High call center traffic after Christmas
This is probably the absolute worst time to be working in the call center mill. The number of calls jump, the people are disappointed with the products, and the need for help is at an all time high. Many companies using call centers can also be counted on to over demand from their call center employees putting them between the needs of the customer and the demands of management.
Rise of the Machine!
Many people have asked what the heck has happened to customer service. The reality is that in businesses never ending search for smaller, faster CHEAPER ways to operate, they have destroyed what was once the focus of business. That is, building customer loyalty and profits with good customer service.
There are many reasons why customer service has suffered over the years but the biggest reason by far is the rise of the computer. No longer are employees allowed to help or assist customers with problems. No, the computer is now programmed to deal with specific problems with no consideration for specific or unique problems that may arise. Employees are no longer empowered to help with a customer problem to develop that customer business loyalty that every business covets. The computer has now replaced the minds of employees. If it’s not programmed into the computer, they cannot help the customer.
A good example is a customer who, after purchasing a product finds that s single bolt is missing. She dutifully calls customer support and probably get someone in India who they can barely understand. After the stress of the situation is adequately increase due to the difficulty in understanding the accent, our intrepid customer is usually told that just the 1 bolt couldn’t be sent. NO, in the interest of limiting the number of part numbers in inventory to make things easier on the computer, the company will send out the whole bag O parts.
In the old days, the customer service rep was in the same location as the plant where the product was manufactured. They would go out to the shop floor, pick up the bolt, put it in an envelope and it would be in the next days mail.
Now however, the customer service rep in India completed a parts replacement request, the request goes to a fulfillment house, is pulled from stock and the whole package of bolts is shipped out to the customer.
Bottom line is that the 5 cent bolt and the 50 cents in postage and shipping materials now costs 49 dollars plus shipping costs for a pound and a half of misc bolts the customer neither wanted or needed.
Because we are not usually able to measure the real cost of savings, they are minimized to make the idea of outsourcing appear much more efficient than is really the case.