Virtual PBX Featured Article

Customers Frustrated Before Calling the Help Center, Survey Finds

November 25, 2015

By Michelle Amodio - Virtual PBX Contributor

Before the multichannel customer approach came into existence, customers would rely on calling a customer service representative to assist with solving their problems. These days, the savvy customer will likely to go the self-service route, either by way of website FAQs or community message boards, so when a customer must pick up the phone for assistance, they’re already frustrated before the call has even had a chance to begin.


Research from Mattersight delves into this customer service shift; according to its findings, more than two-thirds of customers feel frustrated before the call is placed. In addition, 75 percent are still frustrated after the call, even if the agent has managed to solve the problem. Mattersight’s research confirms the self-service dilemma; when these models offer little to no resolution, the customer is already at the end of a very long, frustrating rope.

70 percent of customers said a bad customer experience would prevent them from ever doing business with that company. This is aligned with what many experts in the field have said, that bad customer service is more expensive than many realize. According to a Genesys survey, poor customer service costs upwards of $338.5 billion worldwide annually. In fact, globally, 7 out of 10 consumers ended at least one relationship annually because of poor customer service.

While it’s a numbers game for call center managers who want to resolve as many phone calls as possible in a certain amount of time, the end game should always be about the customer’s happiness, not the amount of calls “resolved.” The role of the contact center is too often narrowly focused on intake volume rather than the quality and depth of output in the customer relationship.

There are a number of touch points where customers can communicate with customer service staff. At each of these, companies have the opportunity to create a positive impression. The key to a successful experience is to present a unified look to the customer. You may be a company with thousands of employees that sells online and offline, but remember that the customer just sees one company.

Honor your customers. You’d be surprised to learn that some business owners do not properly value customer relationships. Make the customer, no matter who she is, feel like they’re your number one priority. This can mitigate an already frustrated customer.

Seek to understand and ask questions to fully understand the situation. For call center employees who are under pressure to move through calls quickly, realize that in some cases, you're hurting the bottom line and potentially escalating the conflict to not allow a customer to sense that you're working on a resolution with them. Some customers simply want to be heard. "I'm sorry" or "I understand" will go a long way with them.




Edited by Maurice Nagle

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