Working in customer service can be quite the wild ride. It can be hectic or slow. It can be wonderful and it can be stressful. Here are 5 things anyone who works as a Call Center Customer Service Representative knows to be true!
1. Every call is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get!
Every person who calls has a different personality and a different task they need us to complete for them. Some people call and they are already angry. Some call and then get angry because of something we can't do anything about. Some people are an absolute peach and are so amazing and wonderful and nice. But whoever it is or whatever they need, varies with every call and any day we don't get verbally abused is a good one!
2. No, we can't break company policy just because you want special treatment.
If it is written into company policy, there is a reason for it. We don't have these rules because we hate you. We don't. We love you, actually, because without you, we wouldn't have a job. But we also are not going to break policy for you, because then we will lose our jobs and we rather like being employed and getting our paychecks so that we can afford our own bills.
3. Multitasking is something we have become very good at.
We are helping you, and at the same time we are helping our coworkers in the group IM or pulling up and filling out a form. Whatever it is, we have gotten really good at doing multiple things at once without letting it affect our service to you.
4. We panic if we get a call right after we take a bite of whatever snacks we keep in our desk.
And trust us, there is usually some sort of food in our desks at all times. We swear, 9 times out of 10 when we answer the phone, we either just took a bite or are still chewing whatever we are eating. We just pray that we don't choke or cough when we answer.
5. We contemplate quitting every other day, but our coworkers are like one big family who makes it all worth it!
Sometimes the stress gets to us, and we wish we never had to take another call again because we just can't do it anymore. We think how much happier we might be if we just quit and never looked back. But then we think about our coworkers and how they are wonderful and always willing to help us and somehow it all seems worth it.
Customer service is different everywhere you go, but call centers are on a whole other level!
