A customer service expert has revealed her best tricks for avoiding the annoying call center queue and getting through to a real person as quickly as possible.
Lady Janey, whose real name is Jane Hawkes, has shared useful tips to help Brits navigate seemingly endless waits, automated voices and useless advisers.
According to new research from Talkmobile, almost two-thirds of Brits have spent up to 45 minutes listening to music on hold or listening to repeated assurances that their call is important before hanging up.
Meanwhile, more than a third of Britons said they had waited at least an hour for help with a query, while more than one in ten had waited a staggering 60 minutes or more.
Lady Janey’s top piece of advice is that when calling a business with a query, no matter how big or small, the first action the caller should try is to ignore all the options provided by the operator and simply wait to be transferred when no response is detected.
The so-called Queen of Customer Service has teamed up with Talkmobile to empower customers across the UK to stand up to businesses falling short.
Lady Janey said: ‘Companies that keep you on hold depend on you giving up, I really believe that. They trust you to fall at the first hurdle.
“But if you’re willing to wait for the call for 40 minutes, it shows that it’s important, but we don’t have time to do it.”
He added: “Once you get it down, there’s nothing worse than going from one pillar to another and having to repeat the same information over and over again.”
More than a third of Brits said they had waited at least an hour on hold for help with a query, while more than one in ten had waited a staggering 60 minutes or more (file image)
Lady Janey’s second tip is to answer yes or no to all questions, while the third requires callers to dial zero, multiple zeros or multiple hashtags at the beginning of the call.
Next, if callers want to speak to a human instead of a robot, Lady Janey advises saying, “Talk to a real person” or “Talk to an agent.”
The fifth expert tip is to take note of the order of the options during the call so you can analyze them and move forward in future calls.
Another trick is to choose the “think about leaving” option as it will connect you with a dedicated retention team designed to offer you incentives and offers.
Lady Janey added: ‘They may also be able to connect you directly to the most appropriate department for refunds and compensation, if applicable. Also choose the ‘sales’ option and ask to be transferred.’
It also says you should provide “nonsensical voice recognition responses” when presented with a series of options to connect faster, as the system will have a hard time understanding your responses.
Lady Janey, real name Jane Hawkes (pictured), has shared helpful tips to help Brits navigate seemingly endless waits, automated voices and unhelpful advisers.
She advises using the “call back” option, if available, to avoid having to wait on hold.
In addition, the expert insists that you can reduce waiting time by making smart calls.
She said: ‘It sounds at the optimal time. If you can, cancel peak hours during the weekday and avoid weekends.
Finally, Lady Janey emphasizes that it is important to save yourself the trouble of being able to call and not calling unless necessary.
He added: ‘Logging complaints, particularly via online web chat or email, creates a record of evidence should you need it. You also won’t need to repeatedly explain the same problem to different people every time you call.’
Referring to the study results, Lady Janey warned: “If people are willing to wait almost 40 minutes to speak to someone, that should be a clear message to any call center operator that their customers’ calls are important.” .
Lady Janey emphasizes that it is important to save yourself the trouble of calling and not call unless necessary.
‘A long wait in line and then moving from pillar to post can turn a loyal customer into an angry one who is ready to take their business elsewhere.
‘A dissatisfied customer tends to tell their experience to between nine and fifteen people, the majority of satisfied ones tell about six more people. Companies would do well to remember that.’
Sarah Boyle, chief operating officer at Talkmobile, said: “We are delighted to echo Lady Janey’s thoughts on what customers really care about when they call organisations.” 93 percent of calls to Talkmobile are answered by a real person within 20 seconds.
“But that doesn’t mean we’re not determined to make calling us even better for our customers and provide them with a positive, rewarding experience worth sharing with others.”