Last time we talked about a system for effectively managing your inbound phone calls – perhaps the most important contact your clients and prospects have with your agency.
I identified 8 different caller types and said your call management system must strike a balance between caller experience and efficient processing. What did I mean by that? It’s an important answer …
On the one hand we want our office, our systems to run as efficiently as possible. So, one objective of your call management system should be to route calls quickly and invest as little time as possible in each call.
On the other hand we want the caller to have a positive experience. This is our chance to impress that prospect and solidify our client bonds.
And these two objectives are very often in conflict.
For example, we could get a prospect off the phone in a hurry if we really tried. Very efficient, yes, but that would be counterproductive to creating a positive experience for that prospect. Our closing ratios would plummet!
So, in the case of a prospect call I say designing a fantastic caller experience is more important than achieving maximum processing efficiency.
I’m going to make sure my “prospect call management system” is designed for maximum impact on the caller – with as much efficiency as possible built in, as well, as long as it doesn’t detract from the caller’s experience.
Now contrast that with a mortgagee trying to get proof of insurance on a home policy (what I call a third-party caller). I’m much less concerned about this caller’s experience than I am about a prospect or a client.
In this case, efficient handling takes the front seat. So much so that I might just dump these callers to a pre-recorded voice mail that tells them how to request their information by fax.
Not necessarily a wonderful experience for the caller, but it keeps my team focused on the most important work they need to be doing … prospects and clients.
Key Point – You can’t expect your team to know what you think and feel. You can’t expect new hires to come with a mindset that matches right up to yours.
That’s why you must systemize! YOU decide how you want the different caller types handled. YOU decide what the balance between experience and efficiency will be for each caller type.
Then get it documented, train your team, monitor for compliance and keep the channels open for constant improvement.
