Without in-person managerial support, it's understandable that call center agent motivation can decrease when working remotely. By turning repetitive tasks into exciting and friendly contests, you can help enhance employee performance and ensure they thrive in their new remote environments. If you need help motivating your employees, here are five ways to do it.
1. Make It Easy for Them to Do Their Jobs
Providing your employees with the tools they need to do their jobs efficiently is one of the most effective ways to get them to perform well. No one can perform under too much stress from using the wrong tools or not having enough resources, so make sure your employees have what they need to perform their job duties. For example, if their job is to answer sales questions, make sure they have a knowledge base where they can easily look up the answers to commonly asked questions. If you don't know what your employees need to perform well on the job, don't be afraid to ask them.
2. Gamification
Working from home can be a tough transition for a lot of people, especially those who usually require in-person support from managers. Gamification transforms repetitive work tasks into friendly competitions to bolster agents to perform optimally while working remotely. Gamification makes 83 percent of employees feel more motivated, according to Call Centre Helper. It's also been proven to reduce absenteeism by up to 41 percent. So if you haven't considered implementing gamification to motivate your employees, you should strongly consider it.
3. Try an Employee Recognition Program
People like to be recognized for a job well done. If your employees know that they're going to be recognized and rewarded for their on-the-job performance, they may be more inclined to work harder. On the other hand, if you fail to recognize your employees for their efforts, they might not perform to the best of their ability and you could be risking increasing the employee turnover rate. Employees who feel valued stay at companies longer than employees who don't.
4. Make It Easy to Communicate
Another common on-the-job frustration is poor communication. Employees who can't communicate with their co-workers and managers end up wasting valuable company time that could be used to perform another task. Use effective communication tools and techniques that can help your employees reach each other better, and make sure to establish rules about communicating (if you haven't already). A virtual call center or virtual call center software can help you accomplish this can get everyone on the same page.
5. Use a Survey to Collect Feedback and Gauge Motivation
Surveys are powerful ways to get the information you need to make the right decisions. Use a survey to collect feedback from your sales reps and gauge their level of motivation when it comes to doing their jobs. By taking the time to ask the important questions, you not only get what you need to run your business more effectively, but you show your employees that you care about them and let them know that their input is wanted and appreciated.
Motivating employees from home is a bit more challenging than it was in the office, but using the guidance above can help you take your business to the next level.