Should managers stick to the company s policy or prioritize the customer experience at all costs?
Aside from building a relationship with customers, error-free customer service is one of the main priorities of brands and outsourcing companies. However, no matter how much effort a call center exerts to ensure accuracy, errors are an inevitable part of customer service.
Thus, managers and team leaders must always be prepared to deal with the repercussions that unintended agent mistakes can set off. The main question they must answer, however, is this: should they stand behind their agents who made the mistake or withdraw their words to resolve the problem?
Impacts on the customer experience
Managers may encounter an impossible dilemma if an agent s recommendation doesn t agree with the company s policies. If they stand behind the agent s mistakes and follow through with what they ve already promised, there s a better chance of keeping the customer happy. In the process, the brand also appears more consistent, which is an important quality that people look for in the brands they follow.
On the other hand, if they retract the agents erroneous statement, the customer experience may be compromised. There s no easy way to inform customers that they must disregard what they were already told. Whatever managers do, customers will be disappointed or annoyed. It also demonstrates that the brands agents aren t as capable as they should be. The brighter side, however, is that you ll avoid any financial or asset damage that the error might cause.
There may be no clear answer regarding this question, and managers must carefully consider the unique circumstances of every case. This will always be a gray area until the brand implements a specific protocol directly addressing this. However, there are ways to lessen similar incidents.
Providing consistent customer service
• Trainings
Good customer service is rooted in rigorous training. For a call center, enhancing product knowledge should be the main goal of training programs, in addition to fundamental communication skills. This would allow them to provide a consistent service that satisfies uniform standards.
• Knowledge base
You probably already have a knowledge base, but is it easily accessible, user-friendly, accurate, and complete? Since your agents would probably use this resource over and over, it must be fully optimized. Make sure that the databases are being constantly updated and verified.
• Promoting trust
Trust is built out of consistency, which entails a series of good performance. Agents can promote trust by providing accurate information and honoring their words. If not, they won t be able to meet the customers expectations.
Ideally, when dealing with agents errors, managers should prioritize the customer experience. Brand owners and customer service managers must coordinate with one another in order to brainstorm effective approaches to deal with agents mistakes.
