Provide the Best Customer Service for Your Customers

First impressions are key. This phrase is uttered over and over again in reference to many different situations, whether it’s a business transaction or a first date, but in every situation it is absolutely correct. Many times, customer service representatives are the first line of contact that your business offers, and a negative experience for the customer could mean a loss of business for you.

Providing good customer service should be fairly intuitive, but you may be surprised at how many businesses fail to follow a simple set of guidelines that ensures a great customer experience. At TeleDirect, we know what it means to offer the best in service at our call center, which is why we're providing the following tips for you:

• Make sure the phone is answered. Always ensure that a caller ends up speaking to an actual person. Work with a call center or get call forwarding if you need to, but make sure your customers don’t wind up speaking to machines.
• Only make promises you know you can keep. Lying or exaggerating will get you nowhere. Your customers want to be able to rely on you, and the only way you can prove your reliability is by keeping every promise you make.
• Listen! Let your customer get out everything they need to say without making any interruptions, and most importantly, pay attention. Your customers should never have to repeat themselves. Even if the customer is calling to complain, follow these same guidelines, as showing your frustration about their complaint is only going to further frustrate the customer.
• Be both courteous and helpful. Always speak formally and politely, as it reflects well on your business. Knowledge is also important. You and your customer service staff should be well prepared to answer a wide range of questions. If for some reason you don’t know the answer to a question, admit this and politely point them to where they can find the answer or offer to research the answer and get back to them.
• Go beyond what’s expected. People always like to feel as though they’re receiving special treatment. Whether it’s a sincere thank you or smile, a coupon for a future discount or any additional information, your customers will appreciate you more when you do more for them.

 

By following these simple guidelines, you can ensure that your business will provide a high level of customer service. Always remember that a satisfied customer means more return business, particularly when it comes to your call center!

To learn more great customer service tips, work with the professionals at TeleDirect Call Centers today.

How We Evaluate Our CSRs

By now you’ve probably heard quite a bit about the excellent software and technology that makes TeleDirect Call Centers truly special, but the real secret to our success is professional, friendly and efficient service offered by our customer service representatives (CSRs). Our CSRs are thoroughly trained to provide the finest customer care and are evaluated every two weeks so that we know they are doing the finest work possible to help your business and its call center needs.

These bimonthly evaluations, which happen face-to-face between CSRs and team leaders, focus on all metrics of service success. These meetings have a very positive impact on our attrition rate, which currently stands at 12 percent, an outstanding number considering the industry average is 30 percent. Since our employees know how they’re performing in real time, they’re able to quickly remedy any performance problems they might have.

Much of our evaluation process is done on an online dashboard, which provides a forum for training, coaching, feedback, and statistical analysis. Statistics that can be tracked include employee attendance, quality score, personal efficiency, break time, and lead percentage. All of these areas are discussed during the bimonthly evaluation meetings, and any areas that need improvement will become the subject of action plans that the leader and CSR agree on to help accomplish personal goals. 

While most call centers expect supervisors to spend 75 percent of their time on paperwork and 25 percent of their time on coaching, TeleDirect believes those numbers should be reversed. As our administrative tools allow paperwork to be completed quickly, our supervisors are able to spend more time personally instructing our CSRs. 

When the evaluation forms are completed, team leaders are able to use our efficient online dashboard to mark whether the CSR is meeting expectations in each individual area, whether they suggest action plans for improvement and whether the CSR is below, meeting or exceeding overall expectations. Warnings can also be attached to the evaluation form if necessary. 

Once these evaluation forms are completed, the meeting between the team leader and the CSR takes place. The CSR and supervisor then go over the evaluation form and any action plans for improvement. 

This constant coaching method is key to TeleDirect’s success as a call center and is how we are able to offer the highest quality of customer service. When you work with TeleDirect, you can be assured that our CSRs have not only received standard introductory training, but are being coached on a constant basis to maintain a high level of performance.

IPE: On-Demand Project Management

TeleDirect Call Centers has been redefining the way business gets accomplished for years now, using a variety of different tools to do so. One of our most notable software items is Instant Project Expert (IPE), a revolutionary, on-demand project management software. For anyone looking to make his or her business operations more streamlined, IPE is a must-have item. By using it you will be able to manage your internal projects with greater organization and efficiency than ever before!  

Once you begin using IPE in conjunction with your call center, the first step is to load all of your new users by adding each user to IPE and then waiting for them to accept the emailed invitation. Once these invitations are accepted, the new user will create his or her account and see the task(s) that you have assigned for them to complete. 

As time progresses and due dates approach, a built-in reminder system makes sure that the users are reminded to complete these tasks. The reminder system can also be used for meetings, events or any other reminders not attached to a specific task. Email reminders are sent to all participating users on the morning that any reminder or event has been scheduled.

The reminder system isn’t the only advantage that comes with using IPE. The software also contains a grading system that is programmed to keep track of whether or not users are completing their tasks in the allotted time. This system only begins once a user’s work has been published, so it is recommended that all users take advantage of the “brainstorming mode” while working on their projects. This mode allows multiple users to work on a project together before it is turned in. 

Once all users working on the project have given the OK, the project can be published directly from brainstorming mode. Once it is published, however, it can never return to brainstorming mode, so caution should be exercised when deciding whether or not to publish.

IPE can even be used for note taking during meetings. You’ll be able to mark down due dates or set goals quickly and easily, making your meetings more productive. It's a whole new way to work with your call center!

If you’re interested in what else IPE can do for you, TeleDirect Call Centers is ready and more than willing to answer your questions. Contact us today at TeleDirect.com!

Sales Closing Tips from TeleDirect

 

Imagine you’re on a sales call and things seem to be going well, when suddenly the time comes to close the deal. Don’t panic! While closing a sale may at times be the most difficult portion of a call and may create a fair amount of unease for the caller, there are several tips you can keep in mind to help you successfully close your sale. Here are some key pointers to fall back on the next time you encounter a sale-closing situation:

• Pay attention to the other person’s emotions. If their words indicate negative feelings, now is not the time to close. If you do, you run the risk of annoying or even angering them. This could cause you to lose their business in the future.
• Silence can be golden. In the right situations, keeping quiet will help you close a sale. It’s always important to listen to what your potential customer has to say. If you keep talking, you may be shutting out their opportunity to say “yes.” Ask your questions and then stay quiet; silence will encourage them to respond.
• Don’t over-close. Some callers occasionally get a bit too eager after they have actually closed a sale and will keep talking until their customer backs out of the deal. Once they have said “yes,” you no longer have to sell them on your service. Thank them politely and wrap up the call, because you now have their business.
• Don’t fear rejection. You will hear the word “no” a lot; it’s just in the nature of sales calls. Don’t be afraid of rejection, or take it personally. It’s simply a reflection of that customer’s needs and certainly not a comment about you as a person. Sometimes your product or service just isn’t the right fit for the potential customer you’re calling.
• “No” doesn’t mean “never.” Just because there’s no sale today doesn’t necessarily mean that there won’t be one in the future. If a potential customer expresses interest but is not quite ready to make a commitment, that’s fine. You can continue to nurture the relationship with future calls and ease them into feeling comfortable enough to make a deal later on.
• Remember the “ABC” rule. ABC in this case stands for “Always Be Closing.” You are always working for a close. This doesn’t mean you should bombard your potential customer, but simply that you should always keep your end goal in mind.

Sales calls are not always easy or pleasant, but by keeping these tips in mind you will certainly make them less of a burden on yourself. Remember these pointers for your next call, and good luck! For more great sales tips or for information on call center services, contact TeleDirect today.