an automated system to provide customer service instead of, or more often,…

Autoresponder

Autoresponders are automatic messages people receive when they perform an action such as emailing a recipient…

Average Handle Time

Average handle time (AHT) is an average of the time it takes to solve a customer’s…

Average Reply Time

Average reply time, or average response time, refers to the average time between responses throughout an…

BPO

BPO stands for “business process outsourcing” and refers to the contracting out of any non-primary business…

Brand Advocacy

When your customers talk in glowing terms about your brand, voluntarily spreading the word about your…

Change Management

When a business makes a profound shift in a process or technology platform, it requires management…

Chat Service

A chat service is any online service or technology that enables text messages to be translated…

Chatbot

A chatbot is a computer software program, typically driven by artificial intelligence (AI), which allows a…

Contact Center

A contact center is an organization within a company that coordinates and integrates the various ways customers can…

Conversational UI

Conversational UI is the foundation underlying the capability of chatbots, QuickSearch Bots, and other forms of…

Conversational UX

Conversational UX is the user experience that takes advantage of natural language-based technology to enable computers…

CRM System

What Is a CRM System? CRM stands for “customer relationship management,” and CRM systems are tools…

Customer Acquisition

Simply put, customer acquisition refers to the process of bringing in new customers with the aim…

Customer Acquisition Cost

All businesses need customers. And all businesses are willing to invest something – time, effort, research,…

Customer Case Management

Customer case management describes the process any customer service organization uses to handle, route, resolve, and…

Customer Engagement

Unless you’re in a market with zero competitors – and you’re the only one providing a…

Customer Experience

Customer Experience is a general phrase used to describe the experience a customer has with a brand…

Customer Journey

The customer journey consists of all the experiences and interactions a customer has with your brand,…

Customer Needs

Customer needs determine whether or not a customer chooses to purchase something, so they’re hugely important…

Customer Onboarding

Customer onboarding refers to the very first part of the customer journey and the active role…

Customer Portal

A customer portal is a website designed to give current customers access to services and information…

Customer Retention

Understanding the fundamentals of customer retention and loyalty is critical. Customers have more choices than ever…

Customer Segmentation

Customer segmentation is exactly what it sounds like – dividing your customers into groups based on…

Customer Segmentation Software

Customer segmentation – which is simply grouping customers according to shared traits, habits, lifetime stages, demographic/firmographic…

Customer Service

Customer service refers to the support and advice provided by a business to their customers or…

Customer Service Automation

Automated customer service provides customer support through automated technologies such as chatbots. The ultimate goal of…

Customer Service Representative

Customer service representatives connect with customers to handle complaints, assist in processing orders, and provide information…

Customer Support

Put simply, customer support refers to the collection of services that you provide to customers in…

Deep Linking

Deep linking can be utilized by businesses to keep users engaged in a mobile app rather…

Digital Customer Service

Digital customer service simply means meeting the needs of your customers through digital channels such as email,…

Digital Transformation

You’ve probably heard the term “digital transformation” all over the internet. What is digital transformation? Why…

Downtime

In the realm of technology in general, downtime typically refers to a system downtime, which means…

Email Support

Email support is one of the main channels of customer support for most companies today. The…

Entity in Chatbot

Within a chatbot, an entity, or slot, modifies user intent. Chatbot entities are connected to knowledge…

EOL Support

EOL stands for “end of life,” and EOL support refers to the support a company offers…

Escalation Management

Escalation management is a process put in place to deal with incidents and problem management within…

FAQ

FAQ stands for “frequently asked questions,” and is a standard document in nearly every customer service…

First Call Resolution

First Call Resolution, abbreviated as FCR, refers to resolving a customer’s issue during the first call…

First Response Time

First response time (FRT), or first reply time, is a measure of the number of minutes,…

Gamification

Gamification is a strategy of applying core game-design elements, activities, and principles to a non-game context,…

Geofencing

Geofencing is the creation of a virtual perimeter around a real geographical area for the purpose…

Help Center

A Help Center is a website where customers can find answers to their questions and solutions…

Help Desk

A help desk is a service a company offers to support computer users and offer technical…

Help Desk

A help desk is any centralized platform that provides widespread customer and employee support across different…

Help Portal

A help portal, typically described as a help center, customer service portal, or self-serve portal, surfaces…

Human Fallback

In what’s sometimes known as the “human/machine hybrid model of customer service,” human fallback refers to…

In-App Messaging

In-app messaging is a type of native, mobile messaging that occurs right within an app. Different than…

In-App Purchase

In-app purchase is the ability for customers to buy products or services from inside a mobile…

In-App Support

In-app support allows customers to interact with your customer service team and QuickSearch Bots within your…

In-Game Support

Mobile gaming is an enormous industry, generating around $138.7 billion in revenue in 2018 alone. In-game…

Intelligent Routing

Intelligent routing, also known as skills-based routing or smart routing, is a critical technology in contact…

Intent Classification

In the world of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and chatbots, intent classification is the process of…

Intent in Chatbot

Within a chatbot, intent refers to the goal the customer has in mind when typing in…

Interactive Notifications

Interactive notifications allow app users to respond to notifications right from within the notification, rather than…

Issue Classification

Issue classification means assigning customer service issues to the appropriate teams, agents, and channels in order…

Issue Routing

In customer service, issues routing is the practice of determining which agent, organization, or channel a…

IVR

IVR stands for interactive voice response. IVR is a technology that allows incoming callers to self-navigate a phone system with…

Knowledge Base

A knowledge base is a store of information customers or customer service workers can draw upon…

Knowledge Management

Knowledge Management describes the methodology and tools used to manage the handling of information with an organization…

Lifetime Value

Lifetime value is a term often used in marketing to describe the ROI (return on investment)…

Live Chat

Live chat allows customers to communicate with customer service representatives in real time. Rather than having…

Loyalty Program

Loyalty programs are a great way to build customer engagement, encourage repeat purchases, and access a…

Mobile Broadcast

Mobile broadcast is a technology designed to deliver SMS messages to multiple people at once in…

Multichannel Support

The idea of multichannel support in customer service is that a brand meets customers on a…

Natural Language Processing

Natural language processing, or NLP, is how computers extract information from human language and, in turn,…

Net Promoter Score®

Net Promoter Score®, or NPS®,  is a trademarked tool used widely to gauge customer experience and…

Omnichannel Support

Like its close cousin multichannel support, omnichannel support is a customer service model that allows customers…

Push Message

A push message is a notification that pops up on the home screen of a mobile…

QuickSearch Bot

A QuickSearch Bot is a chatbot that is an automated, often AI-driven software programs that work…

Resolution Rate

Resolution rate is a metric that compares the number of tickets assigned to an agent or…

Resolution Time

Time to resolution is an average of the amount of time it takes a customer service organization…

Retention Rate

For scaling companies, customer retention is an incredibly important metric. A business can’t grow if it’s…

Revenue Formula

Understanding revenue gives you an insight into how your business is performing. And while the calculation…

Sales Cycle

Sales can’t be left to chance; that’s why most businesses have a dedicated sales department. But…

Sales Funnel

The term ‘sales funnel’ is widely used in sales and marketing. It describes the journey that…

SDK

SDK stands for “software development kit,” and is a set of tools that allow software developers to…

Service-Level Agreements

A service-level agreement is a formal contract between a service provider and a customer. It lays out the…

Social Support

Today, social media is a primary way that consumers follow and interact with brands, and that…

Support Operations

An organization’s support operations team helps the customer service department work in more productive, efficient, effective,…

Support Portal

A customer support portal, or web support portal, is a self-serve, web-based customer service tool customers…

Support Ticket

Support tickets play a vital role in customer service. Used by a huge range of different…

Ticket Routing

In customer support operations, ticket routing is the process of setting rules around how tickets are…

Ticketing System

A ticketing system is a management tool that processes and catalogs customer service requests. Tickets, also…

Touchpoint

Touchpoints are places along the customer journey where customers interact with brands. An interaction may be…

Universal App

A universal app is an app that can run on any mobile device operating system — meaning…

Web Chat

Webchat is a format that allows customers to communicate directly with brands online, often on their…

What is Conversational AI?

Conversational AI is a type of artificial intelligence that allows customers to converse and interact with…