Call center employees and inside sales staff play a vital role within a B2B or medtech organization. They’re on the “front lines,” speaking to customers and prospects every day. While their job is to provide customers, prospects, and leads with a positive experience, it is the responsibility of the company to provide its call center representatives with a positive experience, as well.
Happy call center representatives and inside salespeople perform at higher levels, which translates to happy customers and prospects. However, call center agent turnover is notoriously high, which means that call centers must do the following to retain their valuable employees:
Provide advancement opportunities
When a call center representative has been in the same role for a while, they might be comfortable, but they’re also more likely to become bored. Employees should have the opportunity to advance in their careers. This doesn’t always need to be in the form of a promotion or pay raise. Keep employees engaged by challenging them and providing them with ongoing training and learning opportunities that will expand their knowledge set.
Update processes as necessary
So many call centers get stuck in a rut and don’t try to align processes with current trends or customer needs. Since it’s the call center representatives who are left to execute these stale processes, it can result in unhappiness on the job and attrition. Call centers and inside sales managers should always be open to executing more efficient ways of conducting business.
Ask for feedback
Callers who are speaking with customers and prospects every day will know what’s working and what’s not. However, they might be hesitant to voice their ideas and concerns. When a call center enforces an open-door policy and encourages employee feedback, callers will be more likely to share their insights. It’s these insights that can go a long way towards improving processes, results and overall satisfaction levels.
Offer performance incentives
An incentive program can be a great motivator and keep call center employees happy in their jobs. Bonuses and other monetary incentives are always nice, but it’s not the only incentive option if the budget is tight. Employees today value work-life balance; flexible schedules and extra time off are always nice. Recognition among peers, company lunches and awards are other options.
Call centers need to remember that in addition to keeping customers and prospects happy, they also need to do what they can to keep valuable employees happy. A positive call center culture is only possible when call center employees are happy and engaged.
Here at Volkart May, we’re proud of our contact center’s culture and employee tenures. Contact us to schedule a tour, meet the staff and put the power of conversation to work for your business.
