acting skills for call centre agentsSteve Hemsley believes that a call centre agent’s voice is the key to how customers feel about contacting your brand. To get this right requires an investment in training and coaching. Here, he describes how and why to dip into the skills used by actors to make customers feel they are being cared for.
How staff sound and their tone of voice will influence whether someone has a positive or a negative experience with any organisation. A recent YouGov survey of more than 2,000 people commissioned by outsourcing firm Arvato discovered that customers are frustrated by regional or strong foreign accents and that ‘friendly staff’ and ‘effective problem solving’ are top of their wish list.
Ultimately it can make or break a relationship with an existing or potential customer who needs to feel that the person they are speaking to has genuine empathy with them.
Using acting skills
One solution is to use professional actors and acting techniques to show staff how to use their voice more effectively. They need to vary their tone, deal with difficult calls and keep their energy levels up during a long day when customer service levels can slip as the hours pass. Actors are well practiced at bringing words to life, and call centres can benefit enormously from dipping into the thespian toolbox.
1. Think about the way you speak
When it comes to accents actors have some simple tips including speaking slower and opening the mouth wider so words are not lost or mumbled. Acting techniques that improve articulation also help here.
2. Practice
Tongue twisters are great for getting the mouth working. Find a favourite and when you get tongue-tied or tired just repeat it a few times. If you get really good try it without moving your lips.
3. Tone of voice
Call centre staff should adapt their tone of voice to address the needs of an individual enquiry. This is where active listening skills come to the fore and actors are skilled at ‘listening and responding’ on stage.
4. Vary your tone
Voice tone should vary naturally during a phone call in the same way it does during any face-to-face conversation. Tone should be guided by the topic being discussed and the mood of the caller. Notice how you use different voices for different situations. How does the way you talk to your best friend differ from how you talk to your boss? Remember it’s how you talk, not what you say, that is important.
5. Work with the script
Call centre staff who are asked to work with a script can also learn from actors. When an actor is given a script he will mark on it where he will pause and breathe and will also look to emphasise certain words. This all helps to make the call sound more natural and friendly.
6. Tweak the emphasis
If you have to read from a script or template play with accentuating different words. Right now repeat the phrase ‘I CAN CONQUER THE WORLD’ and each time put the emphasis on a different word. Notice how the meaning changes.
7. Think about the why
An actor also thinks about why they are being asked to say certain words as well as how they say them and discover that their tone of voice changes naturally and is not forced.
8. Body language
Staff must not underestimate the power of body language on the phone. Someone who is sitting hunched up at their desk or slumped in their chair will find their breathing and their voice are affected and they can sound bored and disinterested.
9. Pitch it right
If you have a shrill voice you can come across as frenetic and be hard to hear, so it is a good idea to slow down. On the other hand someone with a deep voice can sound languid or hypnotic, and may need tricks to perk it up a bit.
10. Drink water
It may sound obvious but water to your voice is like petrol to Lewis Hamilton. Performers and singers are always seen nursing a bottle of the stuff, and if you use your voice a lot you should too.
Steve Hemsley
Director
Hendrix The Dog Productions
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