How Do You Prevent Customer Service Burnout?
Publié le 22 October 2024
People in the modern workforce and service industries are asking how do you prevent customer service burnout?
Burnout is a growing issue faced by many employees across the globe. Without addressing the problem, businesses may find their employees unhappy and unmotivated while carrying out their daily tasks.
In fact, one study by Alfac shared that 59% of all American workers are experiencing at least moderate levels of burnout.
We know that customer service is a vital part of any business, but the role can often come with high levels of stress. Ultimately, it can also impact a company’s bottom line.
Let’s look at what customer service burnout is and how to prevent it.
What is customer service burnout?
The WHO (World Health Organisation) describes occupational burnout as: “An occupational phenomenon resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.”
It’s a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress in the workplace. For customer service representatives, this can occur when they feel overwhelmed by their workload or face continuous high-pressure interactions with customers. These frequent interactions may take a heavy toll on the representatives – especially if they’re dealing with frustrated customers.
This exhaustion can result in decreased motivation and lower job performance, making life harder for both the employee and the company. This is because, left unchecked, burnout can lead to higher employee turnover and negatively impact the customer experience.
Image sourced from aihr.com
What causes customer service burnout?
Customer service burnout can occur across many businesses that utilize customer service reps to deal with inquiries. Given that it’s such a personal issue, there is no one direct cause of burnout. In fact, there are several factors that can contribute to burnout among customer service professionals. Such as:
- High workloads – Constantly handling high volumes of calls, emails, or chats, especially during peak times. This can quickly overwhelm customer service teams who feel pressured to meet certain performance metrics.
- Lack of training – It can be stressful working in a call center without sufficient training. Companies should look into online course platforms to help train staff in the onboarding process.
- Emotional labor – Dealing with difficult or frustrated customers on a daily basis can take an emotional toll.
- Repetitive tasks – Performing the same tasks repeatedly without variety can lead to monotony and even boredom, reducing job satisfaction and engagement.
- Unclear expectations – Uncertain goals or vague performance metrics can create stress, as employees may feel unsure about how to succeed in their roles.
- Lack of resources – To do their job effectively and avoid frustration, customer service employees need adequate technology. For instance, if they’re taking high volumes of calls in the healthcare industry, they will need a specific HIPAA compliant call center software, instead of a normal one.
- Limited career growth – If the company isn’t facilitating the employee’s need for growth and career development, they may lose motivation and see their job as a dead-end with little prospects.
What are the signs of customer service burnout?
It’s important to spot the key signs of customer service burnout before it escalates. Some common signs include:
Declining performance
This might be a noticeable drop in the quality of customer interactions, slower response times, or an increase in mistakes which can put the company at risk. For instance, cybersecurity architecture is key for many businesses to stay safe and protected, a lapse in judgment because of fatigue can put confidential files at risk. This can impact your business’s reputation in the eyes of the customer.
Decreased motivation
Employees may start to show a lack of interest in their work or reduced enthusiasm for tasks that they previously enjoyed.
Free to use image sourced from Unsplash
Irritability and frustration
Burnt-out employees might become easily agitated, especially when dealing with difficult customer situations.
Emotional detachment
Employees may become emotionally distant, losing their empathy for customer concerns and even straining relationships with their colleagues. This is also known as empathy fatigue, and can occur when working in a customer-facing role.
Increased absenteeism
The employee may be taking frequent sick days or unexplained absences. When they do come to the office, they may not be showing up to work ready and willing to take on the day with a can-do attitude.
Physical symptoms
Those who are particularly stressed may experience symptoms physically such as headaches, fatigue, insomnia, or other health issues.
The cost of customer support burnout
When we talk about the cost of customer support burnout, we don’t just mean financially. The cost of employee burnout can also mean decreased productivity, poor satisfaction, and high employee turnover. Of course, it does also refer to the financial losses a business may be making due to the fact that employees are unhappy.
It’s no secret that burnout is closely linked to mental health problems. This is because experiencing the feeling of burnout can also take a toll on someone’s mental health, which may cause them to miss work. When employees aren’t feeling up to coming in, this can cause businesses to miss their productivity targets.
Gallup says, “Projected over a 12-month period, workers with fair or poor mental health are estimated to have nearly 12 days of unplanned absences annually compared with 2.5 days for all other workers. Generalized across the U.S. workforce, this missed work is estimated to cost the economy $47.6 billion annually in lost productivity.”
This demonstrates that the cost of burnout can be astronomical for businesses. It can hinder productivity, cause losses, and ultimately lead to lower satisfaction and potentially losing valuable clients.
How to prevent customer service burnout: 8 tactics
The big question many companies are asking is how they can prevent customer service burnout. Let’s take a look at 8 top tactics you can employ to keep your staff happy and fulfilled:
1. Offer regular breaks
Working long hours without adequate downtime is a common cause of burnout. To combat this, you need to encourage employees to take regular, structured breaks throughout their shifts. It’s important to make it known they’re allowed to take breaks, and that you actually want them to!
Whether it’s a short walk grabbing a coffee or simply stepping away from their desk, these breaks can reduce stress and give employees a moment to recharge. The culture of the workplace needs to be open and supportive to promote this.
You could also try implementing micro-breaks—five-minute pauses every hour—which can also help maintain focus and reduce fatigue. When customer service employees return from a break, they are more likely to handle customer interactions with patience and professionalism.
Free to use image sourced from Unsplash
2. Provide adequate training
Let’s face it, customer support can be a challenging field particularly when employees don’t feel fully equipped to handle the complexities of the job. That’s when thorough onboarding and ongoing training are essential.
Employees should be trained not only in customer service techniques but also in:
- Conflict resolution
- Stress management
- Effective communication
Additionally, you need to ensure they have the right tools and training to resolve customer issues efficiently. Having and knowing how to use up-to-date software like a power dialer, for instance, will help them deal with a higher-than-usual number of calls. When employees are confident in their abilities and have the resources to succeed, they feel more empowered and less prone to burnout.
3. Foster a positive work environment
A positive work environment can go a long, long way in reducing burnout! As mentioned previously, this includes fostering a supportive culture where employees feel valued, respected, and heard.
Encourage team collaboration and be sure to show appreciation for hard work. You can take the team on away days or try other team-building activities that can strengthen relationships. This helps employees feel more connected to their coworkers.
A strong sense of community can buffer the effects of stress, as employees feel they have the support of their team and management during any difficult times.
4. Set clear and realistic expectations
Unclear or unrealistic expectations may create anxiety and frustration among customer service employees. When team members are unsure of their goals or if they feel they’re being asked to do too much, they are more likely to experience burnout.
To prevent this, establish their employee experience roadmap from the beginning. Then, set clear, achievable performance metrics and ensure employees understand what is expected of them. Break down large goals into manageable tasks and provide regular feedback so employees know where they stand.
Avoid bombarding employees with excessive tasks, and consider implementing flexible performance targets that feel achievable.
5. Offer mental health support
As we’ve seen, burnout can lead to or coincide with mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, or chronic stress.
By offering mental health support, you are doing your part as a responsible employer to help employees manage these challenges before they become overwhelming. The below graph demonstrates that 24% of employees do not have support provided to them, and 33% don’t know.
Consider offering wellness workshops, or hosting stress-relief activities such as mindfulness sessions or yoga classes.
Image sourced from gallup.com
6. Encourage open communication
Open communication between employees and management is crucial in all work environments. Create an environment where employees feel comfortable voicing concerns or suggesting improvements.
Managers should check in regularly with their team members, not just to monitor performance – but to ask about their well-being. If an employee is struggling with stress or workload then early intervention can help.
Why not implement anonymous feedback systems? Or regular one-on-one meetings to give employees the opportunity to speak up without fear of judgement? Transparent communication can help identify stressors early and foster a healthier, more collaborative workplace.
7. Promote work-life balance
Juggling a work-life balance is tricky, but very important. Encourage employees to set boundaries between work and personal time, particularly in remote customer service roles where the lines can easily blur.
You need to do your part as an employer. Avoid contacting employees outside of work hours unless it’s an emergency and promote flexible scheduling options to help them manage personal commitments.
When employees feel they have control over their personal and professional lives, they’re more likely to remain engaged and motivated.
8. Recognize and reward good performance
Recognition is a powerful motivator. Employees who feel appreciated for their hard work and skills are more likely to stay committed and avoid burnout.
Create a system for recognizing individual and team achievements. This can be through formal awards like employee of the month, or shout-outs in meetings.
Financial incentives such as bonuses and gift cards can also show that the company values their effort.
How technology can help with customer support burnout
Technology can play a significant role in preventing customer service burnout, supporting businesses and employees in tackling the issue. If you’re asking how do you prevent customer service burnout, here’s how technology can help agents manage stress and avoid burnout:
1. Automating repetitive tasks
Customer service agents often face repetitive tasks that can make the working day seem mundane.
Answering queries, processing routine requests, and managing simple issues can be monotonous. Automating these tasks with tools like cold email automation or chatbots can help reduce the burden on agents.
Chatbots are able to handle common questions and provide customers with quick resolutions. This allows agents to focus on other more complex and interesting challenges. This reduces the workload and means agents can avoid repetitive tasks that lead to mental fatigue.
2. AI-Powered assistants
These days, you have access to amazing AI-backed tools that can change the way you operate. Virtual assistants or AI-based response suggestions can help agents respond faster and more efficiently. These systems analyze the customer’s query and provide real-time suggestions or pre-populated responses.
This eliminates decision fatigue and boosts productivity, letting customer service agents focus more on the customer experience rather than crafting each response from scratch.
3. Collaboration tools
Some software platforms are designed to promote collaboration. This allows customer service reps to stay in touch no matter where they are in the world. Meaning they work more efficiently together as a team.
Agents can quickly seek help from colleagues, share insights, or escalate complex cases when necessary.
Free to use image sourced from Unsplash
4. Workload management tools
Technology like helpdesk platforms and direct routing for Microsoft Teams can help distribute workload evenly among team members. This means that no single agent is overwhelmed with an excessive number of queries.
These tools can track incoming customer requests and assign them based on how busy the agents are. Real-time dashboards provide visibility into who is handling what, so managers can intervene early if an agent is overloaded, thus helping to prevent burnout.
Improving the daily lives of customer service employees
As we’ve seen, customer support burnout is a serious issue. But, with the right strategies and tools, it’s absolutely manageable. By recognizing the signs of burnout early and implementing supportive measures, companies can help their agents stay motivated and energized.
Businesses should work to introduce mental health support alongside smarter workload distribution. This not only improves employee well-being but also boosts customer satisfaction. Remember, happy, supported customer service employees lead to happier customers.
