Why Are ILT Activities For Customer Service Important?
Customer service is one of the most challenging positions in the corporate world. These employees must represent your brand and convey your company’s message, even when the going gets tough and consumers get disgruntled. How do you prepare them for unhappy clients and support them during the rough patches on the job? The solution is an ILT program that incorporates experience-building resources. And the best way to give them practical know-how is ILT and LMS.
These 6 instructor-led training activities are valuable additions to your customer service course.
1. Weekly Skill Spotlight Events
Host weekly live events on an LMS that build skills your team needs to resolve customer issues and uphold your brand image. For example, communication skills so that they can actively listen to disgruntled customers and articulate possible solutions. Instructors, co-workers, and industry experts are all great hosting candidates. Just make sure that they know how to use the video conferencing software beforehand and have a list of recommendations at the ready, such as simulations or scenarios that help customer service employees hone those vital talents in a risk-free setting. There should also be something for everyone in your event schedule. One week you might focus on negotiation skills for your sales team, while the next features safe handling techniques for your warehouse employees. Nobody wants to be left out. Plus, your customer service staff can attend inter-departmental events to cross-train and upskill.
2. Branching Scenarios Followed By Personalized Feedback
Errors are great teachers. They help us identify strengths and shortcomings so that we don’t have to deal with a steep learning curve on the job. Use branching scenarios to encourage employees to make mistakes and learn from them. If they venture down the wrong decision-making path, the system points out the mistake and how to correct it. But it also reveals hidden talents and builds problem-solving skills. They must figure out the best course of action to appease an angry customer or help them find the best product. Instructors can even step in and offer personalized feedback after viewing LMS reports.
3. Company Policy Pop Quizzes
Usually, employees only identify challenges when it’s too late to do anything about them. They’re in the middle of a transaction and suddenly realize they don’t know how to use the sales terminal. Or they’re trying to suggest a replacement product and discover that they know next to nothing about the new line. This dilemma also extends into company policies. Think of customer service employees as gatekeepers. They’re the ones who uphold your image and play by the rules so that customers get the best experience. Pop quizzes allow them to spot areas for improvement while there’s still time to remedy a situation. Post a weekly quiz or make it part of your ILT sessions. Give them the opportunity to troubleshoot gaps and address them quickly (and discreetly).
4. Pre-Recorded Task Demos
Instructors don’t have time to show every customer service employee how to perform every task one by one. But pre-recorded task demos are the next best thing. Trainees see how it’s done, rather than mimicking those behaviors in the workplace. They can also identify steps they missed or which skills tie into a task. Instructors can even perform a process live and use video recording and editing software to create a brief tutorial, or add background music and detailed captions to wow employees and appeal to different preferences. Include some resource recommendations at the end to help trainees delve further into a topic, such as infographics that give a pictorial walkthrough of a process for easy reference.
5. Real-world Examples That Highlight Service Challenges
There are numerous ways to incorporate real-world examples into your ILT and LMS. An instructor might share a personal anecdote during a training session. Or you can create an animated video to lighten the mood and reenact dangerous situations. Whatever delivery method you choose must be relatable and real-world-centered. Customer service employees face a diverse range of challenges every day. Thus, real-world examples should cover the entire spectrum so that they expect the unexpected. These stories also help them see how training connects to on-the-job performance and the benefits of active participation.
6. Customer Persona Simulations
Anyone who’s ever worked in the customer service industry can attest that there’s never a dull moment. Every shift brings new challenges and personalities that test your limits (and sometimes your patience). Customer persona simulations expose your employees to these different "characters" so that they’re ready for everyday obstacles, like that customer who always wants to chat, even though there’s a line growing behind them. Or the client who isn’t happy with any solution you come up with, even the one they originally proposed. These simulations allow trainees not only to disclose areas for improvement but prepare for the worst-case scenario so that they are more confident and assured when stress comes into the picture.
Conclusion
Customer service employees shouldn’t have to go it alone. They should have round-the-clock access to relevant support resources that bridge gaps and fine-tune talents. With ILT and LMS, you can give them everything they need to achieve peak performance. Even if they do have to deal with their fair share of unhappy customers and out-of-date returns. Best of all, they can still attend live events to get immediate guidance and use online tools to go at their own pace.
Does your customer service team know company policy inside-out? Are they at risk of violating rules and regulations that lead to costly fines? Find the best LMS for your compliance ILT using our free online directory. You can filter your search based on pricing models, use cases, or deployment types to quickly identify your top choices.
