CONVERSATIONAL CYCLE

1. ENGLISH FOR CALL CENTERS

2. AGENDA • Welcome • ZOOM meeting • WARM UP activity • PPT presentation • Reading • Practice activity • FORUM

3. OBJECTIVE By the end of the lesson, students will be able to identify problems through the conversational cycle by the realization of exercises.

4. TOPIC CONVERSATIONAL CYCLE

5. VOCABULARY Acknowledge Invite Checking question Closed question Conversation cycle Leading question Listen Open question Agreement Complete Detail Disconnect Double-check Resolve Review Summarize

6. A CONVERSATION... The structure of a conversation can seem obvious at first, however the success of the conversation can be influenced by a wide range of factors, including the skill and awareness of those involved.

7. Call Cycle A well-developed call cycle can help you get to the bottom of a caller’s problem. You can create a call cycle by splitting the basic phases of a help desk call into simple, recognizable sections. Once you’ve mastered this technique, you can handle a call uniformly and effectively, which will help not only the caller but your colleagues as well.

8. CONVERSATIONAL CYCLE The conversation cycle (Figure 1 describes in a simple yet effective way the basic structure of many conversations. In particular, its main value is to allow the customer service representative (CSR) to effectively guide the interaction so that the customer feels valued, and the call achieves a satisfactory outcome in a short period of time. The whole conversation should have a balance between speaking and listening so that the customer feels he or she is being listened to and action is being taken.

9. It is especially important that the CSR takes responsibility for the conversation because it is less likely that the caller has the same degree of communication skills. If the CSR feels the other person is talking too much, or they are not making themselves clear, or that they don’t understand properly, then it may be the result of the CSR not using his or her communication skills effectively and he or she should recover the situation as quickly as possible.

10. Inform: Provide information/explanation so that the other person knows what you are doing or planning to do. • Invite: Invite the other person into the conversation or encourage them to make a response. • Listen: Stop talking and actively listen to the other person. • Acknowledge: Verbally acknowledge what they are saying by using: I appreciate; I understand; ok; I see, etc.

12. Once the cycle is completed you continue with ‘Inform’ and so the cycle begins once again, eg: • Inform: ‘Good morning/afternoon/evening, Home Banking, Mary speaking.’ • Invite: ‘How may I help you today?’ • Listen: ‘May I check my account balance, I need to see if I can pay a large bill?’ • Acknowledge: ‘Yes, of course Mrs Jones. Just let me get you the details.’ • Inform: ‘You have $1000 in your account.’ • Invite: ‘Would you like me to make a payment for you?’.

13. Important Elements: Listen: And take control of the call Take control of the call by immediately asking for the caller's contact and problem information. While the caller describes the problem, you can open the call log and enter this information. Acknowledge the problem: Let the caller know you understand his or her predicament Recap the caller’s problem. This allows the caller to clarify any details you might have missed the first time around. Another trick I use is to summarize the problem but alter a detail so that the caller has the opportunity to correct the information.

14. Activity: Practice the phrases, make them sound sincere...

15. Example of: INFORM "There seems to be a balance still on your account so your registration has been blocked." INVITE "Did you want to make a payment on your account today?" LISTEN "What is that balance for? I have financial aid and that should have paid for it." ACKNOWLEDGE "I understand. Let me check your financial aid status to see why your aid did not pay the balance."