In our annual Contact Center Communication & Connection Study, we ask call center agents which statements they are instructed to say to consumers that they have a difficult time defending.  Due to the anonymous nature of this study, we are able to gather some refreshingly candid feedback.  This question has yielded some very interesting responses throughout the years.  Here’s a look at three of the most common responses we get:

“I will make sure to pass those comments along to our quality team/marketing department” – agents say this never happens, and they get the sense that most consumers don’t even believe them when they say it

“I can see if my manager/supervisor is available, but he/she will give you the same information that I just gave you” – many agents claim that this is simply not true, that once the manager/supervisor gets on the line, they do in fact tell a different story, which makes them look bad

“We have never heard of that problem occurring” – having to downplay a known issue is difficult for the call center agents to defend, as is having to claim something is being worked on when in reality it is not

I manage many different interesting projects throughout the year, but perhaps my favorite is the Contact Center Communication & Connection Study.  …