Call scripting is one of the “hot topics” in the contact center industry, primarily because there are so many opinions on the subject. There are many people in favor of call scripting, while many still remain against it. Do you already do it in your contact center? Are you thinking about incorporating it? If yes, the following information can be helpful to either improve or implement call scripting at your company.

Pro: Call Scripting as a Training tool

For many agents, a script can be a helpful starting point to answering an incoming call. Especially with new agents, it’s important that they learn the ins and outs of what the business does and how to convey that to the customer. By providing a script, it can be easier for agents to learn how to do both of these things and provide good customer service.

Con: Agents may rely too heavily on the script

While a bullet-point version of a call script can be useful to keep on hand, a fully developed script may lead the agents to simply read it rather to fill in any additional information on their own. From the customer perspective, an agent reading directly from a script comes across as unknowledgeable and, therefore, unable to assist them with their question.

Pro: Measuring performance

Utilizing call scripts can be beneficial for measuring performance. If every agent is saying something differently in their calls and the KPIs indicate that something is wrong, where can you begin to search for the problem? With scripts, it provides a certain amount of uniformity that can make it easier to pinpoint where a problem is coming from.

Con: Practice makes perfect

Once your company has developed a workable script, have them practice it on and offline to build confidence. Knowing what to include in a sales pitch or which questions to ask a customer off the top of their head comes across well. Ideally, once they practice enough, the majority of the script will remain when they answer calls, but allow flexibility for the agent to add their own flair and make adjustments according to the call.

While call scripting may appear to have a variety of benefits for a contact center, a number of disadvantages exist as well. There are, however, ways to compromise and ensure the best performance possible from your contact center agents. Utilizing a script as a training tool for new agents provides them with a template of what to include. In order to keep them from reading it, have them practice delivering the script dozens of times to help them learn it by heart and to help work on their delivery. Once they learn the script, only allow a bulleted list of key points, forcing each agent to be flexible with each client.

With this technique, your contact center should be poised to improve the performance of its agents and, consequently, improve the level of customer satisfaction.

Regardless if you choose a script or a suggested response, your company will create an identity, or pattern, of words and phrases that are typically said when interacting with customers.  With our Speech Analytics platform, we can automatically show you Customer Behavior Indicators, which are words and phrases that are being said more frequently than typical within your pattern.  This can provide rapid insight into what may be changing in the Voice of your Customers.  Find out more about our Speech Analytics platform here!

There are many times in the course of a day that an agent may be stumped by a question or frustrated with a difficult client. No matter their struggles, though, it is important that they keep their cool while in contact with the client. This article will touch on some of the phrases that many agents find themselves saying in an uncomfortable situation, even though their managers would most likely not approve.

1. “We don’t deal with that.”

If a client calls into a company looking for assistance with something in particular, it is very likely that they are not contacting the correct department. Instead of making them feel uncomfortable or angry for your unwillingness to help, state that you can transfer them over or find them the correct number to call to get an answer to their question. In contrast to “we don’t deal with that,” offering a solution will be highly appreciated by clients.

2. “If you keep yelling, I’ll hang up this call.”

If a caller is shouting, presenting them with an ultimatum is not the best way to handle the situation. In the case that you or the caller does actually hang up, they will most likely call right back and be passed along to another agent. Instead of passing an unhappy caller around between agents, the original agent can insist on their ability to solve the caller’s problem, if they can discuss it calmly. This technique tends to be more successful that offering a threatening ultimatum.

3. “I’ll just put you on hold.”

The words “ on hold” is perhaps the most despised word for callers. By saying that word, agents are running the risk that the caller will get upset and not agree to it. This puts the agent in an uncomfortable position since they most likely needed to request something from a colleague or supervisor. To avoid the words “on hold,” let the customer know that you need to do something like ask permission from a supervisor or confirm with a colleague. It is also important to be upfront and tell the customer how long they can expect to be on hold.

4. “Would you like to speak to my supervisor?”

Sometimes, it is inevitable that a customer will want to speak with a supervisor. While it may seem tempting to save time and offer them the option sooner, there are a variety of reasons not to. Not only will your supervisor not appreciate you sending a high volume of your calls to them, it makes an agent appear as a pushover to the customer. If they know the agent doesn’t have the power or confidence to say no, then they will be programmed to always ask for a supervisor immediately.

5. Nothing

Saying nothing at all without any explanation can be problematic, to say the least. If an agent needs 30 seconds to do a calculation or read something over, be sure to explain to the client why they have all of a sudden gone completely silent. Callers should never have to ask if the agent is still on the line or be questioning whether the line cut out.

With our Speech Analytics platform, you can have calls placed into categories based on words and phrases spoken during the call.  With this platform, you could easily find any calls that contain any of these phrases, in addition to others that may be considered flags.  We can assist in finding emotional calls, and reduce customer attrition by having software “listen” to all of your calls and provide insight into the largest source of data coming into your Contact Center, the words spoken by your customers and your employees.  Contact us to find out more.

When it comes to agent scheduling in contact centers, flexibility is the name of the game. On the one hand, employees are always searching for flexibility in the hours they work. Contact centers, on the other hand, require flexibility so that they can supply the appropriate number of agents to keep up with varying demand. For both of these interests, it is useful to have a certain amount of flexibility built into the shift patterns and schedules.

To achieve flexible scheduling, companies employ a variety of tactics including reserve shifts, “on call” agents and banked hours. Depending on the strategy, overtime may or may not be offered to the agents for the work they are doing. In the end, though, providing more flexibility can actually result in a reduced number of employee absences.

An overview of banked hours

While the term can be applied differently in different organizations, the basic principle of banked hours is that agents can save hours at a time they’d rather not work on the condition that they will be made up later. By “banking” these undesired hours, the agents are not forced to work at an undesired or inconvenient time and the company has someone to call on in the case of an unexpectedly high call influx. Each company can set a limit for how long the banked hours can last, depending on its own needs.

The importance of limits

By banking hours that an agent has already been paid for, they are essentially in debt to the company. For this reason, it can be helpful, and sometimes necessary, to officially set a limit on the amount of hours an agent can bank before they have to start paying them back. If there is no rule in place, agents will continue adding up their hours with no end in sight.

This is one of the major risks of the banked hour technique for adding flexibility to scheduling. Keeping this risk in mind, a number of contact centers only allow hours to be banked over the course of one week, and those hours need to be made up by the end of the next week. For example, if one agent worked 5 hours less than their normal 40-hour workweek, they need to work an extra 5 hours over the next week. With this technique, the company can avoid employees taking advantage of the system.

Scheduling complications

While the banked hours system adds a degree of flexibility for the employees and the company, it can make it difficult to create an effective employee schedule. It is important to strike a balance between the needs of the business and the needs of the agents. There are ways, however, to account for banked hours in the normal schedule. For example, short and long Saturdays can be implemented. With this technique, all agents begin work at the same time, but they are allowed to leave at a variety of times, depending on the amount of time they owe. Someone who didn’t bank any time can leave at 2 pm, while someone who banked 3 hours will leave at 5 pm. This way, the contact center can be sure the hours will be made up at the end of each week and without any added difficulty for normal scheduling purposes.

Does your contact center need help with scheduling? Contact us today for more information about our workforce management software and to learn how it can help you improve your business.

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of things to consider when running a contact center. From choosing the best equipment to hiring agents to optimizing the scheduling, it can be easy to get caught up in the details. Successful contact centers, however, know how to balance all of the requirements along with all of the extra little things that set their contact center apart from the rest. Below, we take a look at some of the secrets that successful contact centers share.

1. Implement Peer Feedback Sessions

Many contact centers focus on a hierarchical system of management where the agents report to the managers who report to higher management. With such distinct levels of operation, it can sometimes be overwhelming for agents to be evaluated or critiqued by their superiors. In successful contact centers, management removes themselves from the equation when it comes time for evaluations. Instead, they form groups of agents together to listen to the call of a fellow agent and give the appropriate feedback. Many organizations have found that, even if management and the peer agents are saying the same thing, the criticism is received more constructively when a peer delivers it.

2. Employ Self-Evaluation Techniques

To continue with quality scoring tactics, many contact centers also have an agent evaluate him or herself. After receiving feedback from fellow agents, it can be difficult for agents to recognize those mistakes in their everyday work. If they have the opportunity to listen to their own calls, often times, the critiques they heard from their peers become clearer and the agents are more motivated to make an improvement.

3. Promote involvement

A side effect of a hierarchical system is that the agents at the bottom can often feel overwhelmed by management at the top. They might feel uncomfortable making suggestions, identifying problems or asking questions if something is unclear. For this reason, it is imperative to promote an environment of involvement in your contact center. Sometimes it can be helpful to nominate a representative for the agents who they can go before presenting their voice to management. Another way to promote involvement is to have a monthly meeting where agents are encouraged to join. They will build a connection with the company when they feel that their ideas are being listened to and sometimes implemented as well.

4. Monitor Social Media

Once the employees are content with the working environment, it is time to shift the focus to the clients. Providing a service that the customer wants is one of the keys to providing a high level of customer service. In order to know exactly what the customer is looking for, it can be helpful to monitor social media, a place where consumers rarely sensor their true feelings about a company or a product. Based off of customer’s posts, your contact center can make improvements to your business operations.

5. Set-up a Reward System

To ensure that each aspect of the business continues running smoothly, successful contact centers typically implement some type of reward system. Allowing agents to choose their schedule or selecting an “Agent of the Year” or “Agent of the Month” award can be effective ways to promote a positive work environment that yields results.

While each of these secrets is a good starting platform, each contact center needs to tailor them based on the needs and individual environment of your office. If you are looking for more ways to improve your contact center, contact KOVA to explore its workforce solutions today!

Virtual agents are a quickly growing trend, forcing many companies to consider the option for their company. While there are a few compromises and downsides to having virtual agents, there are a host of advantages as well.

Not only are agents working from home shown to be more productive than those in a physical office space, they facilitate scheduling, typically have access to more bandwidth at home and are, in general, much happier with their jobs. The happiness may come from avoiding the daily commute, working in their pajamas or even a combination of the two. At the end of the day, adding virtual agents to your company is something to seriously consider.

For companies with a mix of in-office and virtual agents, it is important to balance the communication systems so that all employees are kept in touch with and up to date on all of the happenings of the company. The following three tips can help to ensure that virtual agents are kept in the loop.

1. Utilize Virtual Meetings

With the power of technology, it is easier than ever to host a meeting in a virtual conference room. While all of the attendants of the meeting are not physically in the same location, they are able to interact, discuss and make decisions in the same way. Virtual meetings allow for real-time answers to questions that can be recorded and referred to at a later time.

2. Send out Email Newsletters

Although virtual meetings can be helpful, it is often necessary to send more frequent updates than a bi-monthly virtual meeting, for example. For regular, periodic updates, email newsletters can be entertaining and informative. Whether they’re filled with animations, feel-good customer stories or more business related topics such as metrics and goals, email newsletters are a great communication medium.

3.  Foster Manager Empathy

Often, the virtual agents are not made up of managers or general upper management. It can be difficult to manage the communication with virtual agents if a person has never been one, so a good technique is to require managers to work at least one day per week from home. They will develop a different mindset and understand the needs of the virtual workers, thereby improving their overall managerial performance.

Through all of the trials and tribulations, it is important to remember that working remotely doesn’t mean working in isolation. Just because virtual agents are not physically present in an office space, doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be able to contact managers or fellow agents whenever they need to. Whether it is less-than-happy customer or a personal concern, virtual agents should receive the same timely feedback as the other agents.

Maintaining this continuity can be one of the most difficult aspects to balance when working with both virtual and in-office agents. Once you find the most suitable balance for your company, you can start to reap the rewards of increased productivity and an improved overall happiness in the employees.

For additional software programs that can contribute to the success of your contact center, read about our workforce optimization solutions. Contact us today for more information on how we can help you improve your contact center!

This November, KOVA is honored to recognize the bravery of the veterans of the United States Military.

I am a veteran.

I sacrifice myself to protect you. To protect your mother, father, brother, sister and your way of life. I live to serve.

I have said goodbye to my family for months at a time, looking into their tear-filled eyes without knowing if I’ll see them again.

I have been the person in uniform at the airport, anxiously waiting to board the most important plane ride of my life.

I have traveled around the world, proudly wearing the uniform of the United States of America.

I am a veteran.

I have seen the looks of devastation, death and suffering on the faces of children and adults alike, as they watch fires burn their homes and flee to refugee shelters.

I have witnessed ambushes, bomb explosions and gunfights.

I have looked the enemy straight in the eye. I have battled him and made it out alive.

I am a veteran.

I have rescued civilians from the terrors that have overcome their communities. Carried children and adults alike to safety in the wake of gunfire and constant bombings.

I know first-hand the devastation of war and fighting. It is physical destruction. It is emotional destruction. It eliminates the feeling of safety and security for the rest of your life.

Through it all, though, I learned how to bond on a human level. No matter the differences that exist, I learned to sympathize and endure alongside the civilians of the region.

Just like them, I didn’t know when I would take my last breath. Would it be today? Would it be tomorrow?

But I endured. I survived.

I am a veteran.

I have heard the prayers of Americans, praying for our well being and safe return home.

But, I know men and women who did not make it home. Their lives were lost in the battle to create a better world for you and me. While I wear the badge of veteran proudly, they gave the ultimate sacrifice.

War is real. It destroys. A fight between two sides turns into a decimation of a way of life for hundreds of thousands of civilians caught in the middle. But it doesn’t only affect civilian’s lives; it changes soldiers as well.

I am a different person since my return from war, gradually adjusting back into civilian life. But I know that the phone can ring at any time, necessitating my return to the battlefield. If that call comes, I will be ready.

No matter what I’ve faced and where I’ve been, I will always be a soldier.

I am a parent. I am a sibling. I am someone’s child.

I am a hero.

I am a veteran.

 

 

Making the decision between a softphone and desk phone can be a difficult one. Having already made the switch from a traditional switched phone network to a VoIP system, your contact center has proactively taken an important step in the process. By working on a VoIP system, you are essentially working over the Internet, which allows your employees to be more mobile and the system itself is more reliable and scalable as the company grows. The VoIP system works anywhere you have Internet access and providers ensure that their networks are extremely reliable, reducing the risk of dropped or missed calls.

Adjusting to a VoIP system is a step towards the future, showing your confidence in the business that it will continue to grow for years to come. After deciding to invest in the future of the company with a VoIP phone system, it is time to decide between a softphone and hard phone.

What are the benefits of a softphone?

A softphone is a software program downloaded onto your computer or smartphone that allows your employees to send and receive phone calls. The most well-known softphone program is Skype, which allows users to make phone calls from a PC utilizing only the Internet. This type of software necessary for a softphone is low cost, easy to install and allows an incredible amount of flexibility for agents to work from a variety of locations.

What are the benefits of a hard phone? 

In contrast to a softphone, a hard phone is a piece of hardware that looks like a “regular” phone that connects to the VoIP network through an Ethernet cord instead of a regular phone jack. While hard phones are typically more costly for a company to purchase and install, they offer a variety of benefits that require consideration before making a final decision. A hard phone provides employees with something physical to hold while speaking and, it is possible that many employees actually prefer to work with a “real” phone in hand as opposed to just a software program. In addition, hard phones are typically built to provide better call quality with echo cancellation already included.

An important difference to note is the reliability. If your contact center deals with emergency calls or situations on a regular basis, a soft phone may not be the best choice for your business. Softphones, when attempting to dial 9-1-1 or other local emergency numbers, may require that the contact center agent login and navigate to a specific screen in the software program, wasting valuable time in an emergency situation. The ease of dialing 9-1-1 from a hard phone is extremely easy and comparable to dialing from a regular phone connected to a traditional phone network.

All in all, it is important that your contact center takes some time to consider its specific needs before deciding between a softphone and a hard phone since there are pros and cons with each option. Regardless of the phone chosen, KOVA can help optimize your center with our WFO solutions.

Contact centers are a rapidly changing environment with more and more responsibility being placed on the managers who lead each individual center. These changes, which come in order to follow a customer based approach, pushes each center to evolve into a more dynamic and complex environment. Managers are expected to understand and command these complexities, balancing administrative tasks with motivational ones, all in an effort to keep the contact center running smoothly.

There are a variety of ways to keep contact center managers motivated to stay on top of their game and, below, KOVA will highlight three of the most important.

1. Maintain transparency 

Communication may seem like an obvious aspect to keeping managers happy and motivated to work hard, but it’s not always as simple as it sounds to execute open communication in large-scale organizations. For contact center managers to be successful, it is imperative that they are kept up to speed with the overall business strategy and objectives. A manager plays an important role, linking the agents at each individual center with the upper management who make the strategic decisions. How can a manager be an effective and motivated leader to contact center agents if they are not aware of the objectives and strategy of the company? Keeping this line of internal communication open and, at times, involving them in upper management decisions, is one of the keys to keep contact center managers happy and motivated.

2. Provide regular training

Training is an integral aspect to keeping all employees motivated, but it is especially relevant for managers. In a continuously evolving world and contact center environment, it is important that managers stay up to date with the progress and development, both on a company and industry level. By providing managers with continuous training, customer satisfaction can also increase, as they feel that knowledgeable and highly skilled leaders are helping them. Short, informal training sessions will contribute to incremental changes on a weekly or monthly basis as more than one, large training session per year that may require a large overhaul in order to implement changes. Providing people with knowledge is a form of empowerment and a surefire way to motivate your contact center managers.

3. Promote creativity

While it may seem out of context to suggest creativity in the contact center industry, in this setting, creativity can be interpreted as problem solving skills and the imagination necessary to deal with the always-changing environment of a contact center. Creativity means thinking of innovative ways to inspire contact center agents to improve their performance, whether it is by rewarding good work or creating a competition in the office. A good contact center manager will identify the environment in which its agents will thrive, and will use their creativity to create that environment.

Together, these three methods are reliable ways to motivate contact center managers. Not only will they feel more connected to the upper management, they will feel more prepared to help agents and customers, resulting in increased employee and customer satisfaction. Motivated managers are a key to running a successful contact center, so start putting these methods to work today!

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