Let’s discuss call center overflow, what causes it, and the best prevention and management methods.
When it comes to customer service, time is of the essence—nearly 60% of customers said that long waits or hold times were the most frustrating part of the experience.
Unfortunately, many things can spike wait times or queue lengths that aren’t in your control. And yet, if you want to maintain high levels and customer satisfaction, you need to be able to manage these spikes. Doing so is often easier said than done. Let’s discuss call center overflow, what causes it, and the best prevention and management methods to ensure customer success.
What is Call Center Overflow?
Call center overflow occurs when the number of inbound calls in the queue exceeds the number of calls that available agents can handle. Since spikes in demand are common, each call center needs to have ongoing strategies to reliably manage call overflow. If they don’t, these excess calls will wait in the queue, driving up average wait times and reducing customer satisfaction.
Spikes in demand are the main cause of call center overflow, but a number of things can cause those spikes:
- Severe weather and outages
- Product or service failures or recalls
- New product launches
- Big sales or holiday demand
- Emergencies
- Understaffing or inaccurate forecasting
Tips to Manage Call Center Overflow
Improve Call Forecasting
Improving call forecasting and scheduling is one of the easiest and most effective ways to eliminate or prepare for call center overflow. Call centers that use workforce management best practices can accurately predict peak periods and potential spikes in demand, allowing them to schedule an appropriate number of agents.
In many cases, well-organized workforce management practices are your best line of defense against call center overflow, and prevention is key. The fewer calls you have to manage, the easier it will be to mitigate the negative effects.
Use IVR
Customers with simple questions are often added to the end of the queue, even though self-service options could easily answer their questions. Presenting a self-service option through IVR within the phone queue can help reduce callers while providing quick and efficient service for simple questions. An IVR system can also provide a recording that answers general FAQs or directs callers to use other channels if call lines are full.
Implement Callback Options
Even the best preparation and mitigation strategies can’t eliminate call center overflow. As such, finding real-time management solutions is essential.
One of the best tools to implement is automatic callbacks. If a caller is waiting in the queue, offering to call them back when an agent is available rather than forcing them to stay on hold indefinitely can greatly improve customer experience, as long as you call back within a reasonable timeframe.
Contact TeleRep Today!
If you are ready to install a call center service for your business, TeleRep is here to help. If you still have more questions, our trained professionals are ready to answer them. We know how important customer feedback is to you and your business, so let them know that you care with an answering service. To learn how TeleRep can help you today, visit us online or give us a call at 1-800-638-2000. To keep up with our work and to see what we have been up to, be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.