Better customer service equates with more customers, more sales and more profit. Better customer service in the public arena of governmental agencies equates with higher productivity, and an opportunity to justify an agency’s existence.
Based on our research we discovered the 5 most irritating when calling a business or a government agency.
- Long Wait Time on Hold
The first and foremost thing customers hated was the Long Wait Time on Hold before they could speak with a representative. Some say they were advised how much time they would be on hold. Others say they were just put into a hold limbo, with no idea of how long the wait would be.
Then there is the long wait on hold, followed by being cut off and having to call back, only to be told your call is being answered in the order in which it was received.
- On Hold Music and Recorded Announcements
The most objectionable On Hold Music to the people interviewed is the ear-blasting variety, followed by music that is erratic, with blips and bleeps of something that is supposed to be music.
The On Hold Music can eventually be ignored, however, if one puts the phone on speaker and turns the volume down. This works well as long as the caller isn’t on hold so long he forgets to listen for a human voice to answer.
But there lies the second issue – recorded announcements that play periodically and sound like a human has answered the call. Most people find them annoying. They can tune out the On Hold Music but the periodic announcements sound like their call is being answered and they cannot easily tune them out.
- Indecipherable English
Most of the people surveyed expressed frustration at calling a business and ending up talking with a customer service rep whose English they could not understand. Outsourcing of customer service to foreign countries has become so common for businesses that it seems rare to speak with someone from the United States when we call with a problem we need resolved.
- Tag-You’re-It Transfer
The Tag-You’re-It Transfer begins when you call you are placed on hold for a long time, and the first person who answers either cannot understand or handle your problem or answer your questions. Then you are transferred, with another long time of being on hold, and the second person cannot help you. Next you are shuffled off to a third person, and maybe even more, until you end up hanging up in frustration.
- Crabby Reps
“Yes, you have had a bad day. Yes, you have quotas to fill of calls to answer. But, do you have to be so crabby?” This is what our survey participants wanted to ask the customer service reps who responded to them in a rude manner, and were less than helpful.
VOIP can change all these problems for callers
With its ability to tap into the diverse and useful applications in the Cloud, business voip is so technologically advanced that it can turn your phone system into a profitable business tool.
It can merge customer relationship management applications with intelligent call routing so that your customers are immediately routed to the customer service representative who can best handle their problem. With VOIP, Long Wait Time On Hold will be a thing of the past.
On Hold Music can be programmed to allow customers to choose the version they want to hear for the brief time they are on hold. It is possible to program the system so that callers can even choose to receive or not receive announcements while they are on hold.
Your supervisors can monitor calls to eliminate crabby customer service. If you outsource your customer service function, VOIP can even be programmed to allow you to monitor the calls to ensure that the people handling the calls speak intelligible English.
With VOIP, you will find that better customer service truly does equate with more customers, more sales and more profit.
