As a CSR,I can tell you this: unfortunately I happen to have a supervisor who is totaly devoid of any compassion towards the Customer Service Reps who work under him; thus, if a customer says the dreaded words: " I want to talk to a supervisor", my stomach turns into a stone the size of Mount Everest. Of course the customer does not know this, but he is not aware of he fact that I actually happen to be a compassionate human being, and I was doing my best to help him/her, and now I am being punished by him, since the asshole supervisor will almost yell at me when I approach him with a usually valid customer complaint. SO many times, if the customer is nice, and I can see that he has a point, I will just do what he wants me to do -take off the shipping,give a refund later on on it,send him more info via e-mail,etc,disregard the strict return policy-. No need to penalize the rep, since the supervisor will usually tell the customer in even more of a blunt way that he wouldn't make an exception,and that's it.
You want to know where I work? I can't tell you that..;) Once I will leave the place,I will share it with you. Not a bad company,by the way. But that sup-ass-visor is a mess.

-There is no represenative on earth who cares how long you have been on hold or how many people you have spoken to. Yes, it sucks. There is nothing that can be done to change it.

-Calls are recorded so as a rule we are not able to give you succinct answers when the answer is no. If you want a direct answer say, "I would truly value a direct and honest response and really will not be offended by to-the-point answers." (Note: It's important to keep this committment).

-The information you receive is different on every call for one main reason. We gauge your potential emotional response when unfavorable information might be shared. We do not want to argue company policy because we do not set it and cannot change it. If you as a question and we know you're not going to like the answer, we have two options. We can quickly respond and rush you along the way or we can cut off our arm. It is important to encourage honesty and not to direct emotional outbursts for a company toward a person.

-When you want something, there is absolutely nothing more that will earn my respect than asking for it. I will make an adjustment faster for someone who asks for it than someone who spends an hour describing what they'll do if I don't make them happy.

-If you know you are wrong, admit it from the get go. You would be shocked at how much more willing someone is to help you when are willing to admit you do not deserve something. (Example: You could call and say you didn't go over your minutes and I promise you that it will never result in as much of an adjustment as you would get if you called and said that you know you went over and you wanted to know if we would consider meeting you half way on the charges).

-When the call nears to a close there are several things that absolutely must be said or a call can be failed and the represenative who may have truly resolved your issue may lose any kind of commission or bonus. With most companies, this is where a sales attempt must be made. We know you'd rather die than take what we are offering but we need to ask. Also, if the represenative asks you "was your issue resolved?" or "did I provide you with satisfactory service" or "can I do anything else"-- this is not the time to recount your negative experience from two years ago. Please do not give any indication whatsoever that your issue is not resolved or that you are unsure of it because we have to start all over at that point. If it is a yes or no question, please limit your response (but by all means be honest). If elaboration is desired, the represenative will let you know.

-If for some reason the call needs to escalate to a supervisor, keep in mind that this is your last chance to gain the respect of the represenative. In most cases, a represenative may truly want to honor your request but it may be outside their power or company policy. Assure the represenative they have been wonderful and politely ask that you get them a supervisor who might be able to do more. Supervisors may have little or no knowledge of company practice and usually rely on the represenative to direct them to the appropriate solution. The key is making the represenative want to help you. When they go to get a supervisor, their thoughts and evaluation of the situation will almost always decide what action the supervisor will take before they ever even speak with you. Your represenative may not be able to give you a $1000 credit that's not really valid but if they want to help you and you ask for a supervisor, they might be the deciding factor in a favorable resolution.

Also, the "call back and get someone else" and "stay on the line" are discussed in the article as contradictory tips suggested by different people.

You have to be careful when using a speakerphone in any case, because many speakerphones mute the output speaker when you are talking, and any background noises in your room could trigger that effect, making it so you do not hear when the CSR answers and/or what the person says.

When I'm on hold, I actually put it on speakerphone and MUTE it, so I can hear the hold music and hear when someone answers. With my phone this also requires unmuting it when I switch to the handset, which I usually remember to do (and when I don't, it doesn't take long to notice it).

Thanks for the interesting tips!

As a two-year call center vet (never again, thank god), this is like gold. This statement does two things... it lets the rep know that you are ALREADY angry about the issue you're about to address, and it lets them know that you acknowledge it is not their fault personally.

What if you can't get a human? In particular, I'm thinking about my recent experience with Columbia House. Their entire phone system is automated. No pressing 0 to get someone. You can't even get someone if you try to quit. They only have email. Which means it's at least 2 days to solve any problems and most of these tips won't work over email.

My girlfriend and I used it when sorting out problems with both comcast and cingular and it was handy to have the document available from both home and work, and for both of us to be able to make updates.

We found it helpful to have rep #'s for everyone we talked to.

In the end, with Comcast we got help from somebody local and with Cingular the best service was from the "cancel my account" department.

Many CSRs have quite a bit of discretion in what they're able to do. They must do the bare minimum - but they can often either do a lot more or work as your advocate with someone who actually has the authority.

Not only does needlessly screaming at a representative make you an asshole, but it is also often counterproductive.

Remember that the rep didn't cause your problem. Treat them firmly but politely and it will help resolve your situation.

"As a customer service rep, I would advise you to NOT use a speaker phone unless it works well. If the person you are speaking to cannot understand you, you'll end up repleating yourself a lot, and they could easily misunderstand you."

I am a call center rep too. I hate that, I end up talking very quietly so I don't have an annoying echo.

Please try to have one that works decently. As a call center rep, there's few things I hate worse (I will honestly prefer someone screaming at me than this) than a speakerphone that has bad feedback and makes me listen to my own voice.

O_o