Imagine you are a frustrated customer encountering recurring billing issues. Naturally, having experienced such repeated inconvenience would leave you aggravated. As a last resort, you decided to call your billing provider’s support for help. In such a situation, wouldn’t you expect to speak with a more empathetic support agent?
The last thing frustrated customers need is help from someone who cannot empathize with them in their time of need. They need someone who can communicate effectively and make them feel understood and valued as loyal patrons of your brand.
Even a small mistake could cost your business a loyal customer. Studies show 60% of customers will switch to competitors after one bad customer service experience, and business leaders seem to be paying attention. In fact, another study concluded that 70% of business leaders agree that there is a growing need for interpersonal skills training in the BPO industry.
Both of these numbers highlight the weight of soft skills training in strengthening your outsourcing operations. Let’s examine how agent skill requirements have evolved and the significance of soft skills in a successful outsourcing campaign.
How Soft Skills Transform Today’s BPO Operations
The BPO industry now understands why outsourced teams must have soft skills as part of their operational arsenal. Recent research indicates that companies with a strong soft skills training culture see a 90% productivity increase and a 92% improvement in work delivery among their employees.
Call center agents work on the front lines, serving as consumers’ first and most accessible contact with brands. Working in such close proximity with customers makes it critical for them to maintain an empathetic, patient, and overall positive demeanor.
Conversely, soft skills also enable more efficient and improved internal workflows. When your team has a strong foundation in collaboration and communication, their work becomes exceptional. Creating positive work environments also translates to better service delivery and continuous success.
5 Critical Soft Skills That Transform Call Center Performance
Simply put, soft skills focus more on the interpersonal side of things. Unlike hard skills that can be obtained through courses, such as technical or analytical skills, soft skills require more experience-based approaches in training. They shape an agent’s capacity to interact with customers and colleagues alike, how they show up to their work, and how they deal with their responsibilities.
Here are some of the essential soft skills expected from outsourced teams today:
1. Communication
Expecting exceptional communication skills from call center agents is a no-brainer. After all, they are responsible for communicating your brand to your customers. Good communication skills help agents to address complex customer concerns more effectively. But it also goes beyond benefiting the customer alone. Excellent communication also enables transparency and better rapport within the outsourced team.
2. Problem-Solving
Customer concerns can be complex, so call center agents must also be able to think on their feet. Problem-solving skills help outsourced staff address even the most urgent customer concerns quickly and accurately. While collaboration remains an essential aspect of a high-performing team, BPO agents must also be capable of solving complex issues independently.
3. Teamwork
Teamwork is essential in BPO operations. Outsourced staff must work together to achieve set business objectives without delay. When working with a global outsourcing team, call center staff will work with other team members from different cultural backgrounds. They need to be knowledgeable about collaborating effectively with each other.
4. Customer-Oriented
Exceptional customer experiences are possible when your outsourced team understands the importance of having a customer-centric mindset. Agents must remain polite and empathetic while resolving customer concerns efficiently and on time.
5. Stress Management
Outsourced teams often face fast-paced, high-pressure operations. The nature of the work makes BPO workers more vulnerable to stress, even more so when dealing with demanding and aggravated customers. Call center agents must be able to manage their stress and time effectively. They should be able to work under pressure and consistently meet tight deadlines.
For instance, our previous CSCX blog talked about how developing these soft skills through enhanced training initiatives can impact your bottom line. It gives your business the following advantages:
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It builds customer trust and drives customer satisfaction.
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It contributes to more diverse and inclusive customer experiences.
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It improves your outsourced staff’s overall team dynamics.
Our experience shows that agents must balance interpersonal and technical skills to excel in today’s industry demands. Today’s customers expect nothing less from businesses, especially the customer experience they bring. Both skills drive consistent success and long-term growth, so we build solutions with our customer-centric culture in mind.
Humanized Customer Support Across Various Business Industries
Through our specialized training and development initiatives, ClearSource agents become more experienced in handling complex customer cases and maintaining high customer satisfaction. This significant aspect of our customer support strategy enabled us to reduce one of our partners’ response times by 30%.
Download our soft skills training program template to know more about how we train our global, well-rounded talent for our partners.
Interested in learning more about ClearSource and how we can enhance your customer experience through improved customer relationship-building? Set up a call with our team today.
