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| *Ostroff, Fair and Company>>>Administrative and Office Support |
Do customers really understand what it's like working in a call center? |
It seems some people are oblivious to what a call center rep.has to endure throughout the course of one day. Is it really constructive for people to endlessly repeat themselves like they are fixated on the crisis, or to whine like spoiled rotten little children who don't get their way? This does not help them get their problems resolved. Who would expect to get help when they are throwing a fit? Do most customers really understand what it's like working in a call center? I worked at a help desk for 5 years. I would say that 75% of the callers are rude. I find it hilarious when people have such an opinion on what a call center job is like when they never worked at a call center! My beef was never with the callers, it was more with the management. They had unrealistic goals for us- we needed to keep our talk times low, and we had to be logged into our phones 95% of the time (which sounds reasonable, unless you have to call back a user to help them reinstall Windows.) No. The public by and large never realizes the stress and what it means to work in a call center. Its more than just taking calls, you have to also live up to the expectations and scrutiny of management. And working while you have a sore throat? That's the worst. some of them might have an idea, but most probably do not. i personally hated working in a call center and i would never, ever, under any circumstances work in a call center again. its a horrible, horrible way to make a living. get out now! Call centers are like another planet to some of these people. They are positive when they dial the number that they are going to wait years, get disconnected, and end up with the moron who got the short straw when everyone broke for lunch. They're sure the rep who answers doesn't have a clue about the product (just happened to answer the phone while he was delivering pizzas) and is just trying to spite them. So the minute you pick up, you're fighting an uphill battle while trying to keep your computer screen on, make yourself heard over the loud woman in the next cubicle, and extract the info with the finesse of an FBI interrogator. I don't envy you your job. I think the answer is no, customers do not understand (or care) what it is like working at a call center. The sad truth is, people do not call the customer service hotline when things are going great. They call when there is a problem. As with any customer service job, the best thing for you to do is 1.) keep in mind that the customer may be mad, but they are not mad at you 2.) do everything in your power to resolve their situation and 3.) maintain a scrupulously polite demeanor at all times. Sure, this is easier said than done. But I have had customers start out ranting and raving, and then apologize for about 5 minutes after I remained polite and solved all of their problems. Does this happen every time? Of course not. But you are getting paid to put up with it. Take heart in knowing that the customer service skills you are developing will transfer into just about any field you choose to pursue in the future. I will never, ever work in a call center again either. People need to realize that you don't have to be a jack *** in order to get what you need. Most companies are willing to work with you in order to keep your business. I always hated the people who called in yelling at me like it was my fault their power got shut off because they didn't pay the electric bill. oh my god, i can relate. i worked a call center for 5 years, and people can be such asses. i tried to be nice at first, but the constant yelling, condescending attitudes people dished out got to me eventually so, unfortunately, i got attitudes back with people. If they yelled at me i would put them in 'time out' (on hold). they would calm down after that because they knew it was all about the power of a button. I stayed at the call center that long because the company was sponsoring me for my education, the minute i finished i left. But one more good thing came out of working there: I learned to be REALLY nice to customer service people. you get farther that way anyway. The most simple answer to your question no unless they work in a call center like me. If only the could hear them selves on the phone then they would understand what you and I felt. Having to deal with rude, arrogant people, and people not understanding why you can help them the way they like. Then having to deal with them in a polite manner when ever fiber in you wants to do the same to them. And then throwing a fit if they can't get their way and ask for a manager. To only have the manager tell them the same things I said to them over again. It funny just because you have title like manager the almost automatically accept you answer. I know what it like first hand but the average joe doesn't. |
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