Blog

Nobody likes calling a customer service line. Generally, those who are calling are already frustrated, and some may even be downright angry. Obviously, a complicated and seemingly unproductive customer service line makes these problems even worse.

In fact, a call that leaves a customer feeling dissatisfied can lead to serious problems for your business. These problems might come in the form of poor reviews, or they could even be as intense as a lawsuit.

Fortunately, there are ways you can ensure your customer service line is less frustrating than the typical one. Not only will taking these steps to make people more likely to do business with you at a later date, but it will also make the job of your customer support staff easier and more pleasant.

Here are our top tips for providing helpful customer service calls and improving the experience of your staff and customers alike.

Give Choices

The last thing an already upset customer wants is to be given the runaround. For this reason, it’s important to set up a menu that gives callers clear and easy-to-understand options. This will allow the customer to choose the extension that best fits their needs, meaning they are more likely to reach a customer service representative who can help them.

Because a menu such as this tends to mean fewer calls end up being transferred, those calls thus tend to be shorter, more productive, and much less frustrating for everyone involved. Additionally, shorter call times mean less wasted time and shorter wait times for all customers.

Avoid Robots

While the technology behind phone robots is truly amazing, the use of these voice recognition systems is not always the best option. Callers almost always prefer to speak with a human representative, and can become quite annoyed when the system doesn’t understand what they’re saying or is unable to help them with what they need. Therefore, unless your voice recognition system is purely for Call sorting, we recommend skipping it altogether.

Stray From the Script

It’s a well-known fact that call centre employees have a tendency to lean heavily on scripts. In fact, many customer service centres even insist that staff stick to the provided script. While call scripts do have their place, it’s important that your employees are given the freedom to stray from the script somewhat if the situation calls for it. Of course, this can only work if your staff fully understands your product or service. This means some additional training will be necessary, but the payoff is well worthwhile, as it will mean fewer transfers to the higher-ups and more personalized assistance for each customer.

Keep Employee Counts Up

Having too few employees often results in longer wait times and overworked staff. For this reason, it’s highly important that you keep your employee counts up. By staffing as many people as your budget will allow, you can keep both customers and staff happy, and ensure your company is surrounded by positivity.

Offer After-Hours Help

Most businesses can’t afford to hire overnight customer service staff. Even those companies that can afford this added expense will tend to close their customer service centres at night. This is because nighttime calls are rare for companies that operate domestically, and the cost-to-benefit ratio is just not great.

Still, there are things you can do to ensure your customers have somewhere to turn when they run into issues in the late-night hours. Self-service portals are perhaps the best option for fulfilling this need. Luckily, with programs such as Vision Helpdesk, setting up a self-service portal is quite simple. This means your customers can get help even if your call center is closed for the night.

Have Multiple Contact Options

In this age of communication, finding multiple ways for your customers to contact you is a cinch. This is great because it means that people can reach you in a way that is most comfortable for them. Additionally, by offering people the option to email you or contact you via social media, you can dramatically reduce phone wait times and reduce the workload of those working in your customer service call center. Clearly, this increases customer satisfaction and reduces the stress levels of your employees.

Invest in a Help Desk Software

Keeping track of calls, setting up and maintaining a self-service portal, and ensuring no email or social media message goes unanswered are just some of the multitude of tasks your customer service staff must stay on top of. Their enormous list of jobs can be pretty overwhelming at times and can create negativity and unhappy staff. This is often apparent to customers, leading to uncomfortable situations.

That said, there is a way to make things easier for your hardworking customer service employees. For instance, a high-quality help desk software can make a world of difference to everyone involved. Therefore, by purchasing a help desk software, you are investing in your customers, your staff, and your business as a whole.

If you’re in the market for a help desk software that can improve the way your customer service department works and improve your business overall, Vision Helpdesk is for you. Our software includes tools for all of the important tasks mentioned above, as well as staff communication, work gamification, and even a mobile app.

To learn more, have a look around our website and feel free to contact us with any questions you have.