Telephone Techniques ANGER MANAGEMENT. How to Prevent or Process an Angry Caller Dexcomm All Rights Reserved

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1 Telephone Techniques ANGER MANAGEMENT How to Prevent or Process an Angry Caller 2012 Dexcomm All Rights Reserved

2 2 PREFACE: JAMEY HOPPER PRESIDENT Our passion is properly serving customers. Our passion is properly serving customers. Operating as a 24/7/365 Telephone Answering Service and Medical Exchange since November of 1954 we have developed skills and techniques that allow us to delight a wide range of clients. As we have grown and prospered for over 50 years we feel now is a great time to give something back to our customers, prospective customers and anyone seeking to improve their business success. Included in this book are tips and tools that we hope will make your job a bit easier each day. One of the great learning tools we have employed is the willingness to learn from our mistakes. Please take advantage of our many years of experience and avoid some of the pitfalls that we have learned to overcome. Our hope is that you and your office can adopt some of these tools to make your life a bit less complicated and allow you a bit more uninterrupted leisure time. Thanks for Listening! PLEASE NOTE: Our e-books are designed to provide information about the subject matter covered. It is distributed with the understanding that the authors and the publisher are not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If legal advice or other professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. [email protected] dexcomm.com CORPORATE: 518 Patin Rd. Carencro, LA (877) DEXCOMM ( ) Helping the world connect, one message at a time.

3 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS MEET OUR EXPERTS KARL OPERATIONS SUPERVISOR How to Handle Preventative Measures Toolbox DANA TRAINING SUPERVISOR Our Dexcomm Customer Service Experts would like to share with you some tips for bringing top notch telephone techniques into your business by sharing this information with you. dexcomm.com CORPORATE: 518 Patin Rd. Carencro, LA (877) DEXCOMM ( ) Helping the world connect, one message at a time.

4 4 How to Handle IN THIS SECTION Situational Awareness Methods to the Madness Have you ever been caught in a customer service situation where you end up with a shouting, angry and frustrated caller on the line? KARL SCHOTT OPERATIONS SUPERVISOR [email protected] dexcomm.com CORPORATE: 518 Patin Rd. Carencro, LA (877) DEXCOMM ( ) Helping the world connect, one message at a time.

5 5 Situational Awareness Reasons that callers become angry Language/communication barriers Industry terminology that the layperson may not understand (i.e. medical) Your office made a mistake Caller is impatient The time it takes to resolve the issue Possible outcomes of an angry caller HIPAA and privacy issues Your own frustration when the caller gets the best of you Other patients or customers within ear shot of the situation Threats being made, shouting, cursing or other abusive behavior Ideally, having preventative measures in place could help to avoid these situations before they even start. But first, we must resolve the immediate issue of the angry, frustrated and threatening caller on the line. Tips and Techniques for Positive Communication Phrasing

6 6 Methods to the Madness If a real threat exists, hang up and call the police or other authorities immediately Be polite, remain professional and never let your frustration get the best of you If you must contain yourself, put the caller on hold and take a breather. Set some ground rules for the call if necessary. Ask the caller to remain calm. Communicate that you understand and want to help them, but that you need them to stop yelling and using profanity. If you cannot stay calm enough to handle the call, ask for a name and number and call them back when you are ready. Put your active listening skills to good use Let the client speak and don t interrupt. Help them feel heard. Improving Customer Service Listening Admit any mistakes your office may have made and take responsibility Be apologetic and empathetic. Ask what you can do to resolve the issue, or communicate what you can do to resolve the issue. Ask questions that will help to resolve the issue. Be upfront with what you can provide now, and what you will have to do later manage the caller s expectations. If communication barriers exist: Slow down Rephrase Speak on the caller s level Don t insult or speak above them Explain terminology Be patient

7 7 Do what you say you will do and follow through How To Do What You Say You Will Do Document the caller s information and their behavior Include information that is pertinent to resolving the issue. Include information for police or authorities if necessary. Avoid using speaker phone The caller will know they are on speaker and this will add to their frustration and serve as another communication barrier. Others may be able to hear the conversation which can be a HIPAA violation. Transfer caller to a more private phone area if necessary to maintain professionalism in your office. Ensure there is no dead air on the call If you need time to resolve the issue by checking files, etc. let the caller know they will be placed on hold. HIPAA Concerns Refer to your office s HIPAA Handbook. End the call with an action statement regarding what you are going to do to resolve the issue. Improve Your Office s Communication Through Better Messaging

8 8 Preventative Measures IN THIS SECTION Tips & Techniques Dexcomm specializes in valuable customer service techniques that may help you to cope when these types of situations occur DANA LEWIS TRAINING SUPERVISOR dexcomm.com CORPORATE: 518 Patin Rd. Carencro, LA (877) DEXCOMM ( ) Helping the world connect, one message at a time.

9 9 As we mentioned before, preventative measures are always important to have in place so that angry caller situations can be avoided altogether. Coach your staff Telephone operators and other customer service staff members should be trained according to the methods state above. They need to know what to do in cases involving angry callers. Hold Lessons Learned meetings Following the resolution of angry caller situations, explore what could have been done differently to avoid this situation. What did you do well? What could you have done better? Communicate this information to your staff so that everyone can learn from the situation. Develop a shift change process to avoid client communication issues Were there any problems on the previous shift? Should the next operator be made aware of anything? Create standards in message taking What information do you need in order to better serve your clients? Ensure that phone operators are capturing pertinent information. Taking a Perfect Phone Message Develop a process for handling repetitive issues For example, are we having the same customer service issues? If so, how can we create a process to eliminate failures? Create your own checklist for phone operators to deal with angry customers Consider keeping checklist near phone to ensure operators have it handy.

10 10 Develop specialist Assign a go-to-person that can coach staff on handling angry callers. The opportunity to put the caller on hold and ask for help to resolve an issue is vital for the development and growth of the phone operator. Consider designating a person on duty for handling angry callers if you do not feel that your phone operators are equipped to handle the call. Forward calls to your answering service if you cannot give full attention to callers We all know that when we are busy and distracted, we cannot give our full attention to callers, which can lead to angry clients. Practicing these methods and role-playing ensure that your staff is ready to handle angry caller situations Use examples from previous situations or use your imagination to create role-playing scenarios. Remember Practice makes perfect!! Provide staff with emergency contact information for the police department, fire department, suicide hotline Post this information near the phones for easy access! Looking for More?

11 11 Toolbox Toolbox Quality Assurance Evaluation Voic Samples - Medical Voic Samples - Non Medical Message Template Samples Ensuring your patients or clients are receiving excellent customer service is vital to the success of your practice. Evaluate phone traffic by reviewing recorded calls or by performing live quality assurance checks of your staff s performance Train receptionists and/or healthcare workers on customer service skills Consider contacting an expert, like Dexcomm, for answering and messaging solutions Other Options Running a medical practice or another business doesn t always leave time for managing the customer service side of your company. That s when businesses like ours can help you out! [email protected] dexcomm.com CORPORATE: 518 Patin Rd. Carencro, LA (877) DEXCOMM ( ) Helping the world connect, one message at a time.

12 12 Our Dedication to Development, Training and Compliance All new hires are put through an extensive application process involving several interviews with multiple company executives. We insist upon the successful completion of a full background check and drug screen. Additionally, the operator must sign a confidentiality agreement. We ensure that potential employees exemplify our core values, fit within our company culture and have the skills needed to serve our customers. Upon hire, we enter them into an extensive classroom-based training setting where they are educated on our operating system and our focus on customer service under the supervision of a dedicated and experienced training department. During the classroom-based training period, potential operators are educated on phone etiquette, customer service, how to handle a variety of situations, and are equipped with an industry -leading training manual. Additionally, operators are provided one-on-one training with management, exposed to live calls in peer-to-peer training, and are supported by floor managers during independent live calls. To produce best-practice telephone techniques, our Training Department developed a thorough closed-loop system. Calls are reviewed by a dedicated Quality Assurance Department, a division of the Training Department, who listen and score the operator s calls in real-time and for review. The department meets regularly to calibrate their scoring and provide feedback to the Training Department. Operators are given monthly, sometimes weekly, reviews on their performance. A SPECIAL THANKS TO Our Dexcomm Contributors