Having to wait on hold for a long time is the biggest frustration when calling customer service for more than two in five (42 per cent). This emphasises that customers of today expect timely, consistent treatment and service – even during the busiest time of the year, according to a recent social poll carried out by customer communications & call centre specialist, Enghouse Interactive.
Polling 60 Twitter and LinkedIn users, the survey found that for more than a quarter (28 per cent) of consumers, being asked to repeat information is their biggest annoyance when calling customer service, with 22 per cent listing poor agent knowledge as their greatest frustration.
Simon Adnett, VP of Sales for UK&I/MEA, at Enghouse Interactive, said, “Omnichannel is key to delivering the service consumers desire. Organisations must ensure that they can seamlessly switch consumers to another channel, for example from a chatbot to a live agent, during the course of an interaction while guaranteeing all of the correct customer information is pulled though to avoid consumers having to repeat themselves. Organisations must be able to support the consumer at a time that suits them, on any chosen device and ensure that their query is understood and dealt with in a timely manner. Leveraging self-service technologies and knowledge management systems also helps both customers and agents become truly self-sufficient, transforming experiences for all parties involved.”
A further social poll revealed that over two-thirds (67 per cent) of respondents say great communication is the most important skill for the customer service team to have, with just over a quarter (26 per cent) of respondents listing empathy as the most valuable. Customer service agents thinking through responses and answering in clear, understandable language saves time with less back and forth, while showing empathy ensures customers feel that their concerns matter and are being taken seriously.
Adnett added, “Customers want to interact with organisations that value their time, in ways that are painless, quick, and easy. Businesses need to focus on finding ways to simplify interactions, keep waiting times down and reduce frustration by offering virtual waiting or proactive call-backs within a set time period.”
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