Customer experience is the ace up the sleeve of companies that endure and become successful. That is why a remote customer service team that guarantees an incredible experience for clients can be a launch pad to the next level.
But bringing more people on board can mean more expenses, such as renting more office space with the attendant additional operating costs. But the discussion here is about putting together a remote support team – hiring freelancers to do your company’s support and customer service.
Building a remote customer service team, based on a plan that meets your company’s requirements, will ensure that your customer service with a remote team meets your expectations.
To this, the company must:
- Establish clearly and in advance what their functions will be.
- Know what you want your remote customer service team to have.
- Specify what types of work they must do.
- Identify which customer service channels need coverage.
- Clarify the treatment you want to convey to your clients through this medium.
Building a remote customer service team from the ground up will allow you to ensure that the support and customer service that can take your business to the next level is delivered.
Here is a brief implementation guide to start looking for the people who will make up your perfect team.
1. Make a list of the qualities you want in your remote team members
In order to work remotely, a high level of commitment and communication skills is required. Generally, experienced freelancers have the ability to:
- Work independently
- Solve problems
- Prioritise tasks
- Encourage entrepreneurship
- Have a great desire to be part of a successful project
That being said the employer must define the qualities they want in the people who will form the remote customer service team. The search can be based on the following qualities:
- Mastery in the art of communication
- Availability of technological resources
- Positive and growth attitudes
- Self-motivation and discipline to work independently
- Experience (previous self-employment, business projects and so on)
2. Create a detailed description of the work to be done
It is necessary for freelancers to feel that by fulfilling the tasks of the remote customer service team, they will not only contribute to an essential part of the company’s growth but they will also be able to excel in their roles.
In order for them to see its importance, make a detailed presentation of the work they will be doing. To make this presentation attractive to freelancers, it must include some fundamental points:
- Make it clear what you want to achieve with this section of the company and give details about what the work entails.
- Provide a broader view of the business: the culture, the environment, what you do and what you want to achieve.
- Be very specific when presenting the essential requirements for those who want to join the team, including (experience, qualities, skills, languages and so on).
- Give precise step-by-step instructions for their functions.
3. Be patient when recruiting
You will need to take the time to find the best candidates for the remote customer service team. There will be many applicants, so take some time and analyse them well until you find the right people for the team.
4. Pre-qualify candidates
You must be prepared to receive large numbers of applications and not everyone will meet your requirements. Evaluate each of the applicants and pick out the ones that most closely match your needs. Workana provides the profiles of candidates, their qualifications and the ratings of other people they have worked with.
Contact the ones that make the pre-qualification list and let them know they have been shortlisted so the ideal candidate does not choose to work with someone else.
Workana has the best talents in remote work and there is demand for them. This is another advantage of online recruitment, you can have the best on your team, and work from any place in the world.
5. Test the communication skills of the best candidates
In addition to their experience, references and a good CV, a candidate’s ability to communicate remotely must be considered. Include a direct contact with each of the candidates in the selection process.
Make video calls or use Workana’s chat channel for one-on-one conversations. This will help discover who has a strong ability to communicate because this is the secret to making your remote customer service team successful.
It is also important to discover if their personal values are in line with your company’s values and mission; that they fully understand what service they will be required to provide and if they are 100% willing to be part of a team.
Extra tip: Include two fundamental questions in the interviews:
- Why do you want to work for … (name of the company here)?
- How do you think your skills and experience can help our clients?
6. Choose to pay for a fixed fee or by the hour
The opportunity to form a remote customer service team with freelancers gives you another advantage because at Workana you can select your hiring method. You can choose to hire them for a specific task (for example, answering 10 emails a day or closing 12 support tickets) or by number of hours per day (four hours a day from Monday to Friday, for example).
This flexibility allows you to create a budget according to your needs and possibilities, so you do not have to assume money commitments you do not know if you can afford.
By hiring through Workana, both parties are supported because the platform guarantees that the arrangement agreed on is fulfilled and that no one is harmed.
7. Perform the task yourself before hiring someone else
The best way to instruct and train another person to do a specific job within your company is to have done the job yourself.
This way you will know exactly what needs to be done and all the possible options to do it. Doing the job yourself will make it easier for you to recognise the ideal candidate.
Wanting to hire an entire team of professionals? Workana can help! Click here to find out how they can help your company grow with remote experts.