Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

It's been a long year and it's Christmas Eve. For those already off on their Christmas break, have a happy and safe Christmas and we look forward to seeing you in the New Year.

For those who are off to other parts of the country, drive safely.

For those working over the holiday period, we hope you do take some time to have some fun.

And here's a couple of Christmas messages:

Another Christmas is upon us. It’s actually the 14th in the life of Telnet and on many measures it brings to a close the best year ever for Telnet. Much of that must be attributed to our great team. I get the sense that you have all taken on board the Telnet Promise and particularly the promise that “We Care”. I see everywhere examples of staff who really take a pride in their work and really care about their mates around them and the service we provide. That is probably the greatest reason why Telnet has done so well this year.

So all I can say is thank you and wish you, your family and friends all the very best for a Merry Christmas and a safe and happy New Year .

Best Regards

John Chetwynd



"There is the rest of the year…and then there is November” – That’s a saying we’ve had for years here at Telnet and it certainly came true again in 2010. Outbound was at its busiest with work for Telecom, Localist and Genesis Energy. The stats board could hardly keep up with all the sales you guys were generating! Inbound was busy too, although the good weather meant Utilities had time to buy everything in the Two Dollar Shop and turn their end of the centre into Christmas Central.

Thank you all for working so hard for our clients throughout 2010 – the results have been great and I know they all appreciate how much you have contributed to their companies.

Some people have already left for their holidays in the sun (Kim Marie) or the rain (Candice) and the Admin area and Outbound will be a ghost town. Of course “we never close” in Inbound and a special thanks to those of you will be working through especially on Christmas Day.

Have a happy and restful Christmas and get ready for an even bigger 2011.

Penny


And just to close, here are some photos of the amazing decorations.

BUSY BEAVERS MEAN TOP YEAR FOR TELNET

If you've been hearing the sound of sleigh bells in the call centre lately, it's not Santa. It's another sale and another reason to celebrate what has been a great year for Telnet.

Divisional manager Kim Marie has been managing the outbound teams this year and says it has been 'full-on' for her.

She says some major changes have been happening this year including more training for agents and that has shown benefits with dramatic improvements in service and a better quality of calls.

"We’re working with our clients to ensure we deliver a good result, which means plenty of coaching for the agents and tweaking scripts etc."

Some new projects have come in while other longer term projects have grown.

We're well into the busiest time of the year and the call centre has been "jam-packed" with agents. Which has meant the noise has been reaching record levels.

"It’s been great. Lots of activity which has presented opportunities for people to stand out," Kim Marie says.

Many of the new agents are travellers from overseas in New Zealand on a working holiday and they have certainly reaped the benefits of being part of a multi-cultural team. And it has been interesting for customers too, who Kim Marie says seem to get a kick out of hearing the different accents.

She says some agents have come from a range of backgrounds and with different experiences and it has been delightful watching the interactions within the teams and the friendships forming.

Some agents will be off for a well-earned break while others will be working over the Christmas period.

As for Kim Marie, she is looking forward to her own well-earned break with family, and where she’s going, work will definitely not follow.

"No Blackberry, no cellphone, it’s going to be bliss."

Top Five Tips to Great Customer Service

As Customer Service Professionals we are all aware that giving great customer service is the most important part of our role. Customers will remember great customer service, long after the call, but unfortunately, if they receive poor customer service, it will be remembered just as long.

As Christmas looms ever closer here at Telnet, we thought this would be a great opportunity to provide some tips on making every customer's experience not only the best possible experience, but also unforgettable.

We're the first step and we should be the last in the process. It's what our team leaders like to call 'first Call resolution'. This means taking care of the customer's needs, answering any questions and resolving any problems all on the one call.

If something does go wrong, not that we expect it to, this is where our team leaders will help. They're there to coach, assist and listen in to calls. But this is just a small taste of what they do. They are also there to help the rest of us come to an understanding of how we can 'be the best we can be', providing tips and guidance when we need it.

It's a good thing to remember that our team leaders were once where we are and they do understand where we're coming from. They are constantly working to find better ways of improving customer service, updating scripts and trying new ideas. They're aware that at this time of year, it's busy, it can be stressful and sometimes we have habits that are hard to break.

And finally, here are the top five tips to great customer service.


1. Smile - don't underestimate the value of a smile during a call - the customers can hear if you're having a bad day.

2. Empathise with your customer - put yourself in their shoes

3. Listen to your customer - they really do like to know they're being heard

4. Paraphrase or summarise what you've talked about

5. Attitude - be friendly but always professional


Above all, treat every customer as you would expect to be treated.



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Knowledge Management increases Customer Satisfaction and reduces AHT at Telnet

Making it easy for Telnet’s CSRs to deliver superior customer experiences has always been a key focus for us. We recognize that if you provide all the information necessary to satisfy a customer’s query in a readily accessible and useable format then great things happen. The customer experience is enhanced, fewer mistakes are made, and talk-time is reduced thereby saving money for our clients.

At Telnet we have developed our own on line scripting tools and wiki style knowledge bases and we use Microsoft’s SharePoint to store reference material, diagrams etc. Using these tools we keep all the information our CSR’s need to do their jobs, at their fingertips. Today we call this Knowledge Management.

Once you commit to making your CSR’s life simpler the results will start to flow. I can confidently say that in 100% of cases where Telnet has won a new client, we have, within months of managing their calls reduced AHT by factors often exceeding 20% whilst lifting customer satisfaction levels.

My advice - if you really want to raise the game in your contact centre take a serious look at your Knowledge Management.

John Chetwynd