Learn More About Your Customers with a Call Center!

Successful companies become so big primarily because of the outstanding products and services that they provide. For example, how could Coca Cola have become a worldwide brand without tasting good? The quality of the product is imperative in creating a customer base.

However, an outstanding product or service can only take you so far. What separates good companies from great companies is the connection that those businesses forge with their customers. Simply put, the very best companies are basically obsessed with providing the best possible experience for their customers, and that requires extreme amounts of care when it comes to customer service.

When you work with a call center like TeleDirect, you’re entrusting your customer service to a brand that has been providing outstanding service for decades. We go above and beyond with every call and message that we take. We provide a professional, positive attitude with every interaction. But perhaps most importantly, we allow you to learn more about your customers, which gives you a leg up on the competition in your marketing endeavors.

Think about it—when you hire a group of people whose entire job is to communicate regularly with your customers, it’s easy to see why call centers can lead to learning more about your actual customers. Our representatives are constantly on the phone with real people who have real questions and concerns. Through these calls, you are able to get a better sense of what your customers like and dislike, how they think you can improve your company and what it takes to keep them coming back from more. With TeleDirect, you have this ability all day, every day of the year, meaning the lines of communication with your customers are never closed!

The TeleDirect method of constant correspondence with customers through a wide variety of channels ensures that you’re communicating with the maximum possible amount of customers, which means you’re maximizing your ability to learn what your customers are looking for. Take advantage of this service, and transform your business with the feedback you gain from your new obsession with customer service. Contact TeleDirect today to get started!

How Technology Enhances Customer Service

We’re living in a world where people expect instant answers. The internet and mobile technology have made it easier than ever for people to get answers to any of their questions immediately. Many people these days even prefer online chat or text messaging to an actual phone call, as it is quicker and easier.

Given all of these changes, it’s easy to understand why the nature of customer service has shifted so much over the course of the past decade. Customers never enjoyed being put on hold when calling in to a customer service line, but now this waiting can feel excruciating when you consider that they’re used to instant feedback. This is what makes technology in all areas of customer service so important; businesses have to be able to provide quick, accurate feedback to their customers, or else they risk losing their loyalty.

For businesses that manage their own customer relations, this can make serving customers be quite a burden. These days businesses need to be prepared at all times to instantly answer their customer’s questions. If businesses don’t have large customer service staffs on hand, this can be extremely difficult. Therefore, smaller businesses can quickly fall behind and risk losing the support of their customers.

This is one of the many reasons why so many businesses choose to outsource their customer service to call centers like TeleDirect. At TeleDirect, we not only take all of your calls all day, every day, but we also offer a number of technological amenities that allow your customers to get the answers they need when they need them. We offer high quality SMS (text) messaging services to communicate with all of your on-the-go customers and a live chat feature that allows your customers to get quick online answers directly from a live representative. We also provide some excellent software for your convenience, such as Instant Sales Expert, which increase the control you have over all of your customer service by giving you instant access to all of your preferences.

Don’t fall behind the curve! Contact us at TeleDirect today and learn how all of our technology can benefit the customer relations aspects of your business.

SeminarEdge Services from TeleDirect

Are you looking for the most efficient way possible to get all of your guests registered for your next seminar? Try out TeleDirect’s SeminarEdge services! SeminarEdge provides your company with the most professional and user-friendly online reservation answering services that you’ll find anywhere. Using SeminarEdge, you will revolutionize the way your company is perceived by all of your seminar attendees, and increase the efficiency of your operations!

This answering service is a type of program that provides you with online access to manage all of your seminar’s guests. When you use SeminarEdge, your attendees will be given a wide variety of helpful features to help make their seminar experience go as smooth as possible.

To start with, all attendees will be given exact driving directions to the seminar from their location so that they will arrive precisely on time to your venue. They will also have access to a free dedicated 800 answering service, giving them the ability to get answers to all of their questions no matter when they need them! If they prefer to have their questions answered online, SeminarEdge also contains a free message center with professional operators. Printable labels and letters are sent to these guests as well, giving an extra personal touch to your upcoming seminar. There even will be meal selections that fit every attendee’s tastes and preferences.

Of course, SeminarEdge isn’t just meant for the attendees—it’s meant for you, too! Should you need to change your custom scripts for calls, you can do so on the fly whenever you need to! The 800 answering service also provides you with confirmation call programs that keep detailed records of whether your invited guests are coming or not. This saves you time from having to deal with the inconvenience of bookings that get left unfulfilled.

The SeminarEdge you will also have toll-free numbers, online access to your seminars and constantly updated attendee lists. Any changes you make to your options are instantly updated so that our representatives can always give accurate information on your behalf.

Contact TeleDirect today to learn more about what SeminarEdge can do for your business. This 24/7/365 service is exactly what you need to take your seminar planning to the next level!

Important Customer Service Tips for All Representatives

Many people underestimate how truly vital excellent customer service is to a business. When operating at their best, customer service representatives can bring a level of helpfulness and professionalism to a company that will keep customers coming back for more.

At TeleDirect, we have a number of standards that we infuse in every one of our CSRs to ensure that your customers are getting the best service possible. Here are five of the best tips our representatives follow:

The Golden Rule – This is a great guideline to follow in customer service as well as in every day life: “Treat others the way you want to be treated.” Be polite, offer them extra rewards and listen when they speak. The person on the other side of the line will appreciate it!

Know your customers – Are you familiar with the general demographics of the customers you’re working with? If so, then you’ll have a pretty good idea of what they’ll be looking for when they call in. This will help you to be more helpful and empathetic in your dealings with them.

Never argue – You should always do your best to give your customer the benefit of the doubt. You shouldn’t work to prove to your customer why they are wrong; instead, listen carefully to their problem and try to help guide them to the solution in a positive, encouraging way. Arguments will just drive a customer away.

Ask for opinions – One of the best ways to get honest feedback about the company you’re representing is to simply ask the customer. You might be surprised at some of the helpful bits of information you’ll receive!

Say “yes” as much as possible – Some times in order to accommodate a customer in the best way possible, you have to be willing to bend company policy. In the long run, it’s better to make a few exceptions to the rules than it is to turn a customer away unhappy!

These are just a few of the best simple ways that you can ensure happy customers whenever you take a call. At TeleDirect, we train all of our customer service representatives to work their hardest to give the customer what they want. When you outsource your customer service to us, you can trust that it is in good hands.

TeleDirect: A History of Outstanding Customer Service!

TeleDirect is well-known today for its extraordinary customer service, and this is because we’ve built up a long history of helping businesses communicate effectively with their customers. In fact, we now have over 50 years of experience in the call center industry! In these five decades, we’ve formulated the perfect recipe for customer service, and we continue to make improvements every single year.

TeleDirect was founded in 1961 and instantly began serving business owners with all of their inbound customer service needs. Like any company, TeleDirect had humble beginnings. However, the call center soon grew into what businesses see today: a successful full-service, on-demand center that is appropriately recognized as one of the leaders in its industry.

At TeleDirect, we have become particularly successful thanks to the wonderful customer service representatives that we have working for us. These representatives are trained to be as helpful and knowledgeable as possible. These days, everything about customer service is instantaneous and “on-demand,” and our representatives are trained to give your customers the best service in the most efficient way possible.

This training is extremely important to the success of TeleDirect. All customer service representatives undergo constant training and reviews even after they are first hired by the company. After all, the nature of the world of customer service is constantly changing, so it’s important that all our representatives are able to adapt with the ebbs and flows of the business. Most importantly, our representatives are trained to create the perfect “moment of truth” with your customers, to ensure the best possible customer service experience.

The technology used by TeleDirect has also significantly helped it to become the success it is today. Our online tools like Instant Project Expert, Work the Lead, SeminarEdge and more have revolutionized the way businesses operate. Our instant 800 numbers, SMS messaging services and CRM tools all add to what is truly a cutting-edge call center service.

We’ve been going strong for 50 years, so clearly we’re doing something right! If you’re interested in learning more about what TeleDirect can do to transform your business’s customer service operations, contact us today. We’d love to get you started.

Leadership Tips for Customer Service Managers

Working in customer service can be extremely rewarding, but it can also present a unique set of challenges. Customer service representatives occasionally have to deal with difficult customers to solve problems, or answer difficult questions. However, customer service managers also deal with a set of challenges of their own. After all, keeping representatives happy ensures that they are more likely to keep customers happy.

So what are some things that you can do as a customer service manager to encourage happiness and high-quality work? Here are a few ideas:

Be optimistic! It’s easy for customer service representatives to become discouraged if they encounter rude or demanding customers. The best way you can counter this is by promoting an optimistic and encouraging work environment. Be sure to let employees know that they’re doing a good job, and their hard work is appreciated. They will appreciate this!

Empower your employees. Your representatives can’t make customers happy if you don’t give them that ability. Give your representatives the power to issue refunds, give extra incentives or discounts and other things of that nature. When they can make customers happy, this will drastically decrease the potential stresses that they can encounter.

Be consistent in your methods. Your standards for customer service should always remain steady, so that representatives know what it is they have to accomplish and how they can accomplish it. Always maintain that the customer should be treated with respect as a top priority. It also helps to occasionally send out emails or memos to maintain customer service focus.

Provide the necessary knowledge. Your representatives can’t help your customers if they don’t have the knowledge to do so! Ensure that they are thoroughly trained and knowledgeable before they go on calls, and the likelihood that they can diffuse problems over the phone will greatly increase.

Go above and beyond. Quite simply, let your employees know that you appreciate them, and do little extra things here and there to let them know. Birthday cards, small office parties, thank you notes and more are great, personal ways to encourage a friendly, enjoyable work environment.

TeleDirect has a great deal of experience in providing top-notch customer service, and it’s thanks to these methods that we continue to make customers everywhere happy. Contact us today if you’re interested in learning more about the services that we can give to you!

How to Stay Productive in a Call Center

Every business occasionally has to address the issue of productivity in the workplace, and call centers are no exception to that. Working in a call center has its own set of challenges, and as such there are a unique set of ways that customer service representatives or other call center employees can maintain a high level of productivity.

Stay comfortable. If call center employees are uncomfortable, chances are that they’re not going to be able to focus on all of their tasks. They may even grow irritable with the customers they’re speaking to, which could have tragic results. All employees should have a desk large enough to hold all of their supplies, with enough space under the desk for their legs to fit comfortably. Chairs should comfortable to sit in, and the climate in the center should stay comfortable. As long as employees are comfortable, there’s a greater chance that they’re happy!

Use mirrors. This is actually an old trick in the call center business that many people don’t know about. Encourage customer service representatives to keep a mirror in their personal space, and have them look into them while on calls. It’s crazy how it works, but if a representative is smiling, chances are that the person on the other line will hear that and respond accordingly!

Give constant feedback. This is important for the supervisors in a call center. Everyone wants to hear how they’re doing, especially if they’re doing a good job. Be sure to praise employees when they’re doing well. If they’re doing something wrong, remember that it’s almost surely not intentional. Give them constructive criticism in a friendly manner, and then afterwards reassure them that they’re doing well. Treat all employees with this same respect, and it will go a long way toward creating a healthy work atmosphere!

Keep a code of conduct. Every now and then, representatives will encounter difficult customers. Be sure that you have plans in place to combat a wide variety of different, difficult situations. This will help you to avoid having representatives get in heated, awkward debates with customers. Document this code in a written form and make it easily accessible.

Show appreciation! Just like you have your representatives show appreciation to the customers, show appreciation to your representatives. Go out of your way to make them feel like the work they do is noticed and truly appreciated.

All of these are great ways to keep productivity levels high in a call center, and it’s methods like these (and others) that help make TeleDirect such a success. Learn more about our services today by visiting the TeleDirect web site!