How Agent Training, WFM Impact CX

I love Crate and Barrel. And I like Toyota vehicles. But I may never buy from them again. Here’s why.

Just before Christmas I ordered a few items from Crate and Barrel. But rather than going to a family member in the Chicago area, as I specified in my online order, the gifts arrived at my doorstep in Arizona.

So I called the Crate and Barrel customer service line. A contact center agent told me it was my mistake and said I’d have to pay $18 to get the gifts to my sister by Christmas. That’s what I did, but I was not happy about it. And Crate and Barrel was not particularly nice about it.

I had a similar experience last week at a local Toyota dealership.

While there for a tune-up, I mentioned that I wanted to pick up a second key for the vehicle. When we bought the car there, we only got one, but were promised a second one.

The service agent introduced me to another employee, who told me it cost $225 to cut a new key. The dealership, she said, would generously pay for $100, but I would have to pay the other $125. Wow, what a deal! I left shaking my head.

These are both examples of a customer NOT getting what she wanted, and what she believed was fair. But more than that, in both cases I was not treated as a valued customer.

That's too bad, because as Monet Software’s (News - Alert) Chuck Ciarlo notes in a recent blog, businesses in general – and contact center agents in particular – should make “an effort to make each customer feel valued and appreciated” to help drive customer loyalty.

In contact centers, agent training is important in getting agents to answer calls quickly, reduce hold times, answer questions, take corrective action when needed, and express to customers that they are valued, adds Ciarlo. This training, he says, should begin with informing agents about contact center procedures and scripts. And it should also include helping agents express empathy and understanding, and to show patience with customers. Doing role play can assist in that, he adds.

Workforce management software also plays a role in delivering positive business and customer outcomes, he continues. Such software ensures that there are enough agents to handle incoming calls in an effective way.

“With the advanced functionality and the more accurate forecasting and scheduling made possible by WFM, as well as the data it delivers on agent performance, schedule adherence and KPIs, contact center managers can always be assured the contact center’s resources are being utilized in the most efficient and cost-effective manner,” he says.

Edited by Mandi Nowitz