Call centers do more then answer calls Importance of call centers to business
Call centers do more then answer calls Importance of call centers to business
In one decade, 46% of companies identified as Fortune 500 firms dropped from the prestigious list - nearly half of these top-producers - because they didn't change with the times. Many are now on the endangered list. Also heading to extinction are call centers that cling to an archaic business model that sees customer service as a cost, and not as a key sales driver. The constant pressure to do more with less, to answer more calls with fewer people, and to decrease cost at any cost is hurting businesses big time.
WRONGHEADED THINKING
Example 1: In 1995, according to Niels Kjellerup, Pacific Bell claimed that if directory assistance reps said "hi" and "bye" rather than "good morning" and "good-bye," they could expect productivity gains of $22 million a year. Hello? Does anyone believe this makes sense? If statistics, and this wretched rationale, are the only raison d'etre of call centers, then let's pack them up.
Example two: While some call centers use decent psychometric tools to assess candidates, many don't. Why? Some believe that no such tools exist or can be validated. That's an ignorant view. Others (a majority?) think the tools are an "extra" not worth paying for. Ridiculous! If we don't properly assess a candidate for competencies that drive performance, then we deserve the turnover we get. High on the list of critical competencies is agent resiliency. Agents who handle rejection well, research tells us, won't give up. And they will stay positive and enthusiastic. Any business would like these qualities in their employees. In call centers, they're everything. What's more, motivated employees will stay with the business longer.
We at the Institute for Health & Human Potential (IHHP) use SASQ, a Web-enabled application that tests a prospective agent's ability to handle rejection. We've used the software with over 400,000 people worldwide in numerous industries. We have 500 studies from more than 100 universities that validate the predictive validity of the instrument. Among the studies' conclusions: the software cuts turnover by up to 50%. (More on this topic in a future column.) In today's business environment, your call center is at the hub of customers' experiences. If callers believe that you're trying to get them off the phone to save money, or that the agent isn't motivated, you've lost them. Sales and marketing is not a discrete event, nor just a department.
Everyone in your organization - starting and ending with the call center agent – is responsible for selling and marketing. When you can tap into, and intelligently manage, customers' emotions – their feelings, concerns, needs and wants - you've established a rapport.
Our brain is hardwired this way. Think of the brain in two parts: (1) the emotional center
(amygdala); and (2) the rest (neocortex), where the IQ resides.
GETTING CONNECTED
Profound new research has conclusively determined that all information coming into our nervous system first goes to the amygdala, where it is checked for emotional content before being sent to the neocortex. Upshot: We feel before we think. This is important, because people make decisions based on this hardwiring. If they feel put off by someone in your call center, the impression will be embedded in their emotional center forever. "The key to customer satisfaction and repeat business is not quality, competition, pricing, competitive pricing and a service department," says Alex Broer, vice chancellor of Cambridge University and a former director of research at IBM. "They are requirements just to stay in the game. The key is an emotional link - a feeling of connection -
not just to you but to the customer and everyone he/she comes in contact with at your company."
Without that feeling of connection, customers will look elsewhere to do business. And agents will search for more stimulating opportunities. Research by Bain and Co. found that major companies lose, and have to replace, half their customers in five years, half their employees in four years, and half their investors in less than one. Finding and replacing these people is much more difficult than retaining them. Among those hemorrhaging are call centers. Too many centers view sales as a discrete event and their operations as a cost to be contained. That flies in the face of the latest research in human behavior. Such archaic thinking will diminish or destroy the loyalty of two groups you can't do without: your customers and your employees.
Call centers do more then answer calls Importance of call centers to business - To learn more about this author, visit JP Pawliw Fry's Website.
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Call Centers: Simply a Cost?
In one decade, 46% of companies identified as Fortune 500 firms dropped from the prestigious list - nearly half of these top-producers - because they didn't change with the times. Many are now on the endangered list. Also heading to extinction are call centers that cling to an archaic business model that sees customer service as a cost, and not as a key sales driver. The constant pressure to do more with less, to answer more calls with fewer people, and to decrease cost at any cost is hurting businesses big time.
WRONGHEADED THINKING
Example 1: In 1995, according to Niels Kjellerup, Pacific Bell claimed that if directory assistance reps said "hi" and "bye" rather than "good morning" and "good-bye," they could expect productivity gains of $22 million a year. Hello? Does anyone believe this makes sense? If statistics, and this wretched rationale, are the only raison d'etre of call centers, then let's pack them up.
Example two: While some call centers use decent psychometric tools to assess candidates, many don't. Why? Some believe that no such tools exist or can be validated. That's an ignorant view. Others (a majority?) think the tools are an "extra" not worth paying for. Ridiculous! If we don't properly assess a candidate for competencies that drive performance, then we deserve the turnover we get. High on the list of critical competencies is agent resiliency. Agents who handle rejection well, research tells us, won't give up. And they will stay positive and enthusiastic. Any business would like these qualities in their employees. In call centers, they're everything. What's more, motivated employees will stay with the business longer.
We at the Institute for Health & Human Potential (IHHP) use SASQ, a Web-enabled application that tests a prospective agent's ability to handle rejection. We've used the software with over 400,000 people worldwide in numerous industries. We have 500 studies from more than 100 universities that validate the predictive validity of the instrument. Among the studies' conclusions: the software cuts turnover by up to 50%. (More on this topic in a future column.) In today's business environment, your call center is at the hub of customers' experiences. If callers believe that you're trying to get them off the phone to save money, or that the agent isn't motivated, you've lost them. Sales and marketing is not a discrete event, nor just a department.
Everyone in your organization - starting and ending with the call center agent – is responsible for selling and marketing. When you can tap into, and intelligently manage, customers' emotions – their feelings, concerns, needs and wants - you've established a rapport.
Our brain is hardwired this way. Think of the brain in two parts: (1) the emotional center
(amygdala); and (2) the rest (neocortex), where the IQ resides.
GETTING CONNECTED
Profound new research has conclusively determined that all information coming into our nervous system first goes to the amygdala, where it is checked for emotional content before being sent to the neocortex. Upshot: We feel before we think. This is important, because people make decisions based on this hardwiring. If they feel put off by someone in your call center, the impression will be embedded in their emotional center forever. "The key to customer satisfaction and repeat business is not quality, competition, pricing, competitive pricing and a service department," says Alex Broer, vice chancellor of Cambridge University and a former director of research at IBM. "They are requirements just to stay in the game. The key is an emotional link - a feeling of connection -
not just to you but to the customer and everyone he/she comes in contact with at your company."
Without that feeling of connection, customers will look elsewhere to do business. And agents will search for more stimulating opportunities. Research by Bain and Co. found that major companies lose, and have to replace, half their customers in five years, half their employees in four years, and half their investors in less than one. Finding and replacing these people is much more difficult than retaining them. Among those hemorrhaging are call centers. Too many centers view sales as a discrete event and their operations as a cost to be contained. That flies in the face of the latest research in human behavior. Such archaic thinking will diminish or destroy the loyalty of two groups you can't do without: your customers and your employees.
Call centers do more then answer calls Importance of call centers to business - To learn more about this author, visit JP Pawliw Fry's Website.
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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David BarrDavid Barr is the President of Venture Opportunities, Inc. David has been a professional business broker/intermediary since 1980 focusing on General Business Brokerage and Mergers and Acquisitions representing client transaction value from $400,000 to $20,000,000. Mr. Barr has handled the sale of over four hundred and fifty companies. David earned a university degree from the State University of New York majoring in economics and business. David holds the Mergers and Acquisition Master Intermediary and the Certified Business Intermediary designations from the International Business Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Business Analyst and a Texas licensed Real Estate Agent. For more information about David and Venture Opportunities, visit www.bizdealmaker.com. - Visit David Barr's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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