Top 10 Ways To Build Customer Rapport

As a call center agent, it becomes extremely important that you build a good rapport with your callers and customers because it not only builds trust but also can go a long way in making your business successful. The basic approach should be highly cooperative so that the callers get a feel that you are genuinely concerned with the problems and are trying your level best to provide a quick solution to it. You need to make your customers feel valued in order to build a good rapport with your customers. So today will do an in-depth analysis and find out the top 10 ways to build customer rapport while operating a contact center.

Knowing Customer’s Name Is Crucial:

Whenever any customer calls in for support try to get his or her name first. This will not only help you in identifying the caller but also in getting all the details about the customer in your system. This also makes the customer feel as if they are being treated as an individual and the agents feel they are taking to a valued customer and not merely any random caller.

And it doesn’t stop there.

The contact center agents should also make sure that they get the name of the customer right and spell it well because if you pronounce the name of the customer in the wrong way it might offend them. Moreover, it suggests that you are not giving proper attention to the customers. So maintain these basic things in order to build a good rapport.

Smile While You Speak:

When you work as an agent in the call center it is important that you talk with your customers with a smile on your face. When you talk with a smile your customers will notice this in your voice and it will give them a positive vibe and there will be lower chances of a customer getting rude to you.

Look - That's not all.

The warmth of a smiling voice lifts the mood of the conversation you are having with the customer and they feel like as if you are a friend to him who is trying to help them. Moreover, smiling releases endorphins which generate a feeling of positivity in the human brain.

Put Yourself into Customer’s Shoes:

As an agent of the bpo call center, you must be aware of the fact that you need to put yourself in the shoes of the customers in order to understand their problems and the situation they are in. This will enable you to become more empathetic towards their problem and in turn, you will be able to deliver excellent customer support.

Here is the deal!

You need to show empathy to your customer and this can be the building blocks of rapport creation. It will create an atmosphere of mutual trust and understanding and this gives you an opportunity to show your customers that they are your priority and you value them a lot.

Give Your Customer All The Opportunity To Speak:

The most difficult task for customer service agents is handling angry customers and building rapport with them. The best approach is to let the angry customer speak as much as they want so that they can get it all out. Control your emotions and instead use this time to find out what you can do to solve their problems.

Still not convinced?

Then get it very clear. If you try to interrupt an angry customer in the middle it might make the customer angrier and worsen the situation further. So it’s best to wait until the customer finishes and then you can start with an empathy statement and try to convince the customer that you are there for his help.

Take Care Of Customer Priorities:

Every customer has his own set of priorities and as a customer service representative it’s your duty to take care of them with utmost importance. Make the priorities of the customers your own priorities and address them accordingly. You need to reassure your customers that you have a complete idea of what they want and doing your level best to ensure that their problem gets solved as soon as possible.

But wait…there’s more.

You need to be very careful about what the customers are telling you and you need to reciprocate in the manner they would love to listen. Try to take a note of the things the customer might be interested in so that more personalized support can be provided to them in order to build a good rapport.

Repeat Back To Your Customers:

A good approach in the bpo industry is to repeat valuable information or sentence while interacting with the customers. It creates an impression that you are serious about the issues of the customer and listening to them carefully. While repeating makes sure that you repeat the sentences in the same tone as the customer is speaking. This is important and it ensures that you are in the same line with the customer.

It’s easier than you think.

Simply listen carefully to the words and phrases used by the customers and try to match the accent, tone, and mood in which the customer is speaking. For example, if the customer is happy or excited about something your reply should be in the same tone or pitch.

Be Flexible With Your Customers:

Flexibility is the key to success in the call center industry and thus you should be flexible with the customers while you interact with them. It is always a wise idea to interact and address the customer in the same way they introduce themselves. For example, if a customer calls the contact center and introduces herself as Jenny you should always address her as Jenny in spite of the CRM system displaying her name as Jennifer.

Sounds good, right?

Now make it very clear and put it into your head that customers might like to keep things formal or informal depending on their choice and you must respect it and keep on going with the flow.

Remember To Apologize If Needed:

Sometimes a simple apology can go a long way in easing a tensed situation and building a good rapport with your customer. When you listen to any customer complain apologize to him or her first for the problem faced. This can melt down the situation and help in breaking the barriers of communication. This is one of the basic parts of building customer rapport in outsourcing services.

Show Personal Interest:

In order to build a good rapport with the customer, it is important that you get mixed with them as much as possible and try to develop an informal relationship. Showing personal interest can be a good thing. For example, if a customer says that he or she was in hospital ask him or her about their recovery and how he or she is doing now. This will not only build good rapport but also will show that you are genuinely interested in providing good customer service.

Always Respect Your Customers:

There is a popular saying “give respect in order to take respect” and this proverb is totally applicable to the customer service industry. You need to be respectful to your customers at all times during your conversation and try to understand their problem with empathy. This will not only give a friendly vibe to the customers but also will go a long way in building customer rapport.

Thus to conclude we can say that building a good rapport with your customers is not a difficult thing at all. Simply follow the steps mentioned above in order to keep your customers happy and satisfied.