Telemarketers Use Emotionally Intelligent Software

eldavojohn writes "There's a new kind of software that's being used more and more. It's software that detects emotion and now it's being used in call centers. It's a $400 million industry according to Forrester Research that relies on volume, pitch and even the words & phrases being used. Are we inadvertently getting closer to software that can understand us by filling the needs of telemarketers who need to know when I'm upset that they just interrupted my dinner?"

Comments

They need software to tell them I'm upset?

[MECC]

As if a telemarketer will need a computer to tell them I'm pissed off when I feed them a stream of obsenities for calling my mobile phone. Oh wait, I guess the retarded telemarketers might need a computer for that. Oh wait, that catagory includes all telemarketers, and the rocket scientists who thought that annoying people was a good way to get them to buy stuff.

Re:They need software to tell them I'm upset?

[AKAImBatman]

No they don't. The headline is bogus.

Telemarketing == Outbound Call Center
Customer Service == Inbound Call Center

Which does this sound like:

Health insurer Wisconsin Physicians Service, for example, uses the technology to scan automated phone calls for "Medicare" and "confused" to find calls from seniors with Medicare questions.

And this?

Roger Woolley, vice president of marketing for speech analytic software seller eTalk, of Irving, Texas, said subtler systems are used to identify when an angry customer is preparing to cancel services.

I think a telemarketer can judge for himself whether or not you're upset. (And promptly ignore you.) This system is intended for support calls, where the customer service rep might not realize that they need to take action to prevent the loss of your business. Presumably, the system would automatically flag a manager if it calcualted that the customer was getting frustrated.

Considering the number of inexperienced customer service reps that companies employ, it's probably not a bad idea. Especially since it's currently difficult to auto-route "easy" vs. "hard" calls between the experienced and inexperienced employees.

Editors: Can we change the headline?

Re:They need software to tell them I'm upset?

[curecollector]

I was about to post the exact same thing, and then got to thinking that perhaps they're not screening for angry repsonses, but rather those that may come across as "vulnerable". Most telemarketers I've spoken with (either commercial or for charity) have been akin to dealing with a strange and dangerous animal - in other words, they can smell fear (or rather, indecisiveness, malleability, etc.).

Re:They need software to tell them I'm upset?

[drinkypoo]

rocket scientists who thought that annoying people was a good way to get them to buy stuff.

They wouldn't do it if it didn't make money.

Annoying people apparently is a good way to get them to buy stuff.

My understanding is that they primarily pray on lonely old shut-ins, that's their bread and butter. These people are so desperate to talk to someone that they will buy your shit just to keep the conversation going a little while.

Telemarketers?

[gstoddart]

I read two of the links, and nowhere did it actually mention telemarketers. It seemed to indicate it was more related to customer contact things where the customer is calling about their service, and getting frustrated with the voicemail maze or the person on the phone with them. Like when you're calling your cable or phone company.

While we all hate telemarketers here on Slashdot, I'm not convinced either of the stories is referring to them particularly.

Cheers

Four words:

[zaren]

Do.

Not.

Call.

List.

I put my number on the national list as soon as it came out, and we get ZERO calls now, and haven't for at least a year. The few that called before the list got widely distributed were politely told to put me on their list. I've had no problems, no dinner time calls, nothing. It really does work.

Caller ID

[P3NIS_CLEAVER]

Seriously though, does anyone pick up the phone any more if you don't recognize the number?

Never get annoying calls again

[ThePopeLayton]

The greatest way to avoid getting annoying telemarketing calls during dinner is to never answer the phone during dinner!

$400 million

[drgonzo59]

They invested $400 million in an emotional analysis program using pitch, loudness and so on.

So next time they call start smiling and in a soft polite voice say "FUCK YOU" and hang up.

Re:It's not for telemarketers...

[raduf]

It's not the indians, it's their managers. They could have been eschimos for all you care and if nobody gave them a piece of info they don't have it.
Now if you said that setups in india are designed to be cheap and do one thing only as simple as possible, disregarding complications... you'd have a case.