“I’ll prioritise this person first – they look more promising.”

Sound familiar? Whether you’re a debt collection specialist reaching out to contacts, a sales team pursuing leads, or a customer service team following up on enquiries, manually selecting who to call next feels like control. Many believe this selective approach makes them more productive. But what if there’s a better way to manage your outbound calls?

Transitioning from manual to automated dialling represents one of the most impactful changes a contact centre can make. It’s not just a technical upgrade – it’s a shift in mindset that can dramatically improve productivity and results. Yet like any meaningful change, it can meet resistance.

At MaxContact, we’ve guided hundreds of contact centres through this transition, and we’ve developed a streamlined approach that minimises disruption while maximising results. This guide walks you through the journey, addressing common concerns and highlighting the benefits you can expect along the way.

Understanding the Challenge

Before diving into the detail of the implementation roadmap, let’s run through why this transition can sometimes face resistance:

• Lead ownership: Agents sometimes prefer manual dialling because it gives them control over which leads they pursue
• Cherry-picking: The ability to select promising leads first can feel like a productivity advantage to agents
• Comfort with the familiar: Change, even positive change, can be uncomfortable

But what if we told you that automated dialling delivers more quality conversations, improves connection rates, and makes hitting targets easier? Let’s explore how.

Implementation Roadmap: Your Journey to Automated Dialling Success

Phase 1: Discovery & Planning

The journey begins with understanding your current dialling processes and identifying opportunities for improvement.

Key activities:

• Assess your current manual dialling processes, for example, dialling manually from a spreadsheet.
• Identify how you currently prioritise calls.
• Establish baseline KPIs (calls per hour, connection rates, conversions).
• Define success criteria for the implementation.

Pro tip: Be transparent with your team about the upcoming change. Share the ‘why’ behind the transition and how it will make their jobs easier, not harder.

Phase 2: Technical Setup

Once we understand how your team works, we can configure MaxContact to support and enhance your workflows.

Key activities:

• Develop a data import strategy
• Configure data prioritisation to dial your most valuable contacts first
• Set up campaign parameters, including dialling modes, connection rates, wrap times etc, to align with your business objectives and compliance requirements.
• Prepare reporting dashboards for real-time monitoring

Addressing team concerns: If your team currently cherry-picks contacts based on specific criteria, we can build that intelligence into the automated system. Through integrations with your CRM or data sources, we can replicate your prioritisation logic.

For example, if your team prioritises contacts based on engagement history, demographic data, or likelihood to convert, we can configure MaxContact to automatically fetch and prioritise contacts using those same criteria. This gives you the benefits of cherry-picking without the manual effort, ensuring high-value contacts are reached first while maintaining consistency across the team.

Phase 3: Training & Go-Live

This critical phase combines preparation and action as your team begins using MaxContact with our support.

Key activities:

• Train team members on how to use MaxContact
• Address resistance to change through education
• Provide on-site or remote go-live support
• Offer real-time troubleshooting and daily feedback sessions
• Monitor initial performance metrics

Message to your team: “The time you spend on the phone is going to be higher quality, your talk time will increase, instead of dispositioning another ‘no answer’ or voicemail. Instead, you’ll get through to live connections. This means more meaningful conversations and better results.”

During this phase, our experts work alongside your team to ensure a smooth transition, quickly addressing any issues that arise and making adjustments as needed. This hands-on approach helps build confidence and accelerates adoption across your organisation

Phase 4: Optimisation & Measuring Success

Once the system is operational, we focus on continuous improvement and measuring impact against your goals.

Key activities:

• Fine-tune prioritisation criteria
• Compare performance metrics to pre-implementation baselines
• Track success in progressive stages (adoption → productivity → outcomes)
• Identify opportunities for further optimisation
• Calculate ROI and long-term business impact

How Long Will This Take?

The timeline for implementation varies depending on the size of your operation and complexity of your requirements:

Small teams (up to 25 users): Typically around 2 weeks from discovery to go-live

Medium teams (up to 50 users): Approximately 3 weeks

Large teams or complex requirements: Custom timeline based on specific needs

Get in touch if you’d like to discuss your organisation’s individual needs.

Benefits That Make the Transition to Automated Dialling Worthwhile

For Team Members

• More quality conversations: Connect only with live contacts, not voicemails or no-answers
• Less wasted time: No more manual dispositioning of unsuccessful calls
• Easier target achievement: More quality conversations lead to more successful outcomes
• Better customer experience: Immediate connection when customers answer

For Team Leaders

• Real-time performance dashboards: See exactly how your team is performing
• Improved team productivity: Get more from your existing team
• Early identification of issues: Spot and address problems before they impact results
• Better resource management: More predictable call patterns mean better staffing

For the Business

• Increased productivity: Make 200-300% more calls in the same amount of time
• Enhanced scalability: Easily handle larger call volumes
• Improved reporting: Get detailed insights into performance
• Better ROI: More successful outcomes from the same team size

Real Success Stories

From Cherry-Picking to Consistent Results with Automated Dialling

A property services platform, who now use MaxContact, were previously using Salesforce with manual click-to-dial functionality. Their team would meticulously scan through records, cherry-picking leads based on subjective criteria, which created inconsistency in approach and results.

After implementing MaxContact:

• 40% more conversations with prospects
• 4 hours of pure talk time vs. previous 4 hours that included voicemails and dialling
• 80% contact rate – significantly higher than with manual dialling
• Consistent approach across the entire team

STA International: Boosting Debt Collection Performance

STA International, a leading debt collection agency with over 65 years of experience, needed a reliable contact centre solution that could maximise contact rates while maintaining compliance.

After implementing MaxContact:

• Contact rates increased from 7.5% to 18%
• 10% increase in overall contact rates
• 6% improvement in team productivity
• Year-on-year call reduction rates

The combination of predictive and progressive dialling capabilities transformed their operations, allowing them to speak with more people and collect debt more effectively.

Kandoo Car Credit: Scaling with Efficiency

Kandoo Car Credit, a UK-based car finance broker, was hampered by manual dialling limitations and inefficient call routing. After implementing MaxContact, they achieved:

• Operational efficiency by replacing manual processes with automated workflows
• 146% team scaling capacity without proportional increase in overhead
• Over 2,000 daily calls while maintaining excellent customer experience

The Bottom Line

Transitioning from manual to automated dialling isn’t just about technology – it’s about empowering your team to work smarter, not harder. When implemented with a focus on your specific needs and concerns, automated dialling can transform your outbound operation’s performance.

You can have more conversations with the right people in the best order to achieve your goals, whether that’s closing more deals, collecting more debt, or providing better customer service. All while knowing that reporting and compliance are automatically and easily covered.

The key is partnership. At MaxContact, we don’t just provide technology and walk away. We work with you to understand your unique challenges, configure MaxContact to meet your goals, and support you every step of the way.

Our platform provides:

• Progressive, predictive, and preview dialling modes to match your specific needs
• Intelligent contact strategies to target more effectively
• Skills-based routing for outbound calls
• Answer machine detection with over 90% accuracy
• Comprehensive reporting for continuous improvement

Ready to take the first step? Contact us today to schedule a discovery call and learn how we can help your team reach its full potential.

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We’ve recently launched our “Voice of the Consumer” research at MaxContact, and the results offer clear insights into what UK customers actually want when they interact with contact centres in 2025. We surveyed over 1,000 UK consumers in February 2025 who had interacted with contact centres in the last 18 months, and their responses paint a vivid picture of current expectations.

The Numbers Don’t Lie: Customer Experience Matters

Our research uncovered some eye-opening statistics that should make every contact centre leader take notice:

• 42% of consumers have already switched providers because of poor contact centre experiences, and another 38% have seriously considered it
• More than half (55%) abandon calls when wait times get too long
• 70% still want to talk to a real person when explaining specific situations
• Young adults (25-34) embrace AI at more than double the rate of those over 55

These numbers show the direct link between contact centre performance and customer retention. Every abandoned call represents potential lost revenue.

AI Adoption: A Clear Generation Gap

Our survey shows 45% of consumers feel comfortable with AI chatbots and virtual assistants, while 36% remain uncomfortable. But dig deeper and you’ll find significant demographic differences:

• 65% of 25-34 year olds feel comfortable with AI tools
• Only 27% of over-55s share that comfort level
• Men show higher AI acceptance than women (48% vs. 41%)
• Urban consumers adapt to AI more readily than rural customers

“Contact centres need to recognise these demographic differences when implementing AI solutions,” says Ben Booth, CEO at MaxContact. “Your customer base should directly influence your technology deployment strategy.”

The data suggests contact centres should:

1. Use AI for what it does best – handling routine enquiries, gathering initial information, and routing conversations
2. Create clear pathways to human agents when customers need them
3. Be upfront about when customers are talking to AI systems
4. Consider using AI behind the scenes to support agents rather than focusing solely on customer-facing bots, especially with older demographics

Humans Still Win Where It Matters Most

Despite advances in AI and automation, customers overwhelmingly want human agents for certain situations:

• 70% prefer humans when explaining unique situations
• 67% want a person during emergencies
• 65% choose humans for complex account questions
• 61% want real people when making complaints

Interestingly, fewer consumers (47%) insist on human interaction for payment arrangements, and only 41% prefer humans when discussing financial difficulties.

“Your agents remain your most valuable resource,” notes Ben Booth, CEO at MaxContact. “The key is deploying them where they add the most value while automating routine transactions that don’t require human judgement or empathy.”

Channel Selection: Right Tool for the Right Job

Consumers have clear preferences about how they want to be contacted:

• Phone calls dominate for urgent matters (67% prefer this channel)
• Email is the top choice for initial outbound contact (53%)
• For account updates, email (39%) outperforms phone calls (26%)
• Phone remains the fastest resolution channel (60%)

What’s surprising? WhatsApp and social media ranked low across all scenarios, suggesting these channels work better as supplements rather than primary contact methods in most industries.

For contact centre workforce management, these findings highlight the need for skilled phone agents supported by robust email response systems, with chat and social media as secondary channels.

Customer Loyalty Hangs in the Balance

The data on customer switching behavior is particularly concerning:

• 42% have switched providers after poor contact centre experiences
• 17% have switched multiple times
• Among 25-34 year olds, 60% have switched providers

“Contact centre quality directly impacts your bottom line,” explains Ben Booth, CEO at MaxContact. “When customers switch providers, they take their lifetime value with them.”

What Builds Customer Trust?

Consumers identified several key factors that establish trust:

1. Agents who truly understand their needs (49%)
2. Clear identification and purpose (42%)
3. Professional communication style (42%)
4. Agents empowered to make decisions (35%)

Technical reliability emerged as another crucial factor, with 27% of respondents reporting frequent disconnections during calls. Your CCaaS platform needs rock-solid uptime and call quality metrics to avoid this common frustration.

Five Focus Areas for Contact Centre Leaders

Based on our research, we recommend contact centres prioritise:

1. Smart technology allocation – Deploy IVR, chatbots and self-service portals for routine transactions while reserving agent time for complex issues
2. Queue management – Use callback options, accurate wait time estimates, and workforce management tools to minimise hold times
3. Channel strategy – Align communication channels with message type and demographic preferences
4. Agent enablement – Equip your team with knowledge bases, CRM integration, and decision-making authority
5. Continuous feedback loops – Implement speech analytics, post-call surveys, and structured quality monitoring

Want more insights? The complete “Voice of the Consumer” report includes detailed breakdowns by age, gender, and region, along with practical recommendations for contact centre operations. Access your free copy here.

About MaxContact

MaxContact’s cloud contact centre platform helps you manage more conversations, improve customer experience, and make data-driven decisions. Our platform seamlessly blends outbound, inbound and omnichannel functionality, providing AI-enhanced insights that help you deliver the efficient, personalised interactions customers expect in 2025.

For more information, speak to one of our experts.

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