A customer service team’s job isn’t an enviable one. They have to deal with customer queries, requests and of course, customer complaints! Eventually, the tedium sets in and leads to loss of morale and enthusiasm. Over a period of time, customer service executives find it very difficult to maintain their momentum, stay motivated and focused.
If your employees are low on morale and lack enthusiasm, that will only reflect in the service they provide your customers, which will have a negative impact on the working of your company. It goes without saying that keeping your employees smiling is crucial to the overall functioning of the customer service system in your establishment.
Things to do
So what is it that you can do to keep your customer service team motivated and ensure they are content with their job. Understanding this will help ensure that their productivity stays at optimum levels. Here are a few solid suggestions:
#1 Assess the customer service team in your company
This doesn’t refer only to their performance. As a leader, it’s important you understand your team and what motivates them. Be aware of the things that impact their individual performance and the kind of incentives that will encourage them to perform better. The best way to get answers to these questions is to conduct questionnaires and surveys and have brainstorming sessions with your team members.
#2 Ensure that the communication flows at all times
It’s important that you maintain very good rapport with your team members and it’s a good idea to communicate with them on a regular basis. This keeps them motivated and shows them you care about them and their opinions.
It’s also very important that you keep them informed about the going-ons in your company. For instance, if you have some sales and marketing strategy in the pipeline, that’s going to add to their workload, keep them informed about it. This makes them feel they are an important component in the overall working of your company and it keeps them motivated.
#3 Encourage healthy competition
This is something which adds spice to the work environment in a company and it helps keep your team motivated and enthused. Set challenging goals; and as a team, you will find that they will strive to achieve those goals. When you maintain healthy competition levels in your company, you will automatically find that the productivity levels of your employees are on an upward climb.
#4 Appreciation & rewards
No matter what else you do, one of the best ways to keep your team motivated is to appreciate all the efforts they put into their work. In a workplace, recognition and appreciation can do wonders for the morale of your company. And it doesn’t take much really – just set up a rewards system, remember their birthdays & anniversaries and ensure they get the necessary breaks & vacations, at the right intervals.
#5 Training sessions
Have on-going training sessions for all your customer service team members. These are essentially refresher courses that will help them develop new skills. All successful companies, big and small invest in such training programs. Not only does this help your employees, but it adds to the profitability of your company as well.
Empower your Customer Service Team
In addition to all these things, ensure your team has the necessary tools to function optimally. Assign leadership roles to different individuals at different times and give them the scope and flexibility to enhance their skills. While you do all this, don’t forget to add the fun quotient – arrange company outings, introduce contests, conduct games and other interesting activities on a regular basis.
We at MaxMyProfit are passionate about our job of coaching business owners to explore different ways of expanding and improving their business. If you want any more information about our services, programs, events and podcasts etc., do visit our website. You can also connect with us via this online form or speak with us at this number – (02) 88085500
About the Author
Ben Fewtrell is a sought-after Business Coach, Keynote Speaker and trainer who has featured in Virgin’s Inflight Magazine and Entertainment Portal, SKY Business and “Secrets of Top Business Builders Exposed”. He is also the host of the popular Business Brain Food Podcast where he interviews leading experts on anything and everything business.