{"id":12465,"date":"2020-11-10T10:00:54","date_gmt":"2020-11-10T10:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"\/gb\/en\/blog\/?p=12465"},"modified":"2023-04-10T10:56:32","modified_gmt":"2023-04-10T09:56:32","slug":"the-definitive-guide-to-working-in-a-call-centre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/gb\/en\/blog\/the-definitive-guide-to-working-in-a-call-centre\/","title":{"rendered":"The Definitive Guide to Working in a Call Centre: What is it Like? Tips and Skills Needed"},"content":{"rendered":"

Despite many companies hosting online knowledge hubs, customers still often choose to <\/span>contact call centres<\/span><\/a>. There is a range of reasons for this. It could be that they don\u2019t trust chatbots, struggle to find an answer to their question, or don\u2019t want to wait around for an email response.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps with COVID-19 forcing people to work from home, people are happy to spend 25 minutes waiting to talk to a real human. Whatever the reason, call centres are still widely used. In fact, they\u2019ve actually grown in number by 1.1% between the years of 2015-2020, according to<\/span> Ibis World<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What that means is that there is more need for call centre staff to do their thing and help customers out where they can.<\/span><\/p>\n

But what is it like working in a call centre? Is it fun and are there perks to the job? Or is it just a lot of angry customers ranting down the phone? What’s the typical working environment provided by a call centre operator?<\/span><\/p>\n

Like any job, working in a call centre has both good and bad points. This guide walks you through all you need to know about the job. It tells you everything you\u2019ve ever wondered about being a call centre agent.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\t

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\r\n\t\t\tContact Centre Artificial Intelligence<\/span>\r\n\t\t\t

Do you want to add automation and artificial intelligence to your contact center?<\/h3>\r\n\t\t\t

Explore our contact center solution or connect with us for a free demo.<\/p>\r\n\t\t\tConnect with us<\/a>\r\n\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n\t\n

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Source<\/b>: <\/span>Alex Kotliarskyi\/ Unsplash<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

What Skills do You Need to Work in a Call Centre?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

With any customer service job, working in a call centre<\/a> requires basic human interaction skills. These are having the ability to listen, be polite, and be kind. Of course, in customer service, whether over the phone or on social media, the ultimate aim is to help the customer with any problems or queries they may have.<\/span><\/p>\n

And when working in a call centre, the skills needed are different once again. The following are five skills that are specific to call centre staff, from frontline agents to the call centre manager.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Source<\/b>: <\/span>Inc<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

1. Retaining Knowledge.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Call centre workers are a fountain of knowledge. They have to be. Because whenever a customer phones up, they want an answer. And they want it to be quick and accurate. They don’t want a customer service representative who drones on for no purpose.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So, working in a call centre means that staff has to be able to answer anything from, \u201cWhere do the batteries go in this remote?\u201d To, \u201cIs this text really from you, or was it a <\/span>hacker<\/span><\/a>?\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Those with good call centre skills will be able to understand and interpret any customer support question that comes their way.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Flexibility.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Despite the idea that working as a call centre agent is about cold calling<\/a> and selling the same product over and over, the day of a call centre representative is very varied. Even if the staff is making several outbound calls, it is still a very unpredictable job with lots of responsibilities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Agents will often be thrown a curveball in their working day. They generally need to deal with those straight away. If something random or unexpected pops up, they are the ones who are expected to manage it professionally while the customer’s still at the end of the phone.<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Attention to detail.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

One of the best call centre skills you can have is to be specific. Customers like to know precisely what is going on and exactly how to solve their issue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So, if a customer says, \u201cWhere do the batteries go in the remote?\u201d It isn\u2019t enough to say, \u201cAt the bottom\u201d. It has to be, \u201cAt the back, on the bottom, between the two tiny silver screws, just below the company logo\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

A great service rep goes above and beyond and answers all questions to a T. That’s how to achieve optimum customer satisfaction.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Source<\/b>: <\/span>Freepik<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

4. Creativity.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

There will be times when a question simply can\u2019t be answered. When this happens, it\u2019s down to the agent to find an alternative solution. So, the call center staff member needs to be creative and figure something out that works for both the customer and the company.<\/span><\/p>\n

They also need to be prepared for anything unanticipated that might come their way. At the end of the day, an inbound agent receives dozens of cold calls every day. They must think on their feet to resolve each one effectively.<\/span><\/p>\n

5. Organisation.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Working in a call centre requires a lot of organisation, as well as communication skills. Help desk agents can receive exceedingly high numbers of phone calls a day. So, part of the call centre skillset requires an agent to keep on top of who has called.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sometimes, patrons can call back weeks later. Meaning staff needs to be on the frontline and keep on top of each case, updating customers and team members as they go.<\/span><\/p>\n

Call centre skills can vary so much from day-to-day. But in general, the <\/span>skills agents must learn <\/span><\/a>are much more varied than people may presume.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Source<\/b>: <\/span>Talegent<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

What Hours do Call Centre Agents Work?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Obviously, the hours worked in a call centre can greatly depend on the nature of the business. Somebody dealing with complaints at the BBC may only work Monday to Friday 9-5. A firm offering emergency boiler care, meanwhile, may have to provide 24\/7 coverage.<\/span><\/p>\n

Working in a call centre often means that staff has to be flexible and willing to do shift work. Although, if people have certain hours they can\u2019t do, a discussion with the manager will help sort this out. In call centres, there are typically options to work both full time and part-time.<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s more, having a global audience may make the working hours a bit more unusual than people may be used to. It can also sometimes mean long hours, where you don’t hang up your last call until late at night. But, for the kind of person who hates the idea of working a standard 9-5 eight hour shift, working as a flexible call centre worker can be a great solution.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Coronavirus pandemic and the resulting risk of catching Covid-19 has also meant that lots of call centre jobs are now based from home. That has taken away the worry of travelling around at unsociable times.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Source<\/b>: <\/span>Freepik<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n\t

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\r\n\t\t\tcloud contact centre<\/a> technology<\/span>\r\n\t\t\t

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What\u2019s a Day-in-The-Life of a Call Centre Agent?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\"call-centre-agents\"<\/p>\n

It\u2019s already been established that working in a call centre is quite varied. An average day isn\u2019t just a case of sticking on the headset and getting stuck in. Like in any job, the start of a day might involve a team meeting or a quick catch up with workmates.<\/span><\/p>\n

But there will be those wondering what it\u2019s like working in a call centre specifically. Call centre work is all about the customer experience<\/a>. In this case, that means taking a high number of calls and doing plenty of talking, all day every day. You may get sick of the sound of your own voice, but it will be worth it to know that you have helped someone with their problems.<\/span><\/p>\n

There is a bit of a worry that call centre staff get bombarded with angry customers. And although, yes, there will be the odd meanie, the majority of people are lovely to talk to and are grateful for the help.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Source<\/b>:<\/span> Inc<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Call centre work is usually divided into two categories. That\u2019s making inbound and outbound calls.<\/span><\/p>\n