Customer service reps and sales reps have one thing in common: they do the bulk of their work on the phone, where miscommunication is rampant. According to the Harvard Business Review quoting a study, 59% of users would resort to calling businesses to get a quicker answer.
Unfortunately, call centre agents are often accused of being robotic — or literal robots — and many callers experience frustration when trying to get their concern addressed or their question answered. The key to resolving these issues and improving your brand’s reputation is to forge an emotional connection with people who call in.
Here are the top five tips for helping your callers feel welcome and appreciated, no matter what they’re calling about.
1. Offer a brief, but personable greeting.
Callers are so tired of hearing long spiels when a rep answers the phone that they might very well tune it all out. Aim for greetings that are short and sweet, and immediately offer assistance. A good example is “Hello, this is [Company]. [Name] speaking. How may I help you?”
2. Match your regular customers and clients to agents who best connect with them.
With Omni, you can automatically route certain callers to certain members of your team. Clients and regular customers will feel special if they perceive that there’s a person dedicated to their account that they will always reach when they call.
If you have marketing data on your leads, you can use your CRM to determine the best agents to handle certain accounts, based on the rep’s experience, communication style, and other relevant factors.
3. Let the caller talk as much as they’d like.
Few things ruin a brand’s reputation faster than when someone calls in and the rep constantly interrupts them or seems to not be listening. It’s a best practice to let the caller fully express their concern, so that you can understand their pain points.
Sometimes, they may share pain points or information that’s valuable to improving your business. If you’re recording your calls with Omni, you can use calls as a source of data to help you refine your marketing, sales, and customer service.
4. Use reflective listening.
When a caller has laid out their concern or asked a question, try repeating it back to them. For example, you could say, “I understand that you’re having trouble requesting a refund.” Try using some of the same words that they used to show them that you’ve heard what they said.
This technique helps build an emotional connection and demonstrates empathy, which helps the customer feel heard. Avoid language that seems overly scripted or insincere, and know when to break away from the script for a more appropriate, compassionate response.
5. Establish a continued relationship.
Whether the caller is a first-time customer or longtime client, you’ll want to leave them with the impression that you’ll be there for them for their future needs. If you weren’t able to resolve their issue, establish a timeline for getting back to them. With Omni, you can have their number automatically route to your extension so that you can be the one to continue helping them.
If you were able to resolve their issue, be sure that you conclude the call with positive language and an assurance that you will continue to be there for them. For example, you could say, “It was my pleasure to assist you today. Is there anything else I can help you with?”
A customizable, virtual phone system such as Omni can help you streamline your calls so that you can focus on building an emotional connection with callers. This emphasis on the caller helps you provide optimal service and sales, without fussing with transferring lines or harming your reputation with missed or dropped calls.
Plus, you can configure your Omni system to be fully customizable with an interactive virtual receptionist and intelligent call forwarding to help get callers to the agent who can serve them best, every time.
Get Omni Hotline today. No hardware installation and no contracts so you can cancel anytime.
