You're absolutely right. Getting the customer to a live agent quickly is important, but the challenge can also be to get the customer to the correct agent quickly. Customers can be just as grouchy if, after a 'real' person answers - they get transferred two or three times to get to the CSR who can resolve the issue.

Oh, what tangled web of phone lines we weave!

You're absolutely right, Tom. That's why the call connection to a live agent is just the first step. Smart companies are using cross-channel datapassing technology to assure that the context of the online customer's session is preserved as they transition from the Web to a phone channel. This technology uses the information already entered online to make sure the customer gets routed to the right agent.