Okay, so your contact center has been in business for long and you have the best agents who are meticulous and sharp in their work. Still, you have that one persistent issue that hampers the efficacy levels of your work environment which is – call abandonment. How can you counter this problem?

Before we seek the solution to this problem we first need to understand what is call abandon rate and how can we measure it? And later – how do we mitigate this problem.

Call Abandonment Rate

Call abandon rate is the percentage of how many calls disconnect before speaking to an agent versus the total number of incoming calls in a contact center. You can calculate it by dividing the number of abandoned calls by the number of total calls made by a contact center. However, care must be taken to exclude short abandons that are basically calls which are disconnected before a predetermined time duration.

Now that we have understood the meaning of abandonment rate in a call center, let’s see what all we can do to reduce it.

#1 Clear Communication with Customer

Most of the call centers have the facility of notifying the caller that their call is on waiting and then remind them every few seconds/minutes to wait up and continue to hold. This kind of messaging is like a never ending annoying loop encouraging them to drop the call.

Companies should clearly communicate to customers the approximate waiting time or what number on the waiting queue they are etc.

#2 Offer Other Means of Resolution

Apart from speaking to an agent, while the customer is on hold companies can offer different means of query resolution to save time. For instance, offer them connecting to a voicemail or arrange a call back at a stipulated time.

Customer will appreciate the clarity of communication and agents will be better equipped to juggle the high call volume. This will improve abandonment rate significantly as customers who have opted for different offers won’t be logged as abandoners.

#3 Track Call Volume

Call centers can utilize their CRM software to track call volume patterns periodically. When you anticipate peak hours of call volume you can take appropriate steps to schedule and distribute calls, breaks and shifts and even hiring more agents to ensure long queues do not go out of control.

#4 Reducing Average Handling Time

Contact centers need to focus on average handling time of agents to reduce abandonment rate. ‘first call resolution and less handling time’ are needed to make sure all calls are attended to. Less time spent on call means faster resolution from agents who are well trained and adept in quick action.

#5 Change “On-Hold” music

You might not notice but the choice of on-hold music being played may contribute on call abandon rates. Conduct some research and observe the number of call drops. If that’s the case consider replacing the music with customer’s feedback.

Conclusion

When the call abandonment rate will reduce, customers will be more welcoming on what all offers and other services you are providing. It will further enhance your reputation as a world-class service provider that delights their customers every single time!

 

An intelligent call center software with call backs option and effective IVR can help reduce call abandonment.Looking to enhance the efficiency of your call center  agents and reduce call abandon rates, write to us :info@teckinfo.in