We’re big fans of call centre employees, here at MeloTel. In many of our past blogs, we have heralded the efforts of phone agents all over the continent. In our opinion, they too often get a bad rap. Telemarketers, in particular, aren’t always viewed very favourably by members of the general public. Those who work on the phone each and every day have very tough jobs. As a call centre manager, it’s your job to make their jobs as rewarding as possible.
The act of motivating your staff comes in many forms. We’ve often championed the morning meeting as a way to start off each day on the right foot. Because being on the phone with various customers can be frustrating (especially when rejections to marketing pitches are received all day), it’s important to brighten the moods of your phone agents before they even get on the phones.
Communication is key.
Yes, it may sound like a cliché, but it doesn’t make it any less true. When you are open and approachable, you’ll make it a lot easier on your staff members to come to you with their concerns. This is very important for their emotional well-being. The feeling of freedom to express one’s self is a huge factor in whether or not an individual enjoys working for a company. Being a good communicator will also help you to improve employee performance.
“As important as improving the agent’s performance is the act of communicating the problem to the agent,” says TailorTrain.com, “Schedule a meeting to discuss the performance issues. Ensure that the agent is aware of the quality assessment criteria. Provide constructive feedback while also recognizing the agent’s strengths and skills. Review the action plan that you have developed and reiterate that it’s been put in place to support and assist the agent.”
Allow for moments of stress relief.
One of the worst things for a phone agent to do right after he/she has gotten off a particularly frustrating call is take another call right away. Never let it be lost on you that your employees are human beings. We are all emotional creatures. In many cases, it will be necessary for your phone agents to take a few moments to shake off bad calls, calm down, breathe and regroup for their next phone calls. Allow for this to be acceptable in your workplace.
“Stress within the call centre can have a significant impact on the agent and call centre,” reports TalkDesk.com, “When stressors within the call center become significant, they result in decreased productivity, job satisfaction and health – all of which have a major impact on the call center. It is therefore important to allow agents to take frequent short breaks when their stress levels increase, when they need to get some air, eat a snack or use the restroom.”
Offer regular feedback.
Providing regular feedback is considered the most important step in the process of improving staff performance in a call centre. And, at MeloTel, we have the solution for making the providing of feedback easier than ever. It’s known as Monitor/Whisper Control Panel. With this feature, you can listen to your reps while they are on their calls and whisper your feedback to provide immediate assistance!
For more information, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 1-888-MELOTEL or use the Live Chat feature on our website!
