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If you’re running a call center, abandon rate is one of the most crucial performance indicators you should pay close attention to.
For one, a high volume of abandoned calls speaks volumes about the quality of your customer service.
Most of us have experienced abandoning calls after being made to wait too long on the line or having to go through circuitous IVR menus.
It’s not a pleasant experience, and it certainly doesn’t make you think highly of the company you’ve been trying to reach.
If your call center is registering a high amount of abandoned calls, it’s necessary that you make the necessary adjustments to curb that trend.
As a business owner, here are proven techniques you can employ to lower your call center’s abandon rates.
1. Streamline your scripts on your automated messaging system
We’re sure you’ve heard this a million times before: “Your call is important to us. Please stay on the line, and one of our representatives will take…” and so on.
To make matters worse, you have to listen to that same maddening script over and over until you decide you can’t put up with it anymore, hence the high incidences of abandoned calls.
That script is not just outdated, it sounds cliche and boring. It gives off the impression that the call center is just phoning it in (no pun intended).
As far as your welcome message goes, the best approach is to tell customers upfront that they’re being held in a queue.
Better yet, you can provide customers more helpful information to listen to. By keeping them engaged, you are giving them more reasons to stay on the line.
2. Offer a callback option
Imagine this: you’ve already spent more than five minutes waiting for an agent to speak to you and you suddenly remembered you haven’t fed your goldfish the entire day.
And so you are left with two options: A) Abandon the call and feed the poor thing, B) Keep waiting (after all, you’ve spent several minutes on the phone so you might as well make them count).
The better choice, of course, is A. After all, keeping your goldfish alive should be your top priority.
But here’s the thing: you could have offered a third and better option. You could have offered a callback.
By providing callers the option to request a callback at their preferred schedule, you are providing them the convenience of being able to manage their time better.
Better yet, by offering a call back option, you can reduce the number of callers on the waiting-list during peak hours, allowing better management of call volume.
3. Increase the number of call center agents on the floor
The best way to lower abandon rates in your call center is to employ more agents. This, for obvious reasons, reduces the number of callers on the queue.
If that is not a viable option, you can also make changes in your staff scheduling. By assigning more agents on shifts where higher call volume is to be expected, you can reduce the number of callers on hold, thus lowering the chances of abandoned calls.
Key Takeaway
The three techniques mentioned in this article have been proven to reduce the amount of abandoned calls in customer service call centers in the Philippines.
The importance of abandon rates can’t be emphasized enough. For one, they have a tremendous impact on customer satisfaction. And it’s been long proven that customer satisfaction almost always translates to better business. Call us today to find out how we can help you optimize productivity, deliver a better customer experience and provide outsourced customer service.
