Is Your Call Center Frustrating Customers?

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Frustrating Customers

Do employees at your customer service call center feel like they’re dealing with more frustrated customers than ever before?

New research from Mattersight offers some insights into why this might be. According to Mattersight, more than two-thirds of customers who speak to call center reps feel frustrated before they even place a call. What’s more, 75 percent are still frustrated after the interaction, even if the representative solves their problems.

With more than 70 percent of customers saying a bad customer service experience could keep them from patronizing a business again, keeping customers happy when they call should be a high priority for your business.

One reason for customer frustration, Mattersight notes, is that there are so many ways for customers to reach out to companies for support these days. When a problem arises, most customers start by using the company’s website, FAQs or other online help tools to try to figure the problem out on their own.

By the time customers actually dial in to a call center, they’ve usually tried every other way of solving a problem, with no results. So what may seem from the rep’s end like the customers’ first attempt to resolve the issue is, for the customer, the end of a long and frustrating journey.

However, instead of acknowledging this “new reality” of customer service, most call center reps still focus on getting the customer off the phone as quickly as possible to meet their goals for handling X number of calls in X amount of time.

How can your company improve the customer experience and enjoy higher customer satisfaction? Below are some takeaways from the report.

Acknowledge Them

Acknowledge the customer’s frustration and the seriousness of their issue. Be extra patient working with the customer. By validating their feelings, you can help them feel more taken care of.

Offer Personalized Assistance

Your call center reps should be able to quickly access all of the data you have available on the customer on the other end of the phone. Things such as order history, current order status and recent interactions with the company. Showing knowledge of the customer’s past behavior and history with your business will persuade them that your rep is in a position to really help.

Take Time to Understand

A long wait time is customers’ number one frustration with call centers. But number two is dealing with representatives who don’t understand what they need. Make sure your call center reps really listen, restate the problem to the customer and clarify that they’ve understood all aspects of the situation.

Follow Up After the Solution

After resolving the problem, don’t just rush to get the customer off the phone. Take time to apologize once again for the difficulties the person encountered, thank the customer for their patience, and ask if there’s anything else you can assist with. Let the customer be the one to end the call – not you.

By taking a few simple steps to get into the right mindset when dealing with call center customers, your customer service reps can not only solve problems, but also leave customers with a good feeling about your business.

Phone Image via Shutterstock


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Rieva Lesonsky Rieva Lesonsky is a Columnist for Small Business Trends covering employment, retail trends and women in business. She is CEO of GrowBiz Media, a media company that helps entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses. Visit her blog, SmallBizDaily, to get the scoop on business trends and free TrendCast reports.

2 Reactions
  1. My biggest issue with call centers is that they follow the script/process, but don’t actually engage enough to understand the issue. Because they don’t put themselves in my shoes, they don’t come up with actual solutions. Because they don’t come up with solutions the interaction is negative.

    Short, short version: Focus on the problem and offer solutions.

  2. The solution you given is totally effective for call centers. Reps have to be polite and ability to solve the problems otherwise company will face to lose his customers.