Manual vs. Software Coaching: Which Is More Effective for Call Center Agents?
The call center industry is in the midst of a massive transformation as companies scramble to find ways to cut costs and increase profits. The advent of technology has also made it easier than ever to connect with customers.
Companies are using call centers to provide services to their customers more than ever before. When customers connect with an agent on the phone, they’re looking for a simple answer to their question or for help with something that’s gone wrong. The agent who talks to them could be the difference between keeping a loyal customer and losing one.
In addition to answering customer inquiries, these call centers also help with sales and marketing. It’s no wonder that so much effort goes into coaching agents to communicate effectively.
This article will compare manual and software-based coaching for Functions of Quality Assurance in a Call Center. Both of these types of coaching have their advantages. Which one is best for your company? Read on to find out.
Coaching for Call Centers
Coaching for call centers is a form of management. It is designed to help companies change their business model and increase productivity.
Manual coaching involves using supervisors or managers assigned to individual call centers to provide instruction and feedback to their employees. The supervisor will evaluate the performance of each employee before conducting a review with them.
Software-based coaching includes training provided through software programs such as virtual coaches, eLearning modules, or mobile apps. Exercise can also be conducted over video conferencing systems like Skype or Facetime.
Software-based coaching provides more flexibility than manual coaching because it allows for quick adjustments based on employee feedback and provides more instruction for those who need it most. Here is a list of more benefits you can expect from software coaching.
Real-Time Coaching
For anyone in the call center industry, the ultimate goal is to provide superior customer service. You need engaged and self-sufficient agents you’ll have trained in real-time to measure their skills and capacities.
Software-based coaching provides real-time coaching in that it will allow you to manage the training and support your trainees easily. This feature also allows for quick adjustments based on employee feedback and provides more instruction for those who need it most.
In-Depth Analysis
Software coaching gives you a better understanding of your agents’ strengths and weaknesses through data analysis. Manually listening to calls and analyzing them yourself can only tell you so much about what needs to be improved. On the other hand, the software can provide comprehensive data about tone, call pacing, average talk time, and how often the agent uses specific words and phrases. This gives you a clearer picture of your agents’ overall performance and what particular areas they need to work on.
Provides Targeted Feedback
When it comes to customer service training, there are only so many hours in the day. And if you’re not giving your agents the right kind of feedback at the right time, they’re missing out on opportunities to improve and grow. That’s why call center managers need coaching software that provides targeted feedback.
What is targeted feedback? To put it simply, targeted feedback is coaching that’s delivered with a specific goal in mind. Sure, feedback can be given at any time and for any reason—but targeted feedback is based on the most metrics for improving performance. Managers can choose which metrics are most critical for their teams and then use software to monitor them and provide agents with real-time guidance when they need it most.
Saves Time
Manual coaching is time-consuming. Coaches have to listen to calls live or spend hours listening to recordings and taking notes. Then they have to meet with agents individually or in groups (more time) to discuss their performance.
With software coaching, everything is done automatically, so coaches can focus their efforts on improving agent performance instead of grading it. They can prepare for one-on-one sessions beforehand and see what specific areas each agent needs support.
The Final Word
The call center world is full of buzzwords—self-service, omnichannel, real-time—but more profound; there’s a real struggle to improve the essential part of the customer experience: the conversation.
And software is the right way to do that.
Having access to real-time data allows you to pinpoint problems, craft solutions, and implement those changes right away—meaning your agents can learn and correct any issues much more quickly than they would through manual coaching alone.
With software coaching, you can identify which agents are struggling with certain tasks and provide specific feedback to help them improve.
