With all of the shenanigans call center staff has to contend with on a daily basis, surely there must be an extensive manual dedicated to the navigation of difficult in-call situations. Um, not so much. There is no such manual in existence, just like there is no manual for life, or childbirth, or marriage.<\/p>\n
But we really don’t mind. Here’s why:<\/p>\n
Numbers. Methodology. It\u2019s fairly black and white with no gray area in between for variables. You either hit positive key metrics, or you don\u2019t; and if you don\u2019t, your call center suffers.<\/p>\n
Take that knowledge and apply it to how operations must proceed when dealing with difficult \u2013 or as the title says, grumpy \u2013 callers. No matter how efficient call centers are, a percentage of calls will most definitely be negative in nature.<\/p>\n
So, how do you apply this knowledge? Simple. Here are the standard call center metrics utilized industry-wide to measure success:<\/p>\n
This is a term typically used to determine overall caller experience, and it\u2019s measured through quality control recording. What\u2019s that? Well, every time you\u2019re on the phone with a customer service representative (CSR) and they say, \u201cthe following phone call is being recorded for quality control purposes,\u201d that\u2019s what quality control recording is.<\/p>\n
A business’ quality control team measures level of service, candor, personality, and adherence to scripts or certain words. The emphasis falls on conformity. If all callers conform to the same system of speaking, it provides a high-quality overall score for the call center.<\/p>\n
They score each call based on a system specifically derived by the company. It could be letter grades, number grades from 1-10, whatever the company chooses to use as its measurement. Careful analysis will determine just what kind of service the caller experienced based on those scores.<\/p>\n
Now this does not mean that a \u201cgrumpy\u201d caller will ensure a low quality score. Rather, it\u2019s those grumpy calls that may determine the high scores depending on how the operator responds.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the first thing to keep in mind: getting the grumpy calls doesn\u2019t necessarily mean your operators aren\u2019t servicing effectively. The truth of it is, if grumpy calls come in here and there, with high quality scores, those callers are kept to a minimum, and they don\u2019t escalate to the point of requiring the attention of a supervisor.<\/p>\n
Subverting the need for a supervisor\u2019s involvement is ideal. So observe the quality scores.<\/p>\n
How do we specifically measure quality scores? One of the first things to evaluate is something called first call resolution (FCR).<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a systematic analysis of calls per day, or per week or more, to determine which calls have been \u201chandled\u201d properly on the first call.<\/p>\n
They measure this by noticing repeat callers from the same number, suggesting that the issue or problem wasn\u2019t initially resolved, or the question wasn\u2019t initially answered. What does that mean?<\/p>\n
Inefficient time management. Ineffective productivity. The longer operators are spending with the same callers, the less time to handle more calls. And that\u2019s bad for call center business.<\/p>\n
The same applies for the grumpy callers out there with big problems. Operators need to focus on trying to solve the problem immediately. There\u2019s no \u201ccall back,\u201d no \u201ctransferring.\u201d Handle the issue. Be straightforward and solution-minded.<\/p>\n
This doesn\u2019t mean the end-result is a happy caller! In fact, more often than not, the caller is still a little peeved, or even a lot peeved. But the point of trying to resolve the problem is that to some degree, the problem itself has been solved, even if the caller\u2019s disenchantment has not.<\/p>\n
There is, however, a direct correlation there. The study of call center psychology reveals that even if a customer is getting crabby on the phone, when the problem is resolved efficiently, the customer will actually be satisfied in the long run, and will resolve that grumpiness in his own time. That\u2019s key.<\/p>\n
Again, the emphasis for your telephone answering service here is on time management. Whatever time the call center spends is money, basically. And the end result is an exceptional FCR metric percentage.<\/p>\n
This is undoubtedly more black and white than anything else; but it doesn\u2019t discount the validity and importance of the metric. Statistically, the more calls handled, the more effective the call center.<\/p>\n
Why? It touches on a variety of different aspects: conflict resolution, productivity, sales.<\/p>\n
If an operator does handle a comparably sizable number of calls per hour, it\u2019s safe to say from an analytical standpoint that the operator is resolving the issues in a timely and favorable manner. Excellent conflict resolution typically will result in higher call volume.<\/p>\n
Productivity obviously is a no-brainer, as the more calls an operator takes will inevitably mean more business for the company. This is especially true if the call center has an element of sales strategy and planning involved. The more calls, the greater the potential for increased sales and profitability.<\/p>\n
If a call center\u2019s strategic administrative division is researching ways to improve the calls-per-hour metric, one might consider in-depth conflict resolution training. Better training will keep your employees less stressed when confronted by displeased callers.\u00a0Another possible improvement is to have the information technology department update software and hardware to increase efficiency. Call transfers would be expedited, and signals and transmissions would be sharpened.<\/p>\n
Last but not least…<\/span><\/p>\n Truthfully, this is probably the most important metric (and it\u2019s not even really a metric, per se, but a guideline).<\/p>\n Strict, methodical and almost mechanical without being impersonal: that\u2019s the key. Your operators must literally not take anything personally. Letting every insult, every snide comment glide past will not only deflect further dragging of the conversation, but it will reduce the amount of time spent per call, increase the potential for resolution, and will thus lead to favorable results.<\/p>\n In essence, if the operator is grumpy, the caller will be grumpier. Plain and simple.<\/p>\n The operator\u2019s goal is to stay focused and aim toward resolution against all odds, putting the needs of the customer first. Concentrating solely on getting through the call and addressing the needs of the customer may change the caller\u2019s mood from appalled to appreciative!<\/p>\n In other words, allow the caller to vent. Let them be grumpy, let them talk out their frustrations. And keep your cool no matter how tense it gets.\u00a0It\u2019s the single most important guideline of basic counseling methods.<\/p>\n An operator\u2019s main service to a caller is to simply listen. And only when the caller is completely done, respond.\u00a0In many cases, after venting, callers actually feel better! We see this repeatedly in several other fields, such as healthcare, and the small business arena, among others. The ability to listen is crucial. It is a learned skill that leads to exemplary communication of information, assimilation of ideas, the application of those ideas in the real world, and interaction with others.<\/p>\n In the end, all of this does make all the difference. It\u2019s the cornerstone of excellent customer service in a call center, hands down.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s close enough. The key is remembering that there is a person on the other end of the line. And that the operator is also a person listening, not a machine, not a recording.<\/p>\n Keeping that in mind along with industry metrics will ensure that you have a call center dedicated to weathering any grumpy storm, and appreciating the “textbook calls” praising excellence of execution.<\/p>\n In other words: practice makes perfect.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With all of the shenanigans call center staff has to contend with on a daily basis, surely there must be an extensive manual dedicated to the navigation of difficult in-call situations. Um,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4742,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[60],"class_list":["post-4736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-customer-service","tag-call-handling"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nStay calm.<\/h2>\n
It’s not an exact science.<\/h2>\n