RSS
Home
Do IVRs make CSRs life more difficult?
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Many businesses started using IVR (Interactive Voice Recognition) machines in order to make their CSR’s (customer service representatives) jobs easier. The business owners realized that a certain amount of the CSR’s time was spent on repetitive, mind-numbingly boring tasks such as answering questions like, “Where are you located?,” “What hours are you open?,” “What time does my plane take off?, and/or “What is my balance?” IVRs, when used properly, make not only the CSR’s job easier but will often make the customer’s experience faster and more pleasant.
Ah, but there is the rub. Too often the IVRs are set up in such a way that makes the customer frustrated and angry instead of pleased. A customer who needs simple information that cannot be automated can become unhappy when the information needed doesn’t fit the choices offered. Imagine how much worse it becomes if the customer starts out upset. A customer who started out unhappy can be turned into a raving monster after having to navigate a poorly designed system
So now instead of just dealing with the customer’s request or complaint, the CSR has to deal with a frustrated or angry customer.
The following are comments from customers who are getting frustrated with IVRs:
“The thing that kills me about IVRs is that they almost always make matters worse vis-a-vis customer relations. Recently, after the (literally) eighth automated menu that I made my way through, I found myself being unconscionably rude to the first human who finally picked up the phone.” T Hissong
"What I hate is when I have to input my account number as part of the process and then the person who answers asks for my account number. I say, "I just gave it to you. Don't you have it on your screen.?" I often get, ‘Yes, but we are told to ask again to verify it.’ I wonder how many people fail that second ‘verify’ step?" S. Waterhouse
"I tend to press zero after the automated message begins. Sometimes that works to get to a person quickly. Once I'm there, I tend to be polite since the people at the other end of the phone are only trying to do their best - unless they present a non-negotiable position. Then I ask to speak to a Manager. What I've found recently, however, is that many of the people with whom you speak are off-shore and are not authorized to do any negotiating. At that point, all you can do is leave a message for someone with that authority to return your call. That said, I'm still waiting for someone from XM to call and fix our account and it's been three weeks now." J Hammond
"Sometimes zero doesn't work any more and I get sooo frustrated, and use zillions of cell phone minutes getting nowhere that leads me to a person. Unfortunately, sometimes when I get a person- say MSN customer help- the English is so tortured that it seems like we are in two different conversations; so difficult communication with a person is another problem. I sometimes have to go through 2 or 3 different actual people to get a problem resolved. Anyway, I echo the frustration of 1) not speaking to an individual and meanwhile none of the 'options' fit what I am calling for; and, 2) The person, if you get one, does not have authority to resolve your issue, and it is really hard to get a manager.”
W. Watson
"It seems the menu choices never (well, rarely anyway) give an option that seems remotely related to my question, so unless I find the secret way to bypass and get to a person, after going thru all the choices a second time and often being cut off so I have to start all over again, I suspect I do sound cranky. All I want is to ask a question and get an answer - even if it's to get a number to call someone else." T Carpenter
“ I get frustrated when I call my Doctor’s office and the set of prompts begins with, “ If you are a physician press one.” The physician is not my Doctors’s customer. Having that be the first prompt makes me feel that I am not as important in my Doctor’s eyes. A bad message to send.” F. Tatelman
What can we learn from these customer’s issues? How can you reduce your customer’s frustration and therefore make your CSR’s jobs a bit easier?
1. Make it easy to speak to a human. Your first set of prompts (or second at least) should have an option to speak to a human
2. Don’t have customers input account info if your CSR’s have to ask again.
3. Make sure your options fit your customer’s needs.
4. Empower your CSRs to resolve issues on the first call
5. Prioritize your customer.
Implementing any of these ideas will help not only your employees but will keep your customers happy and coming back.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
