How To Create A World Famous Call Center

The purpose of any well-run call center is to service customers, aid in the capture of market share and create a loyal customer base. While software and hardware are an integral part of establishing and managing a call center, it's the capabilities of management and call center agents that sustain and grow the business.

If a business has someone answering the phone, they have a call center. So, whether it's one person or 300, how well the agent does that job determines the view your customers have of the efficiency and capability of your organization. After all, the caller is basing their opinion of your business based on one call, one contact at a time. Making the commitment to create a world famous call center is a worthy goal to aspire to for our customers and employees.

I have a grandchild that is a picky, finicky eater. Trying to get healthy, nutritious food into her mouth is the greatest challenge her caregivers face. So, you might be wondering what this has to do with our topic. The secret to getting nutritious food into this child is to create world famous food. She is eager to eat world famous grilled cheese sandwiches, world famous spaghetti, world famous chicken nuggets, world famous pancakes—you get the idea.

Culinary skills aside, perhaps this is just an exercise in managing a child's expectations. How will that work on customers' beliefs? There is a recipe for success. We begin by creating the expectation in our agents' belief system; then follow that up with sound planning, training and coaching to ensure the outcome we want. If we do all that, the proof will be in the pudding in our customers' minds.

The recipe for blending together a world famous call center is a three-phased process. First and foremost, management must have a clear picture of what they want. What will be different? What will need to change? What software and hardware will give us the data and tracking we require? How and where should we utilize automation for our customers? Will we be an inbound or outbound center, or both? What type of reward programs work to incent agents? The more specific and clear the picture of what is wanted, the easier it becomes to build the path to that creation. Management shares their expectations and outcomes with agents through ongoing meetings; energy and enthusiasm is generated during rallies and contests; and appreciation is shown through recognition and celebrations.

Secondly, agents must have the desire to serve others, as well as skill sets and competencies in key areas. These include, but are not limited to, phone etiquette, call control, empathy, sales, problem resolution, and customer service. In today's competitive environment where market share is paramount, sales skills are highly desired and required of agents. Without the high desire to serve, the other skill sets might have little impact. We've all talked to the call center agent that technically can take us from Point A to Point B, but this same expert can't manage questions or is rattled if the customer interrupts. This might throw the agent off balance and often they will revert back to the script. Agents who have a high desire to serve and honed skill sets find those entanglements with callers nothing more than an opportunity to build rapport with the caller by helping them untangle the mess before proceeding with the call. Hiring employees with the right attitudes as well as aptitudes is an important managerial responsibility.

Third, an ongoing and comprehensive training program is needed to create a world famous call center. Agents actively participate in ongoing competency and technique training to instill and enhance their skill sets. Supervisors stay in touch with and guide agents to greater heights through ongoing coaching.

You can't make world famous pancakes without breaking a few eggs. The same holds true for creating a world famous call center. Don't let the fear of a little egg on your face slow down getting all the ingredients together for making the right recipe for success.