Of all the customer service channels, providing your customer with over-the-phone support has the potential to be the most harrowing or the most helpful experience for your representatives and your customers. According to the 2015 U.K. State of Multichannel Customer Service Report by Microsoft, reaching out over the phone is still the second most popular route for customers to seek assistance, despite the rise in available web-based support. Read on to get the best methods providing phone support and keep those experiences helpful.
Listen, Listen, and Listen Again.
This is the first and most important rule when you’re on the phone with a customer. A surprising portion of customer service contacts just need to feel heard to keep their loyalty to your company. It’s a simple solution to sit back and hear it. Apart from the comfort of a listening ear, it’s likely that you will also catch something important if you take the time to focus on the account of their experience. It could be a technical detail, a simple error, or just a piece of common ground to smooth the interaction and make it easier to connect with your customer.
Don’t make them wait.
Studies show that over half of customers who choose to call in for service will lose their patience after about five minutes. A dropped customer service call has a ripple effect on your company’s image–the customer will walk away with a bad taste in their mouth, which will likely be spread to their peers, and to whatever social media he or she may frequent. If the customer does decide to return to the issue, the next representative will be used as a punching bag for their previous frustration as well. All of this can be avoided by expressing the importance of quick responses to your representatives. If more information is needed, schedule a callback with the customer. Avoid putting the customer on hold at all costs, but make sure to reconnect with them before five minutes have passed, whether the issue is resolved or still in the process. Remember, keeping the customer in the loop will make you both happier.
Ask smart questions.
The key to solving tricky issues is to ask smart questions, and the key to asking smart questions is to have smart software. This is where PhaseWare comes in. PhaseWare’s Tracker will allow your representatives to see exactly what sort of ticket or tickets the customer has had in the past, and where each ticket is at in its resolution. The format is clear, customizable, and easy to use, creating a quick and flawless experience for your customers and your representatives. With the ability to utilize PhaseWare’s powerful searching tools, any representative will become a wealth of information to share with and better assist the customer: tickets, correspondences, FAQs, forums, and notices will be immediately available to provide on the fly and keep that wait time down to a minimum.
Knowing your way around phone support is a necessary skill for successful businesses, and with PhaseWare’s ability to organize and orchestrate the customer experience, your representatives will become experts at providing quick and comprehensive care.