Consumers Like Real People

Expanding Your Business With Inbound Call Centers

When it comes to running a business, making sure that your customers are having a good experience dealing with your company is one of the most important parts of the job. You do this by having a great product, as well as having excellent customer service. Without these two components your business won’t last long, why would customers keep coming back to buy a low-quality product and put up with shoddy service?

Your product is something that is up to you; whatever item or service it may be; just make sure it’s a good one. However services can be coached and you should sharpen your firm’s service skills every now and then to make sure they are in tune with your customers.

Many companies employ the services of a call center, for many different reasons. They’re great because they can do so many things for a business, they can assist in lead generation to bring in new customers and upgrade current ones. Maybe you just need a call center for inbound calls, if you and your other employees are too busy to sit around to just answer a phone all day then many will outsource to one for a telephone answering service. Whatever a company’s reason for having one, it’s a good idea to check in every now and then to see how customers are rating your phone services, or at least keep current with the trends of consumer preferences.

For example, recent studies show that people dislike the script routine. Many call center employees are reading off the same script to each caller. Most having a standard greeting, asking how the customer is, saying their name a few times, feigning sympathy, and so on and so forth. It gets really old hearing the same thing each time, especially if you’re expecting it and you just want to get your business done.

Instead many companies are moving away from this tactic and instead are letting the representatives have some mobility, as long as they stay within a few easy parameters. One of which that has proven to be effective, is by avoid using negative words. Instead of using words such as “can’t” or “won’t,” use different ways of phrasing the same sentence. For example instead of saying “I can’t transfer you to that department without getting some information,” try saying “Let me get some information first, and then I will transfer your call.” It sounds much better doesn’t it?

Another strategy being employed is simply finding a little bit of information from the customer to better suit their needs. If you have a call center for a suit fitting company for instance, and someone needs to be tailored by a the next day at 11am, finding out what time they need it to be done at will put the representative in a position to give the customer the best service possible. Instead of just telling them to bring it in at any time, they will know to tell them when to bring it in, and what they should tell the tailors. A customer experience this simple, yet personal touch will no doubt spread the good news about your company.

Using simple tactics such as these can go a long way in making your customers happy, and that’s half the game of running a business, now just make sure that your product is great too!

Andrew Sale is an expert writer on phone systems based in San Diego, California. He writes extensively for an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs such as VoIP service at Resource Nation.