5 Ways to Improve Your Employees’ Phone Skills

Customer service is the backbone of any organization. Without a team dedicated to ensuring your customers receive everything that they need, you will see them and business clients jump to a competitor that puts them first. You already have rules in place for what your employees should wear to work and how to act, but it is important to focus on continued education and training on how to interact with customers and clients in order to improve service levels. Here are five ways that you can improve your employees’ phone skills and see added results for your business.

1. Give your employees the resources they need.
   Whether you want to make it easier on your receptionist, sales team, or customer service call center, your employees need the right tools in order to be successful. This could be something simple like notepads and pens at the front desk to take messages, or more involved, like a CMS system to track callers’ interactions and purchase history. The best customer service agents in the world can’t be effective with only a phone to answer.
2. Train your employees on proper procedure.
   How fast do the phones need to be answered? Do you have a standard greeting when picking up a line? Set this procedure and make sure your team sticks to it. The customer service experience for a caller starts the minute they place the call. Your employees play a vital role in whether or not the caller has a favorable or unfavorable experience
3. Ensure your entire team is proficient on the phones.
   In your organization, more than just the front desk staff uses the phones on a daily basis. Every one of your employees should know how to use the phone system, from placing calls on hold to transferring them around the office. This eliminates the problem of accidentally dropping calls, which irritates customers and can lead to poor interactions.
4. Listen to your employees’ needs.
   Your employees interact with callers every day. What do they feel is working or which needs to be improved? Are slow CMS systems or hardware issues keeping them from being able to quickly help callers and improve resolution rates? By taking the time to listen to your employees, you will be able to spot areas for improvement and make needed adjustments that benefit the entire company. This also comes into play during the training process. Allow your new staff members to ask questions and present ideas on how to improve efficiency on the phone to instill a sense of responsibility for and ownership of results.
5. Solicit feedback from your callers.
   An excellent way to gain insight into how your employees perform on the phone is to think like a caller yourself. What bothers you about interactions you’ve had with a company on the phone? When you take this approach, you know what traps to avoid so you can provide excellent support. In addition, consider asking callers and customers to submit feedback through surveys or emails. This helps you measure results and ensure that your employees are meeting the high standards that you set and your customers expect.

Learn more about improving your employees’ phone skills and other tips for companies, such as what employees should wear to work, by contacting a Prudential Overall Supply representative today at 800-767-5536.