Tom And John Go Outside, Ep 1: Call Centre Workers

The first in an occasional series called Tom and John Go Outside, in which intrepid BBH London strategists Tom Roach and John Harrison go outside advertising to talk to experts from other fields and bring back fresh insights.

IN THIS EPISODE ⇩

Tom and John meet Call Centre Workers - the undisputed experts in handling even the trickiest of customers - and learn 5 important lessons.

From 1’45:

1. Confidence - the key to building instant rapport and trust

- The power of expertise

- The importance of the one to one relationship

- Taking ownership - saying ‘I’ rather than ‘we’

From 4’30:

2. Instant gratification - rising expectations of getting it sorted immediately

- The importance of composure under stress

- Technology’s role in resetting expectations

- The Americanisation of culture

From 7’00

3. Empathy - being on the consumer’s side

- Overcompensating for the absence of body language

- Being observant and picking up signals

- The challenges of delivering a personal relationship at scale

- The importance of listening and asking questions

- The difference between sympathy and empathy

From 10’30

4. Make it easy - reducing customer effort

- Helping consumers who don’t understand

- As an antidote to a complicated world

- Finding a balance between under and over simplification

- Communicating at the right level

From 13’45

5. Finishing on a peak - ensuring people are happier than when they called

- The narrative structure of a conversation

- The importance of making people feel they matter

- Emotion’s role in making memorable experiences