Phone Customer Service Bloopers

Being on the phones for a few hours a day can be taxing especially if you're working for a big company. The number of calls can even be staggering that all you can do in between calls is to breathe. As phone customer service agents, there are a couple of bloopers that can occur while you're on the phone. Sometimes, they keep you laughing all day long and can't stop talking about it with your colleagues. Here are some that I actually experienced and observed.

Saying the wrong introduction. This happened to one of my colleagues who worked for a bank before. He unintentionally said his greeting for the bank even though we were working for a telecommunications company. The customer said, "I thought I was calling the telephone company?"

"Sir? Are you there? Were you able to hear what I said? Please respond." Well, probably not because you're on mute! This is a common mistake among customer service representatives. Oh and another similar scenario is when the customer service representative did not notice that the customer already hung up. Come on! Focus on your call!

It could be the other way around. You really can't take away the fact that phone customer service agents will talk to their seatmates from time to time. However, some do forget to press the mute button allowing the customer on the phone to hear what they are chatting about.

This is a very common joke. "Sir, make sure that the window is open." The customer opens the window and replies, "Ok. My windows are open. It's windy...." Not that window!! Here's another good one.

Agent: "Ma'am, how can I help you?"
Customer: "My TV isn't working."
Agent: "What do you see on the screen?"
Customer: "Nothing."
Agent: "Did you turn the switch on?"
Customer: "Yes."
Agent: "Is the TV plugged in?"
Customer: "Oh, right. I forgot."
(The agent then fumbles in his/her seat)

Well, we really can't blame anyone as we don't know everything and we do make mistakes but it's just simply funny. Here are some very unique responses. "Ma'am, what is your current address?" The lady then replies, "Yes." It does happen when the answers of the customers do not actually answer the question or make sense "May I have the name on the account?" The response is, "Yesterday."

Well, in most cases, inaccurate responses from both the customer and the representative stems from miscommunication. Active listening should be exercised throughout the call so at least the representative still understands the situation and the conversation. But this should go the same for the customers. It's really nice to have a good laugh once in a while to ease stress. Being on the phone for several hours a day is tiring.