Wyze Phone Skills Training

Welcome

Wyze Phone Skills Training

Video

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How we sound is vital to our success in this Phone Skills Training; we will look at an
array of strategies and techniques that, when put into practice, will have you
sounding polished on the phone and wowing customers.

In this lesson, we will talk about how you can improve soft skills and put them into
use right away. So, let’s get started!

Click on the right arrow to continue.

Soft Skills

Soft Skills

What are soft skills?

Soft skills are the non-technical and intangible traits that make you a great
customer support representative.

Soft Skills are good manners and personality traits needed to get along with
others and build positive relationships.

Unlike Hard Skills, which include a person’s technical skill set and ability to
perform specific functional tasks, teachable, and measurable like language skills
and professional certifications. Soft skills are broadly applicable across job roles.

What do soft skills have to do with handling phone calls?

Effective use of soft skills on the phone can mean a difference between a weak
performer and a superstar.
Soft Skills - H.E.A.T

H.E.A.T

Make sure to be in the H.E.A.T when taking calls.

H - Hear: to listen to someone or something with great attention

E - Empathize with an acknowledgment: to be able to understand how someone

else feels. Being able to recognize the customer’s concern.

A - Apologize (if necessary): to tell someone that you are sorry for something that
has caused inconvenience or unhappiness. If there’s no need to apologize

T - Take Actions/ Ownership: to take the case, to do something, or to provide

steps to resolve the issue

Hear

Listen to what the customer is saying and don’t interrupt! It’s their turn to talk,
vent, share their experience, describe the problem, and perhaps teach you a thing
or two about your product, service, or customer experience journey.
Empathize

Let them know you understand. It’s okay to say, “I can totally see why you would
be upset” “I can see how difficult this has been.” or “It sounds like you did
everything you could”. When things don’t go well, it’s reassuring to know you
are not in the boat alone – and more importantly that someone cares and takes
their experience (and the feelings that come with it) seriously. By showing your
customer you understand, you can begin to defuse the situation.

Apologize

This one is important, especially if you did not personally make the error or create
the situation that’s making the customer angry. The last thing the customer
wants to hear is that you didn’t do it. A simple apology and “sorry” can go along
the way.

Take Action/ Take Ownership

Make sure you have an action plan ready to follow your apology. How are you
going to fix the problem? What can the customer expect next? This way, it will give
the customer’s the idea of what’s going to happen and that they’re not blindsided.
Example:

"We’re very sorry for what happened (apologize). We truly appreciate your efforts
and we understand that being unable to use the service is a bit frustrating
especially if you are paying for it (empathize with acknowledgment). No worries,
we will have this rectified (take ownership)."
The Soft Skills We Need In Our Everyday Battle

The Soft Skills We Need In Our

Everyday Battle

1. Effective Communication

• It’s not what you say; it’s how you say it.
The tone of voice, inflection, volume, and pace of speech are more critical
when speaking to the customer over the phone.

Tone of voice
• The tone of voice is all about the attitude behind what you’re saying. Your voice
doesn’t change, but the way you speak to someone does.

If you’re angry, you may be curt. *(a response that is very short and potentially
rude.)
If you’re happy, your voice may ooze joy.

There are many components to soft skills that can make you a great
performer.

The caller has no idea if you are nodding, shaking your head, smiling, or
even scowling. There are no visual cues that generally help with
 understanding, so be aware that it is up to you to paint a perfect picture for
that caller through your choice of words, but messages are also conveyed in
how you deliver those words. If you sound bored, angry, or disinterested, that
person on the other line will pick up on that, and may focus instead on how you
said it and not what you said. So be sure your voice always sounds pleasant
and helpful.

• Speak clearly and be succinct.

Long sentences with many words and ideas may result in the other person
losing concentration and confusing them, so speak in a structured and logical
way. Think of a race where you need to get to the finish line as directly as
possible without leaving critical steps.

• Emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence means understanding and managing your emotions, and
the emotions of others. Managing the customer’s “happiness” is exactly what
emotional intelligence is about. This is a soft skill required to talk to the
customer.

• Enthusiasm and Positive Attitude

Your customers have emotions. A positive attitude goes a long way in customer
service. Remember your goal in customer service is to provide a great
 experience for your customers. Do so by Enthusiastically Acknowledging Your
Customer, Enthusiastically Providing Assistance, and Enthusiastically Showing
Your Appreciation. A great experience produces positive emotions. Make sure
to acquire this skill! It’s contagious.

• Organization
Customer service staff deals with different angles of customer issues. Those
experiences could easily blur together for someone who is not well-organized.
Agents need to keep their cases organized and communicate the correct
information for the specific task at hand.

• Be Sensitive
Be sensitive in a good way. You are a customer yourself. Becoming sensitive to
the types of customers you will deal with and developing strategies for specific
customer situations will make those difficult customer situations less
challenging.

• Goal-Setter
Always set goals for everything. Ensure your goal is to resolve customer’s
inquiries, or if not, hand them over to the ones who can help them resolve the
issue. Remember, success goes hand in hand!
Expressing Empathy - Pro Tips

Expressing Empathy - Pro Tips

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Put yourself in the same situation as the caller.

Empathy is How would you feel in the same situation?
How would you respond if you were the customer calling you?

Adopt a positive Tone.

When you speak, try to match the caller's speed, anything faster can make it hard
for them to understand you. Similarly, anything slower may give the impression that
you are confused or wasting their time. Also, a high-pitched voice can make you
sound immature, and a pitch that too low can sound gruff so find a middle ground
varying your inflection to sound natural and interested. A monotone voice sounds
boring and unenthusiastic and that can be a game-changer.

No question that a positive tone makes callers feel comfortable, it may sound cliche
but a smile can be heard over the phone making the conversation positive and
promoting a friendly exchange.

Be sincere and Genuine

Build trust with customers. Keep calls from becoming angry ones

Be sincere and genuine saying all the right things but being insincere is something
people can hear that makes you sound phony making it uncomfortable for them and
harder for you to build trust. Using sincerity and positivity may also help calls from
escalating because it’s just a lot harder to be angry with someone who’s nice. Be
your best professional self at all times.

Choose positive language

Do not say

“You’re going to have to”

“We can’t do that”

“Calm down”

“Like I told you before”

“The problem is..”

“I can’t do that”

Instead, Say (Establish your credibility with your words! Fake it until you make
it in a positive way.)

"We'll need you to..."

“Here’s what I/we can do..”

“I want to understand..” or “I understand..”

“Here is what I suggest..”

“Here’s what I recommend..”

If you have to provide a negative answer, such as denying a refund or a

replacement, do it calmly and politely and avoid negative words.
How To Properly Say It

How To Properly Say It

The Name Game

It’s important to use the customer’s name whenever possible. Be sure to balance it!

If we have to ask, let’s not say - "What was your name?" because chances are
whatever it was, it still is. So instead, ask "What is your name?" or "May I have your
funame, please?" Depending on when you decide to ask for the customer's name,
make sure to ask candidly—like in a regular conversation.

If you struggle to understand the caller, don’t keep guessing. Instead, clarify by
repeating and spelling out their name, OR ask the customer to spell out their
name(s). Even the simplest names could be spelled differently. Ex. John or Jhon

CSR: May I have your name, please?

Customer: It's Alezandra.
CSR: Thank you. Can you also spell that out for me?

Other words you can use in asking for a customer’s name:

• May I know who I am speaking with?

• Can you please confirm your first and last name?

 • Before we proceed, please provide your complete name.

How to place the call on hold to research for answers:

As much as possible, provide a timeframe and the reason why you're placing the
customer on hold. If you need more time, do not forget to ask and inform the
customer. As for the reason, instead of saying “let me research that” or “let me
check this”, use “I’ll check the daily usage” or “I’ll be checking the reason why the
phone is not turning on”

Examples:

“May I place this call on hold for one to minutes? I just need to check my tools
about your cameras.”

“I will be placing this call on hold for a minute or two to check the charges. Please
stay on the line.”

Are you there? (How to pleasantly go back to your customer)

When returning to a customer who was placed on hold we don’t ask - Are you still
there?

Instead, use their name, acknowledge and get straight to the point.

Examples:
“Thanks for holding John. (pause and wait for the customer to respond) I’ve found
that your package is not out for delivery. I will email the details to you.”

“Sorry to keep you waiting / Sorry for the wait, John.”

“ Thank you for waiting, John. Here’s what I’ve found out...”

Transferring the call

2 Kinds of Transfers:

1. Warm Transfer - You’ll be speaking to the other party before transferring the
customer over.

• Explain to the caller why their call needs to be transferred.

• Politely place the call on hold, and get a hold for an agent in the other line.

• Provide all the important information the agent needs to know for him/her to
have a glimpse of what’s the issue and what’s going to happen.

• Go back to the customer, introduce the agent and transfer the call.

2. Cold Transfer - Place the call in the line/queue and will let the customer speak
to the next available agent.

• Explain to the caller why their call needs to be transferred.

• Give the information they need to provide before transferring the call.

• Ask permission before transferring the call.

• Transfer the call.

Welcoming Objectives (Irate Diffusion)

Welcoming Objectives (Irate

Diffusion)
1. Listen to customer cues! That’s the key.
These customers are very specific to details. Ensure to take down the cues and
strategize how to welcome them. Most likely, they'll choose what they want to hear.
If you listen, you’ll be prepared for possible objections to the customer “what ifs”.
Not only will looking out for the cues help you understand HOW to help them but it
will also aid in WHAT you need to do to fix the problem.

Example:

• HOW (Soft skills) - when the customer is upset with the service, make sure that
you have a reassuring tone and choose words that mean you are taking their
problems off their hands. Responses like:
◦ Don't worry, I'll take care of this for you.

◦ I understand that you're having problems with (state the issue). This is
clearly not the kind of service we want you to experience. Let me take care
of this for you.

When using these assuring statements, make sure that it's something that you can
fulfill. SET THE RIGHT EXPECTATIONS.

Here's an example of what you can say when you're still not sure how to fix the
problem with an irate customer: "I understand how you feel right now and this is
not the impression/experience we want you to have with our product. I want
to get to the root of the problem so that I can give you the best ways we can
fix this. Would it be all right with you if I ask you a few more questions about
the problem?"

You don't have to use the exact words above. Use the examples as a foundation to
creating your best and effective responses to calm the customer down and
convince them that you are listening.

2. *Learn how to politely say “No”

“Do not dwell on the things that you can’t change”. At times, it is required to say
“no” to turn things right. Agreeing to do something, that doesn't seem right or is
uncomfortable for you isn't also always the right way to go. So, what should one do
in these situations? How to say 'No' politely.

Example:

1. I know how tough that could be. I've been through tough times myself, trust
me. Please understand that there are certain policies that we need to keep.

2. I totally get that you'd like to have this be fixed. Trust me, I want nothing more
than the same. I hope you understand that this is not possible but I'd love to
exhaust all I can do for this and extend all the help I can offer.
3. Carefully choose your words and phrases.

Be selective with the words and phrases you’re going to throw. These types of
customers are more sensitive than the calm ones. It may trigger a new set of issues
if a customer does not accept the information you are saying.

Instead of saying...

I can’t

“I don’t understand”

“Calm down”

“There’s nothing we can do”

“That’s impossible”

Please use phrases like…

“I'd like to verify if I understood the problem correctly. (State the issue), is that
right?”

“I understand how this must have upset you, and I’ll get on it immediately.”

“I realize the nature of the problem, and I’m sorry to tell you that my hands are tied
when it comes to this. Here’s what we can do…”

“This feels like an issue which might be out of my control, but let me double-check
that…
4. Sometimes, it is better to expect the worst.
Be ready for customer’s objections. Construct your thoughts for you to give a clear
and concise alternative resolution if the issue cannot be resolved in real-time. Be
transparent. Customers need a straight and exact answer.

5. Calm down and be patient.

Do not give in! Let your customer speak. Wait for your turn. Remember, it’s not
you who made them upset or angry. Do not take it personally.

6. Own the Problem

It does not matter who created the problem or what transpired before the customer
got to you. Tell the customer that you own the problem and will apply your personal
efforts to achieve results.
How to deal with an irate/angry customer

How to deal with an irate/angry

customer
 Why is a customer irate?
• Oftentimes, a customer will complain based on the bad experience they have
or had with us.

• Angry and irate customers need you to acknowledge that they have been
wronged and need your attention right away.

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What is the key to handling difficult/irate or angry customers?

• Feelings are the key. We need to apologize sincerely, immediately, and follow
up with action.

• Insincere responses such as only saying “I am sorry” won’t help and could
even more cause and additional damage.

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What is the best way to diffuse a difficult/irate or angry customer?

Use the ASAP method:

A - Apologize and Acknowledge

S - Sympathize and Empathize

A - Accept Responsibility

P - Prepare to Help

Imagine you were a customer with that experience and ask yourself, how would you
want it to be handled?

Let’s break it down step by step!

Suppose, a customer calls in screaming “I want my money back and I want it

now! I’ve been waiting for my order and I am sick and tired of all your
mistakes!”

• Your first response should be “A” - Apologize and Acknowledge.

◦ Start by apologizing and acknowledging the customer and what they are
feeling at the time.

◦ You can start by: “I want to apologize for the delay in the delivery of
your order. I understand how this is upsetting."

• Then follow with an “S” - Sympathy and Empathy response

◦ Pretend that it is you that is having the problem, how would you want it to
be dealt with. This part is very crucial.

◦ "I don’t blame you for being upset as this is not the level of service
that you deserve."
 • Now that the caller is a little mollified, you can now do “A” - Accept the
responsibility.
◦ “I can help you with that", "I am more than happy to have this sorted
out for you.” or "Let me help you find out what happened and we'll
figure out from there what we'll do next."

• And finally, “P” - Prepare to help

◦ Be sure to demonstrate a sincere willingness to assist them. Remember
to use the customer's name, this will help diffuse their anger.

◦ You can recap the details provided by the customer and use that to
isolate their concern towards resolution. Be polite and understanding
in gathering more info.

◦ “ I want to make sure that I got this right, (name of the customer) … “

◦ Thanks, ( name of the customer ). Can you help me with what happened so
I can work on this further?

Pro tip:

Be cautious when using the word "just." Just has a reputation of diminishing the
importance or difficulty of an activity.

Instead of saying:
 • I can just check the account for you.

• I can just help you with the problem.

• I hope you just wait.

Say:

• I can check the account for you.

• I can help you with the problem/issue.

• I hope you don't mind waiting.

On the other hand, JUST also has a positive use. Its acceptable use is when the word
is an adjective use to describe a recent action or event.

• Thank you for waiting. I've just finished creating the report/order for you...
Call Flow

Call Flow

A call flow is a road map to how calls will be handled from the moment they enter
the phone system to the end of the call.

1. Opening the Call:

A. Open with a personable greeting

Example:
“Thank you for calling Wyze, my name is ____. How can I help you today?”

“Thank you for calling Wyze, my name is ____. Who am I speaking with
today?”

B. Paraphrase the problem

Example:
“Being unable to pay the bill on time due to technical errors is frustrating.”
 “I am sorry to hear that things are not working as expected with (insert
issue)”

C. Partner with the customer

Example:
“Let’s go ahead and have this issue rectified.”

“Let’s walk through these steps together”

2. Collecting information
Example:
“I can certainly help you with this issue. Before we begin could I have an email
address in case we need to follow up with you?”

“I will have this issue checked and rectified for you. Before we start, can you please
confirm your email address?”

3. Providing resolution
Always be sure to provide a clear, direct, and concise resolution. Let’s always
remember that their time is important. It will also help us finish the call in an
efficient manner. This way, we can take more calls and assist more customers with
their concerns.
4. Ending the Call
Example:

“Thank you for calling Wyze and have a wonderful day.”

“Thank you for choosing Wyze! Again this is (name), take care and stay safe!
Zendesk Talk

Zendesk Talk

What is Zendesk Talk?

Zendesk Talk is cloud-based software built right into Zendesk Support. It is the tool
that we use to provide phone support to our customers.

You can access the Talk tab by clicking on the 4 squares on the upper right of your
Zendesk dashboard, and selecting “Talk”. ( You can also find it by selecting the
reporting tab on Zendesk, then selecting “Talk”. Please see the image below)
Once you have the Talk tab open you can monitor the queue activity to ensure all
calls are being taken to the best of our ability.
The areas we want to focus on are how many calls are in the queue and how many
agents are online. The goal is to have 0 calls waiting and to match the number of
agents online to the number seen on our daily schedule.

Make sure to be in the correct status at your scheduled times. We can see the
different statuses in Talk as well
Statuses

Online - Use this when you are ready and available to take calls.

On-Call - This will be your status when you are on a call.

Wrap-Up - After each call, you get about 2 minutes to wrap up your call before you
are automatically placed into Online again. Use this time to finish up your notes.

Offline - Used anytime you are stepping away from your desk, use it for all breaks,
meetings, and any time you are getting up and away from your desk. Make sure to
go OFFLINE when you leave for the day.

Away - Used if you need more time after the wrap-up to finish your notes, or send a
ticket to a user following up from the call you were on. Try not to be away for
more than 5 minutes.

Away should be the least used status, if you are going away for 5 min to wrap up a
call or call someone back, to make sure it is communicated in the appropriate local
team slack channel.

Remember to be courteous to each other. When you are in the ‘Away’ status,
someone else will be taking your calls. If you need extra time or to step away for an
extended period of time longer than 5 minutes, please reach out to a team leader to
communicate your need. This way we can ensure that we have consistent coverage
as needed while making necessary accommodations as they may arise.
If you are calling someone back due to a dropped call or a specific request, please
post on slack so we are aware of why you are in the away status.

We should not be scheduling callbacks - Callbacks should only be done by an

escalation point. if a customer ends up needing to call us back, please refer them
to call the general number (206-339-9646) and update your internal notes. The
notes should be sufficient enough for any other agent to be able to pick up where
you left off and take over the call.

If the customer insists on wanting to work with you specifically, please offer to
communicate over email (via Zendesk, not from your personal email address) - this
way they will have a direct line of contact with you and the phone lines stay open
for those needing more immediate assistance.

Tip: There is no need to ask users to call back when they say they are on the
phone they use for the app, they can place us on speaker or use another
device.
Phone Call Samples

Issue: After the customer updated the firmware, the camera goes offline/crashes when the
customer is attempting to use the speak function of the v3 camera.

Audio

https://www.hippovideo.io/video/embed/j8jjXrw_R6-
7Heau1bb7YTz3xRVhQCmm4rMCArrPXKs?type=lessonly

Resolution: Agent did well by covering the basic TS starting with confirming if the firmware
and app version is updated. Advised customer to do a factory reset and assured the
customer that this step can potentially resolve most issues.

Issue: Customer accidentally placed two orders of vacuum and request to cancel the
duplicate order.

Audio

https://www.hippovideo.io/video/embed/
eaTFsUwLKkftGYjBQcnHQ7040WRAGVtoZeMRJOHR978?type=lessonly

Resolution: The call was short and efficient. Agent got all the information needed to cancel
the order and set an expectation that the customer will receive an email once the
cancellation request has been processed.
Issue: Wyze Lock screws that were provided are too long to fit on their door.

Audio

https://www.hippovideo.io/video/embed/
fQcfXsOUDxaRGKGAcx3Eki27ThWknWdRQ2b2bO0NNSY?type=lessonly

Resolution: Agent will follow through the concern via email to be able to send a shorter
screw that would fit on their door.

Issue: The customer has a question about why their card was charged for pre-ordering the
Wyze Night Light even though it was not yet been shipped.

Audio

https://www.hippovideo.io/video/embed/
CjYqCt4jIAeGakXdNmQTEV2tWnUZZzrG3AsL1oN66Y8?type=lessonly

Resolution: Agent explained that pre-orders will immediately get charged and since it
doesn't sit well with the customer, she just then decided to have the charge cancelled and
the charge refunded back.
Resources

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3CWxNGNn3k

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RxD3caewEk

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPXruR7bgsk

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYjOwiGQstE

• https://intranet.ces.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Extension-phone-
skills-sheet_Customer-Experience.pdf?fwd=no

• https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/soft-skills-conclusion-john-whitehead-ma-acc-
cec-/

• https://www.luxoft-training.com/news/what-are-soft-skills/

• https://www.agencyrevolution.com/blog/2017/06/06/using-heart-method-help-
unhappy-client

• https://www.callcentrehelper.com/the-top-25-positive-words-and-phrases

• -1847.htm

• https://blog.central-insurance.com/2015/07/17/taking-the-h-e-a-t-four-steps-
for-improving-customer-service/

• https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/grammar-vocabulary/story/
10-ways-to-politely-say-no-1505465-2019-04-19

• https://blog.playvox.com/your-blog-post-title-here

• https://www.businessknowhow.com/marketing/diffuse-anger.htm
• https://www.virtualpbx.com/blog/general-telephony/transferring-phone-calls-
etiquette/

• https://www.qminder.com/customer-service-phrases-to-avoid/

• https://askozia.com/voip/what-is-a-call-flow/

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fyb2AiF1feI

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNPzgPhHeWQ

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ryas9OANw-E
End

Congratulations!
You've successfully finished this lesson. Now, let's test your soft skills with the Wyze
Phone Skill Training Activity coming up next!