What do you do for a living? This is the question I get asked a lot. I generally tell them I apologize, convince, and get yelled at.
I know this is a funny answer but in all seriousness, I think customer service has reduced to just these things. I have worked as a CS agent for big brands; I have worked as a manager, and now I am a training agent.
During my 10 years in the industry, I have seen the CS industry evolve, and I realize that while small brands are fulfilling the bare minimum, big brands are playing a different game. Since I have worked for big brands like Amazon and Xfinity, I am going to tell you some trade secrets that you can benefit from as a small business owner.
So without further ado, let’s get started.
Contents
5 Tricks That I Learned From Big Brand Customer Service
1. Technology Is Your Only Savior
I see brands bragging about offering human interaction. “We don’t use AI and machines,” they will tell you in every interaction. I mean your loss. There is nothing to be proud of. You are missing an opportunity, and you will regret it in the future.
As a small business owner, most brands will advertise “We are a small business; we don’t know you by your purchase number, we know you by the name.” Yes, it’s a fun one-liner that tells your client that you are a small brand trying to make big.
Do you know what else it screams? It screams that we are not big enough. We are not successful enough and most people do not order from us. You are endorsing, not begging, it’s time to change your tone. I know you are offended. As a small business owner, I was offended as well.
Now is the time to make technology your best friend. There is no harm in using technology, AI, award-winning internet connection, or the best customer service dashboard in the market. At the end of the day, your customer will be comparing you with the best and the biggest brand in the market, so you might as well act like it.
2. Your CS Needs to Align With Brand Identity
Training your customer service department with all the fun exercises, interaction tips and some shortcuts is standard. You can hire anyone to do it. However, you will be signing up your brand to be part of the herd.
Your CS agent will talk like any low-tier brand and eventually, the customer interaction with your agent will never stand out. Now, I am not saying your CS agent should start cracking jokes but at least adjust their tone with the brand identity.
Imagine you have a fun social media team, cracking jokes, making fun, and taking part in the latest trends. However, once your customer calls the agent for guidance, it is another Tuesday morning for them. While training your agent, make sure the customer gets the same experience. There is no time for a clash.
3. It Is Not a Contest – Stop Yelling
Since I have worked in Customer service for nearly 6 years, I can tell you from experience that yelling and banter are common. Agents and trained to listen, never interrupt, and reply calmly but once they step into the real world, it’s a battleground.
While my days as supervisor were numbered, I used to experience yelling competitions every day. Eventually, when I became a trainer, I realized that it was not about the content but the tone. In certain cultures, yelling comes naturally. Their tone is harsh and the interaction is never subtle.
This is the where trainer needs to adjust the tone. Set a stronger boundary, lower your tone, and then stick to it. Most of the agents I have trained ended up speaking with the same tone even in their real life. There is no customer service tone switch; instead, it is like a raw daily expression that they use with everyone.
4. Relate To Your Client
One of the most recommended yet most neglected training cues is empathy. Your trainer will tell you to be empathetic but when you receive the same call, with the same complaint every day, how can you be emphatic? In this case, I do not blame the agent. Instead, offer them a trainer to relate to.
Empathy is slightly different from relating to your customer. You might ask how? Let me tell you. If you have received a broken parcel, you might not feel empathetic. However, try to come up with a response that you can relate to.
This might be a little challenging but big brands have been using this strategy so far. I have seen Amazon CS officers coming up with fun and relatable stories that are record-worthy. Make reliability a factor in your conversation and you will notice the success rate going through the roof.
5. Success Is Not Proportional to Time
You need to end a call in 3 minutes. This is one of the standard lines that most trainers tell their CS agents. I have worked for a similar brand and let me tell you, we were ranked based on our closing time. It was a KPI system. If the call exceeds 3 minutes, you are in for a bad review.
However, this eventually led to recurrent issue calls. The client would call the next day with the same issue and this would eventually become a headache. Leave your agent to chat with the client for a few hours but do not measure the success of interaction with time.
Let your agent, relate to your customer, ask them questions, understand the issues, and then offer a practical solution.
Customer service interactions are never fun but they work as a backbone for the success of your brand. If you are a small business owner, I recommend you to understand the requirements of your customer and give it some time.
