It is a common fact of customer service call centres that the
customer is left waiting listening to music – not always music that is to
everyone’s taste, but music nonetheless – and this is one of the tools used in
the industry for keeping customers calm. As an example, calling a car insurance
company will give you several options one of which is to speak with the claims
department. When you are reporting an incident with your car the chances are
you are already a little stressed so waiting on hold listening to music is the
last thing you want to do, but you will probably have to.
If the company plays calming music the customer has no
option but to listen because they are waiting to be connected and therefore the
music will calm their mood – even if they are resistant to the idea!
This is a solution for companies who deal over the phone, for
those who have customers waiting in a store they need to be a little more
innovative with their waiting tactics. Queuing is a tedious but necessary part
of visiting a store, any store, but when customers visit a store in order to
receive assistance with something they have purchased, received or are
interested in, they do not expect to be left waiting. If they are waiting, it
would be beneficial to the company to offer the customer something as a
distraction.
It could be anything – perhaps a series of adverts that are
in the waiting area ask questions or provoke thought. It is a natural for
people to read, perhaps not extensively but writing has the power to infiltrate
the customers’ brain without being obvious and even if the only thing the
writing achieves is to distract the customer; that is mission accomplished.
Thinking takes up a surprising amount of time and will buy the company that
time with minimal expenditure.
Other tips for keeping customers distracted from waiting
includes providing generic reading material such as magazines or leaflets that
refer to the company and their products and services.
You can find more customer services tips by speaking with one of the major companies. Use either the Wonga contact number or the Vodafone contact number to be connected with one of these companies, both are extremely experienced in this area and willing to assist.
