Call Control Strategies (Call Center)

1. Focused Call Control
Call Control Strategies

2. Objectives
To improve call control tactics
• Lower AHTs
• Higher QA Scores

3. Call Control: Areas of
Opportunities
Weak Call Control Factors
Dead Air
Use as opportunity to build rapport
Letting the Customer Lead the Call
You ask the questions and give the
direction
Agent Focus
Used a focused approach to every call

4. Call Control Basics
Call Control Elements:
• Positive Attitude
• Greeting
• Projecting confidence
• Focus
• Stay away from Trigger Words

5. Call Control: Attitude
Attitude
68% of customers leave due to
the negative attitude or
indifference on the part of
ONE employee.

6. Call Control: Attitude
Your POSITIVE ATTITUDE is the beginning to great call control.
• A good attitude will help you remain in control of the call
• Good attitude builds customer loyalty and trust.
• Good attitudes will produce great calls, even when the
customer‟s attitude is bad.
• Attitude is what you say and how you say it.
• Attitude determines how well you serve the customer.
• A great attitude means you have enthusiasm and a
nice tone of voice when talking to the customer.

7. Call Control: Greeting
Proper Greetings:
• Greet customer quickly and professionally
We want to make the customer feel as though we are eager to help
them and sincerely care about his/her needs.
• Sets the tone for the entire call
The more upbeat and positive we are from the beginning of the
call, the better call will be throughout its entirety
• Controls wandering customer
While demonstrating a willingness to help the customer, we also
want to have control from the start.

8. Call Control: Greeting
Voice Quality
Pitch- avoid monotonous pitch on the phone
Volume- pay particular attention to the volume of
our voices and increase/decrease it accordingly.
Tone- Use your tone to project confidence. No one
likes to hear a negative or rude tone in
someone‟s voice.
Rate- Talking too fast (or too slow) can cause you
to lose customer‟s attention, therefore causing
you to lose control of the call.

9. Call Control: Confidence
• Allows you to lead the call, not the
customer
• Allows the opinion formed by the customer
within the first 30 seconds of the call to be
a positive one.
• Should be projected on every call
regardless of the issue
Note: Confidence ≠ Arrogance

10. Call Control: Focus
Focus
• Take ownership(guide the caller, ask probing
questions, set expectations)
• Listen to the customer and take notes
• Use team building words
• Do not try to read/send email
• Do not chat or use instant messenger
• Relay confidence in yourself
• Think ahead but don‟t make assumptions

11. Call Control: Focus
• Answer the customer‟s specific questions.
• Paraphrase the issue for clarity.
• Do not react but respond to conflicts.
• Stay away from talking to others.

12. Call Control: Trigger Words
Trigger Words
Trigger words limit your actions and paint a negative image
in the customer‟s mind which could lead to the loss of
control of the call.
Stay away from these trigger words:
No, Can‟t, They
Instead, use „Can do” approach along with positive phrases
**What we can do… **I will be happy to

13. Call Control: Trigger Words
I can‟t or you can‟t – as in – “I can‟t do anything about that”
or “You can‟t do that”
Can‟t be replaced with – “I‟m unable to because..”
*But –as in- “ I agree with what you‟re saying but…”
Replace with - *and or “however” (which is a soft but)
*I‟ll try-as in- “I‟ll try to speak to finance department today”
“This is what I can do” or “This is what I‟m unable to do”

14. Call Control Tips
• Determine the customer‟s issue
• Use team building words
• Answer the customer specific questions
• Know the limits of your support
• Set expectations- always
• Use empathy and enthusiasm
• Stay away from dead air and remain in control
• Know how to handle irate/difficult customer
• Determine and explain resolution
• Perfect your scripting
• Control your stress
• Summarize actions

15. Call Control
1. Determine the customer‟s issue:
– Listen to the customer‟s words
– Listen to the customer‟s “feelings”
– Pay attention to key words/phrases
– Be friendly
– Verbalize your willingness to assist
– Ask targeted probing questions
– Paraphrase the issue to let the customer you
understand

16. Call Control
2. Use team building words
Team words build a rapport with the
customer which will allow you to be in
control
• Show the customer the same kind of courtesy and respect you
desire
• Be nice, Smile.. Be optimistic
• Verbalize a helpful, solution oriented attitude
• Builds customer‟s confidence in you and your ability.

17. Team Words
Team Words
• We
• Let‟s
• Us
• Our
Magic Words
• May
• Please
• Thank You!
• You‟re Welcome!

18. Call Control
3. Answer the Customer Specific Questions
• Use open-ended questions tactfully
• Do not deviate or give false information
• Do not set improper expectations
• Do not “punt” the customer
• Let the customer know you are there for them.
Have an attitude of service.

19. 4. Know the limits of support
• Knowing your support boundaries will keep you on track
• Do not go out of the scope of support
• Knowing your guidelines in support will produce efficient
calls and prevents irrelevant troubleshooting.
• Do not set a precedent
• It is important to learn to “tailor” your comments
appropriately to the flow of the call and the emotional
needs of the customer.

20. Call Control
5. Setting Expectations
Always set expectations and Time Frames—you will
remain in control.
• What you are going to do
• What you are doing
• What you have done
This area includes what actions are going to be taken and why, a
timeframe, and a willingness to serve.
Paraphrasing is the key to a great call control. It ensures you on the
right path.

21. Call Control
6. Empathy and Enthusiasm
Empathy
• I understand
• I would also be upset
• Let‟s see what we can do together
• I apologize for the inconvenience
Enthusiasm
• Great!!!
• Excellent!
• I‟d be happy to!
• Of course..

22. Call Control
7. Stay away from dead air and remain in
control
Eliminating dead air will eliminate the chance of getting off track.
***Dead air allows an opportunity for the customer to gain control of the
call
Ways to fill dead air:
Use it as an opportunity to educate
Use this to build rapport
Paraphrase the issue again and explain the troubleshooting steps.
You can also use this time to summarize the actions taken thus far
example of laziness and lack of focus

23. Call Control
8. Handling Irate/Difficult Callers
• Remain calm
• Let the customer vent while listening for keywords
• Collect information
• Respond to the customer do not React
• Verbalize that you will do all you can to resolve the issue
• Use empathy and encouraging words throughout the
call.
Listen Respond Empathize Resolve Issue

24. Call Control Tips
Responding
• Let the customer vent
• Use restraint
• Breathe slow
• Manage Tone
• Correct Words
Reacting
• Voice gets louder
• Speak faster
• Get defensive
• Retaliate
• Attack them back

25. Call Control
9. Determine and explain the resolution
Utilize your resources:
• Training materials
• Online Tools
• Co-workers
• Help Desk
• Team Managers

26. Thank you