An agent’s mission is to provide the highest quality support to customers.

To accomplish this, they need to be able to learn and memorize a good amount of information about your company.

By the time they get up and running, they should at least know the ins and outs of your product or service and be on board with your brand’s philosophy.

They should know when they can’t resolve the issue and who to transfer the call to if that is the case.

As time progresses, they should be able to remember answers to frequently asked questions and troubleshoot with ease.

If your candidates do not appear to be the type to be able to quickly learn and retain information (or have a proven track record of doing so), hiring them could ultimately impact the quality of your support.

Quick Tip:

When onboarding new agents, provide information about your company culture, mission, core values, vision and the way the new hire’s role fits into your company achieving its goals.

Being a call center agent can sometimes be monotonous. Agents often answer the same questions and receive the same complaints day after day.

The danger with this is that agents can become complacent as a result. Agents that fall into this trap assume they understand the customer’s issue, without checking in, and offer a quick, canned response.

Consumers say that, on average, agents only answer their questions 50% of the time.

(Source: Harris Interactive)

Make sure your team stands above the rest by checking in with the customer to make sure their issue is resolved to their satisfaction before ending the call.

Quick Tip:

During the hiring process, if a candidate has errors on their resume, isn’t well groomed, or appears sloppy in some way, pass them up for someone who appears to pay more attention to detail.

Agents that work in a busy call center should be incredibly organized.

They need to be able to juggle multiple tasks at once (e.g., checking the knowledge base, updating the CRM and taking notes in your helpdesk) all while attending to the customer’s needs.

Staying organized will help reduce errors during this process, ensure that the agent is completing after call work efficiently and allow them to address the customer’s needs more effectively.

To make sure your agents are organized, hire people who met all application process deadlines (i.e., arriving to the meeting on time, submitting requested materials, etc.) and have a track record of being organized.

Quick Tip:

Once they are on the team, make sure they have the tools (i.e., call center software that integrates with your business tools and an effective CRM and helpdesk solution) and the environment they need to stay organized. These things can make all the difference in customer satisfaction and your bottom line.

Not only do agents in a busy call center handle dozens of calls per day, they also interact with customers with challenging personalities.

To make sure your agents are flexible enough to meet the needs of your diverse customer base, you should hire agents that can go with the flow.

They should be able to handle a chatty customer one moment and an angry customer the next. They should be able to roll with the punches and let the bad stuff slide off of them with ease (after providing a solution, of course).

In addition, you may also need to have some of your agents work challenging hours: holidays, nights and weekends. Make sure that you remember this when scouting out new agents. Flexibility is key.

Quick Tip:

Teach your agents best practices for dealing with a difficult customer on the phone. They’ll be sure to encounter one, so they better be prepared.

Agents are the front line of your company. Make sure they are projecting a warm and friendly image and your customers will rave about their experience.

When hiring, make sure that your agents can go the distance with a friendly attitude.

Once you have hired your team, make sure you cultivate a culture that encourages friendliness and discourages burnout. Your customers will thank you for it.

Quick Tip:

You should have a “10 Commandments of Call Center Etiquette” you can share with new team members. Get some ideas here.

A high quality agent isn’t easily flustered. Some would argue that this is one of the toughest jobs to maintain, due to the number of frustrated callers agents interact with on a daily basis.

A good agent will remain calm when someone is yelling at them over the phone or when they have a Chatty Cathy on the other end of the line who simply won’t let them get a word in edgewise.

Keeping their cool throughout all of these situations and not letting the frustrated callers get to them personally will get any call center agent far in the industry.

Quick Tip:

During the hiring process, ask them how they handle pressure and check in with their previous employers to see if what they say matches up.

Because an agent’s job is to communicate with the callers, they should have top-notch communication skills.

But communication doesn’t just mean speaking. Effective communication also involves listening to the caller, digesting the information and conveying a solution quickly and effectively.

The agent should speak clearly, using basic vocabulary. If they can communicate effectively, this will bode well for the quality of your service.

78% of consumers say that a competent service agent is the most important part of a happy customer experience.

You simply can’t have competence without clear communication skills.

(Source: Help Scout)

Quick Tip:

New agents should be provided with examples of appropriate greetings, transfer techniques and conversation endings. Allow them to listen to recordings and also provide them with scripts. Encourage them to practice with each other until these become natural.

Quality agents should be fast and efficient. They should work quickly without sacrificing the quality of their work.

This is important to your bottom line because the more callers an agent can handle, the fewer agents you need to keep your call center running smoothly.

It’s also important to the callers themselves who don’t want to wait around for a live agent and want their call answered as soon as possible.

A fast-working agent can reduce average speed to answer and service level for your entire team so your customers are more satisfied.

Quick Tip:

Give new hires information on which KPIs managers will assess and how these will be tied to performance evaluations, as well as practical tips on how to hit their KPI benchmarks.

Your ideal call center agent should have a creative mindset and be able to come up with workable solutions for any problems thrown their way.

It’s important that they’re creative because it will help them meet caller’s needs in the best way possible for both the company and the customer, which in turn increases customer satisfaction.

Customers are 70% more likely to return and do business with a company when agents resolve their issues effectively. (Source: Lee Resources)

Quick Tip:

Help your agents understand the important role they play in building customer relationships and empower them to think outside the box. If they feel important and are held accountable, they’re much more likely to go above and beyond their basic duties.

Truly successful call center agents can be challenging to find, but it helps to know what makes a good one when you’re looking to hire.

The good news is that most of these qualities can be taught and fostered over time through training sessions and onsite learning.

Now that you’re hiring an all-star team, do you have an all-star solution?