If you want your company to build and maintain great relationships with customers, you need skilled call center agents on the front lines of your business. Call center agents represent your brand and embody your company’s values, and as such, they will need an extensive skill set to consistently deliver favorable outcomes in each customer interaction.
As a business owner, you’d do well to invest in your call center agents. To make your investment count, you need to put in place processes that take into account the following skills.
1. Empathy
The word “empathy” has become such a buzzword in the business world for so many years and rightfully so. While the concept may sound touchy-feely to some, there’s no denying that empathy is essential to human interactions.
Managers and team leaders need to constantly remind their agents to imagine themselves in the customer’s shoes in every customer interaction. After all, by “owning” the customer’s problem, agents put themselves in the best position to satisfy customers. Empathetic statements let them know that you care, and that makes a big difference.
2. Patience
Being a call center agent is a rewarding job, but we have to admit that having to deal with rude or irate customers on a constant basis can make it a little less fun. That is why patience is a critical skill every call center should have.
When callers are upset about your brand’s products and services, they are likely to treat your agents as a sounding board for the simple fact that they have nothing else to vent their frustrations on.
But agents need to learn not to take it personally and instead be willing to listen and respond calmly to diffuse the situation. That way, the agent (and the company) can leave a good impression no matter the outcome.
3. Clear communication
Call center agents need to communicate effectively to resolve issues quickly and ensure that customer interactions are as pleasant as possible. To deliver on this end, reps have to speak the English language fluently. After all, spotty grammar will always leave customers confused, not to mention that it may take longer to arrive at a resolution and sometimes not at all.
Agents also need to learn how to straddle the line between being conversational and being formal, switching between the two as the situation dictates.
4. Active listening
In a customer interaction, what callers are saying is as important as what they aren’t saying. This is why customer service reps need to give their undivided attention to every call. Active listening goes beyond just paying attention to their words. It also involves listening with all the senses, meaning they have to respond appropriately, withhold responses when necessary, remember what is being said, and more.
5. Well-organized
Call center agents are regularly tasked with managing, recording, and processing various types of information. Being well-organized means many things: taking notes when appropriate, saving information under the right category, putting things in their proper order, and more. Call center agents are entrusted with customer information every day, and it is their responsibility (and yours) to handle it carefully.
What’s Next?
Being a call center agent can be a demanding job, but with the right support and training, they can master all the crucial skills mentioned above with ease. By training and cultivating these skills in your call center agents, you’re taking the first big step toward increasing customer retention and fostering customer loyalty, which will, in turn, positively impact your business.