One thing I deal with constantly these days is getting people on the telephone. I will often make 20 calls in an hour or two and only get a few people – all of whom have requested that someone call them – to answer the phone. Sometimes when I reach them they’re at work or driving and they ask if they can call me back. They hardly ever do, even when we set up a specific time. They don’t call me so I’ll call them at the appointed hour. They rarely answer.
It sounds awful, right? They claim to want information about new opportunities yet they won’t answer when opportunity comes knocking. My question to you concerns your business doing the same thing. No, not having customers hang up on you, but the opposite. Are you hanging up on them?
When was the last time you looked at your inbound customer service metrics? Do you even have such things? Research shows that consumers value efficient service and knowledgeable staff when they call a business. They find being kept on hold, rude service, and automated phone menus frustrating. You can measure on-hold time and you can test the customer service reps to be sure they’re knowledgeable and personable. You can check when call volume peaks and schedule more reps during that time.
One thing I’ve come to like quite a bit is the “let me call you back” option when there is going to be an on-hold time of more than a few minutes. You know what I mean – “press 5 to get a call back when there is an available representative or press 6 to schedule a time to be called back.” That’s customer-friendly and shows them that you respect their time and have empathy for their problem. When I hear “your call is important to us,” I always think “if it’s so damn important, why aren’t you answering?” Calling back shows it really is important.
It’s the little things we do in business that say a lot about how we run our firms. What messages are you sending? Are they the kind that will get customers to return?
Consult Keith 