The 12 Best Things Chat Support Agents Wish They Could Tell Clients

This article is going to go over the main problems and challenges I have with talking to my customers. The first time someone told me I was rude to report them, I was shocked. I wondered what one word could do to make a huge difference in their opinion of me.

Using our chat platform, for example, we might be logged in under the same name, but I am a completely different person than you are. Using your name and just doing some basic research on the company, I could present and answer any of your questions asked by you, without even needing to call you by your first name.

Hopefully, this article will help you develop more empathy for your chat support agents and learn how to best communicate with them when you need their assistance.

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Takeaways
1. Set clear expectations: Communicate the expected response time and available support hours to clients.
2. Be patient and empathetic: Understand that clients may be frustrated or confused, and approach them with empathy.
3. Ask for specific details: Request specific information about the issue to provide accurate assistance.
4. Use canned responses effectively: Save time and ensure consistency by utilizing pre-written responses for common queries.
5. Offer alternative solutions: Present different options to clients, providing them with flexibility and choices.
6. Be proactive: Anticipate potential questions or concerns and address them proactively.
7. Provide clear instructions: Guide clients through troubleshooting steps or processes with clear instructions.
8. Take ownership of issues: Assume responsibility for resolving problems and provide regular updates to clients.
9. Follow up on resolutions: Check back with clients to ensure that the issue has been resolved satisfactorily.
10. Educate clients: Share knowledge and resources to empower clients and prevent similar issues in the future.
11. Practice active listening: Pay attention to clients’ concerns and ask clarifying questions to fully understand their needs.
12. Show appreciation: Express gratitude to clients for their patience and understanding throughout the support process.

Table of Contents

1. It’s Not Always Our Fault

When something goes wrong, it’s not always the agent’s fault. Most of the time, computers simply don’t work. They never have and they never will. Please remember that sometimes it’s a server issue (like when Yahoo was hacked and you couldn’t get into your account).

Sometimes it’s a hardware issue (like when your son spilled Coke on your laptop keyboard and now you can’t log into Facebook because half the keys are sticky). Sometimes it’s a software issue (like when Windows 10 updated itself overnight and now you’re stuck in an endless loop of being asked to install updates but not actually installing them).

If there is no obvious reason for something to be broken, then sometimes the problem is actually at your end. It may just be a coincidence something unrelated to you or me or anything else happened in our universe that caused this particular service to break at this particular time for this particular customer.

So if I’m having trouble logging in on my side too, then yeah, maybe it is something we both did wrong. But if I can log in just fine but something isn’t working properly on your end, well…it happens! Sometimes your internet connection is just bad.

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2. We Can’t Fix Everything

You may be surprised to learn that customer service agents are human beings. A shocking concept, I know. But while they may have the power of omniscience, there are some things even we aren’t all-knowing about:

Are you sure you don’t want to check the FAQs?” This is a question we ask again and again and again. Even if your company doesn’t use a knowledge base or regularly update its FAQ section, there’s a chance other companies have asked (and answered) similar questions in theirs.

It never hurts to spend 20 minutes on Google for an answer rather than dealing with someone who can’t give you one.

Have you tried talking to another agent?” We’ve been taught that customers are always right, but sometimes we just can’t help with what’s going on in your account (or computer). If the first person you talk to doesn’t solve your problem, try reaching out to someone else from our team:

They might be able to help when others couldn’t or they might at least be able to offer a new perspective on things.

Can I put you on hold while I get my supervisor?” When all else fails, it’s time for us to get our superiors involved. You’ll usually see ratios like “1:3″ or “1:4″ in chat support teams this means that for every three or four agents there is one supervisor watching over them.

We do our best not to bring them into every conversation unnecessarily; however, if we’re really struggling with an issue, one of them would be happy to hop into chat and lend their expertise.

3. Our Job Is To Get You To The Right Place

When you contact us, our job is to get you to the right person. Our team is meant to be a support for our clients, and we take that mission very seriously.

We are not superhumans with knowledge of every aspect of the business, but we are friendly and knowledgeable humans who can point you in the right direction.

If we cannot help you ourselves, we will put you in touch with someone who can. We have great relationships with all our teams, and we will do everything we can to help get you the solution that works for your specific need.

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4. There Are Some Things We Can’t Talk About

We’re not being intentionally vague because we’re mean. Some things are just difficult to explain over chat (and some other things we’re contractually not allowed to discuss). Not being able to give you the specific answer you want can be frustrating, but please remember.

it’s hard for us, too. If a customer service agent can’t help you with your question or problem, chances are they’re frustrated about it as well.

But there’s hope! Chat support agents often have a variety of methods at their disposal for figuring out the best approach in these situations. Let’s take a look at some of them and see how they might apply to different scenarios.

5. We’re Not Being Intentionally Vague Because We’re Mean

Support agents have been trained to give specific answers as often as possible, and that might mean not giving you the answer you want. But when they give an answer, they’re usually just following company policy not trying to be intentionally vague or difficult.

When a support agent is telling you what they can and can’t do, it’s usually because that’s what their script or training tells them to say.

They might even have procedures in place that prevent them from addressing some of your requests (even if they personally agree with those requests). Everyone who works in customer service has great ideas about how their company could improve, but at the end of the day, it’s their job to stick to the script.

6. We’re Not Miracle Workers

If you haven’t already guessed, our miracle-working powers are limited. As much as we’d like to, we can’t:

Perform magic or have psychic abilities. We’re not wizards or genies with magical wands or genie lamps that grant us these supernatural powers.

Read minds. We’re not psychics who can read your thoughts and know what’s going on in your head.

Make things disappear (like troubleshooting issues). We’re not magicians who can make problems disappear with a wave of our hand while uttering an incantation (eg: “Abracadabra”).

A lot of what you tell us is irrelevant at best, and sometimes it’s just plain inappropriate.

There’s really no need to tell us it’s your birthday, that you’re in a bad mood because your spouse is watching football, or that you’d rather be at home with your cat.

If you want to get the help you need quickly and pleasantly, here’s some advice: make sure the information you share is relevant to what we can do for you. If it’s not relevant, we don’t need to know about it.

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7. Some Customers Simply Shouldn’t Be Allowed On The Internet

Some customers simply shouldn’t be allowed on the internet.

You know the type: they’re rude, they don’t listen, and they abuse support staff like they’re talking to a punching bag. Then there are those who constantly ask questions that your FAQs cover in detail, or pose queries that are more suited to someone who has an advanced degree in programming.

These customers want agents to bend over backward for them, but can’t even be bothered to read a simple policy or use the chat function as it’s intended.

Sometimes these hard-to-deal-with clients can get downright nasty. Even if you try to help them out of a jam, their rage flares up again when you have the audacity to point out (as gently as possible) that their problem is not your fault and not something you can fix on your own or even worse that you’ll have to wait for someone else at another company (the client’s ISP) before anything can really be done for them.

8. You Don’t Have To Use All Of The Extra Words In Your Question If They Don’t Add Any Value

I know it sounds tedious, but we really do appreciate it when you’re direct and clear with your questions. As a rule of thumb, here’s what you can do to make sure your question is coming across as clearly as possible:

Be specific. Use the product or service name so we don’t have to guess what you’re talking about.

The shorter, the better. We understand that sometimes there are complicated circumstances, but our support agents will be able to help you more quickly if you get right to the point. We’d rather not sift through long explanations of why you need our help in order to find out what kind of help you actually need.

Speak like a human being, but use proper grammar and spelling, or at least the best version of it that your keyboard will allow for; if writing isn’t your strong suit, try using proper punctuation when possible instead.

Even if we can decipher what you’ve written despite its lack of polish, chances are good that most people reading your message wouldn’t be able to read it without significant effort and that’s assuming they would even bother trying at all!

Keep it simple; use common words instead of fancy ones (unless ‘fancy’ is something less than a synonym for “difficult,” in which case I would argue that no one ever needs them). Your chances of finding someone who both understands your question and knows how to answer it increase significantly when both parties are on the same page linguistically speaking.

This can also apply to industry jargon and acronyms as well as slang and emoticons; though these may seem perfectly normal or obvious within certain communities or circles, there will always be someone who doesn’t understand them (and probably won’t try too hard). Use capitalization correctly too!

9. Don’t Say “I Must Speak To A Manager!” If You Haven’t Even Tried Explaining Your Issue Yet

Don’t say “I must speak to a manager!” if you haven’t even tried explaining your issue yet. It’s super frustrating for us because we want to solve your issue, and it’s not always possible to escalate things. Plus, it can come across as if you’re assuming we can’t help you simply because of our title.

The person you’re chatting with isn’t always going to be the person who can solve your problem but that doesn’t mean they don’t want to help you. We care about our customers, and we’d like nothing more than to see an issue resolved in real-time.

If the agent is unable to resolve something right away or takes longer than usual, understand that other factors could be at play (like needing another party’s permission). Let them know that giving up isn’t an option until they do what they can on their end so they know you’re confident in their abilities!

Be patient! Internet speeds vary across the country and around the world. Sometimes there’s nothing we can do to make things go faster as long as a connection exists.

That said, if you are experiencing slow internet, there are a few things you can try to speed it up:

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10. Reboot Your Device By Turning It Completely Off And Then Back On

Check the power source of your modem/router. Power is often lost during storms or because of defective equipment. Unplug and plug back in after 10 seconds or so if this happens.

Try using another device connected to the same network to see if they experience the same problem you are having. If they don’t, then it is likely that your device is at fault and will need repairs or replacement (consult appropriate user manuals for more information).

Please don’t use ALL CAPS and please don’t send us an essay expecting a quick response – it won’t happen! Also, please stop spamming us with messages – we will answer when we get the chance!

When you are expecting a response to your query, please be reasonable about the length of time it can take for someone to get back to you. We do not live with our phones or computers attached to us, so we will only see your message once we have a chance to get back online and check our messages.

Please avoid sending messages that are all in caps. In the online world, this is seen as shouting it’s OK if you want to write in a chatty style, but keep it friendly and respectful!

11. The Attitudes Of Some Customers Make It Difficult For Support Staff To Help Them

Be nice. Please! You don’t need to be overly friendly, just polite. Starting off with “Hi, I’m having issues with X” works better than “What’s the wrong X?!”

Don’t spam us. We get a lot of emails and a lot of support requests there’s no need to send multiple copies of the same message or follow up with an angry email when we don’t respond immediately.

12. Don’t Use All Caps, Please Shouting Isn’t Going To Make Us Help You Any Faster

Don’t send an essay; write clearly but concisely instead if it looks really long, we’re not as likely to want to read it as if it looks short and sweet (but still has the info we need).

Don’t expect a quick response we get a lot of requests, so we make sure everyone gets handled even if it means taking some time to do so (and sometimes that can take more than 24 hours, especially during weekends and holidays).

Plus some Problems take longer than others (like when something needs fixing on your computer). If You’re In A Hurry Though Just Say So We’ll Do Our Best To Help ASAP!

Don’t demand to speak with management; that won’t speed up the process and probably won’t help anything either since managers are busy people too who might not have time for your issue right away so why not let them focus on running things instead? And if there’s anything else about this process that makes you feel frustrated or tense then just tell me what those things are.

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Final Thought

As a final note, there’s another way that companies can assuage these common concerns: by hiring dedicated support agents to answer questions and guide users through the faulty process.

However, the problem with these types of agents is that they need to be well-trained and equipped with the proper knowledge before they begin interacting with customers. Most companies do not have this luxury, as they’re trying to cut costs and move as fast as possible on new software releases.

This is where automated chatbots can really save the day. They’re quick, they’re cheap and they allow businesses to reach out and speak directly to millions of users each month from the safety of their own homes or office. The possibilities are endless for businesses who want to scale an online presence but don’t have the budget for hiring full support staff.

Familiarize yourself with product or service knowledge to provide accurate and timely assistance.
Practice active listening to understand customer needs and concerns thoroughly.
Develop efficient typing and multitasking skills to respond promptly during chat sessions.
Continuously learn and stay updated on industry trends, customer service best practices, and new technologies.
Seek feedback from customers and supervisors to identify areas for improvement and implement constructive changes.

What are some common challenges in chat support?

Chat support professionals often face various challenges. Here are some common ones:

Dealing with angry or frustrated customers and resolving their issues satisfactorily.
Managing multiple chat conversations simultaneously while maintaining quality and efficiency.
Handling technical difficulties or system errors during chat sessions.
Adapting to different customer communication styles and understanding their expectations.
Balancing speed and accuracy to provide swift yet accurate responses.

How can I handle difficult customers in chat support?

Handling difficult customers in chat support requires patience, empathy, and problem-solving skills. Here are some strategies to effectively handle challenging customer interactions:

Stay calm and composed, focusing on resolving the issue rather than engaging in arguments.
Use positive language and avoid becoming defensive or taking customer criticism personally.
Empathize with the customer’s frustration and acknowledge their concerns.
Actively listen and ask clarifying questions to gain a better understanding of the issue.
Offer alternative solutions or escalate the matter to a supervisor if necessary.

What are the key elements of effective chat support etiquette?

Effective chat support etiquette plays a crucial role in providing exceptional customer service. Key elements to keep in mind include:

Greeting customers warmly and introducing yourself at the beginning of the chat.
Using proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation to ensure clear and professional communication.
Responding promptly to customer inquiries and providing accurate information.
Using a friendly and conversational tone while maintaining professionalism.
Closing the chat session with a polite farewell and offering assistance for any further questions.

How can I improve customer satisfaction in chat support?

To improve customer satisfaction in chat support, consider the following tips:

Provide personalized and tailored responses based on the customer’s specific needs.
Offer proactive assistance by anticipating customer questions or concerns.
Follow up after resolving an issue to ensure customer satisfaction and address any remaining questions.
Request feedback from customers to identify areas for improvement.
Continuously evaluate and optimize your chat support processes based on customer feedback and metrics.

Herman Edward

I am a content writer, and I love what I do! Writing makes me feel like the words are flowing through my fingers, and then onto the keyboard, like magic. My experience as a writer has taught me that writing makes me feel good, as well as helps others to feel better too!