Is it best to treat vulnerable customers with compassion or empathy?
The fallout of the pandemic, the ongoing cost of living crisis, and ongoing geopolitical factors have all contributed to the ever-growing list of vulnerable customers. Recent research suggests that “while 17% of customers in the UK self-identify as vulnerable, as many as 67% of customers could potentially be classified as vulnerable when assessed against the Financial Conduct Authority’s criteria”. With the Contact Centre at the front line of customer service it is vital that every Contact Centre knows how to identify vulnerable customers and tailor services accordingly to provide the right levels of support.
With this in mind, we started thinking about the work that our clients do to support their vulnerable customers. At our recent Spotlight Series event on empowering Super Agents, Laura Browning at Motability Operations Ltd, the car leasing service which works to deliver the Motability Scheme, which enables disabled people and their families in the UK to lease new cars, scooters or powered wheelchairs, shared some insights about working within the organisation and how their customer service Specialists deal with their customers.
Her presentation offered a lot of food for thought, however, one thing in particular stood out. When talking about the valuable work undertaken by Motability Operations Ltd, she said that they train their customer service Specialists to be compassionate, rather than empathetic, when interacting with customers. This distinction, she said, was vital in ensuring that customers get the best service possible from their team of Specialists.
We talk a lot about the value of empathy in the Contact Centre and so this statement made us, and everyone else in the room, really sit up and take notice. As we know, empathy in the Contact Centre is essential for businesses when it comes to understanding (and delivering on) the expectations of customers. Indeed, research has revealed that empathy is considered one of the most important factors for CX when it comes to building customer loyalty. So why is compassion potentially a better trait to instil in your agents than empathy?
Empathy vs Compassion
Whilst both involve responding to other people’s emotions, by definition the two qualities differ in terms of what they focus on. Empathy, for example, is characterised by an awareness of other people’s emotional experiences, and an attempt to feel those same emotions from their perspective. Compassion meanwhile is characterised by the desire to take action to help the other person.
It’s interesting to consider what works best when it comes to delivering the best possible customer service. If a customer is reaching out to a customer service team with an issue and is evidently emotionally distressed, do you really want your agent to really feel those emotions you’re feeling and cry along with you? Or would you rather they took a compassionate approach, whereby they offer sympathy but then take action to address your concern. The latter approach ultimately leads to a much more satisfactory resolution for the customer.
Value of training
Establishing a compassionate mentality in agents is something that must be done throughout the training process to ensure it is fully implemented. At Motability Operations Ltd for example, Laura tells us that learning the art of compassionate service delivery is something that makes up a key part of their extensive Specialist training, so that they can cater to the needs of their diverse customer base who have a variety of different needs.
There is a strong business case for instilling compassion in your agents, too. Research from PwC found that 80 percent of customers surveyed stated that emotional connection influences their buying decisions.
But how can brands accomplish this? Our recommended approach to helping your agents adopt a compassionate mindset during customer interactions comes in the form of asking three key questions:
- What? Acknowledge the issue, and validate the customer’s feelings
- Why? Be curious about the customer’s issue and aim to understand their feelings fully
- How? Make a commitment to solving the issue, but only promise on what you can deliver
Reflecting on the insights from our Spotlight Series, it is clear that training agents to act with compassion, rather than empathy, can transform customer service. By taking actionable steps to understand and then address customer needs, we can build stronger, more meaningful connections between agents and customers.
If you would like to talk to us about how you can make your agents more compassionate, contact us here to speak to our expert team in more detail.
Jane is Head of Marketing at IPI with over 30 years experience in the IT marketing arena. Passionate about driving change through innovative technologies and highly focused on delivering IPI’s core messages to it’s clients and prospects.
