Working in a call center can be stressful enough without having to worry about the noise around you affecting the quality of the call. If you’re inside an old office building, the noise control might not be the best, but there are many different ways to adjust to a loud call center. In this article, I will talk about how to reduce noise in a call center and help you have a more peaceful workday inside a noisy call center.
A couple of answers out of the 32 listed below on how to reduce noise in a call center are by having the rule to manage a call center like a library. Also, using workplace plants to absorb some of the sounds from one caller to another can be very beneficial.
One thing I need to say is that I’ve never worked in a call center. So to gather all this information I asked the question about “How to reduce noise in a call center” in a Reddit community. The answers they gave me are from real people that work in a call center environment. Things You Can Do Right Away to Help You Deal With a Loud Call Center
Noise is an actual problem in numerous call centers. So what possible remedies can we offer?
1 – Train Your Agents to Keep Their Voice Down
Agents have to be aware of their fellow representatives when talking on the phone.
In training as well as in practice, repeat the message that it is necessary to keep a low degree tone of voice. The agents don’t have to whisper necessarily, but if an agent has to talk to someone, it is best to go to their cubicle instead of talking over the dividers.
2 – Minimize Staffing Density
Among the most effective yet expensive options is to decrease the number of operators. If the operators are packed in a room like sardines, then it will be much louder and much more difficult to concentrate on your calls.
Ideally, you should have more than 120 square feet each agent. This must provide individuals even more area to take a breath and make the call center an extra loosened up atmosphere.
3 – Incorporate White Noise devices In the Call Center
You could mount white noise machines. These devices help develop synthetic degrees of background noise and also mask the extra interfering noises that could distract or make it difficult to hear what the agents are talking about.
“This allows personnel to hear customers much more plainly without being sidetracked by the general sounds of daily phone call center pressure,” explains a Reddit commenter.
The commentator is seasoned phone call center manager and an advocate of this technique: “I utilize this white noise as well as it truly helps to concentrate on your own voice and also stays clear of the consumer hearing all the background noise.”
Echo canceling devices could additionally be set up. There is even some white noise system that can be adjusted based on the call volume in call centers. That’s something to look into. Here is an Amazon link for adjustable white noise machines that might help.
4 – Return to Having Cubicles as Individual Working Area
Taking down the partitions can cause an open-plan feel and look, it moreover makes the background noise boost. Cubicles supply first acoustic baffles, along with providing a degree of personal privacy.
Noise-reducing foam can be set up with each workstation as well as enhancing the range between the siting of agents will most definitely help in reducing the noise level.
5 – Place All Loud Devices In a Separate Room
Sitting in front of a copy machine that is frequently beeping to educate you it is out of paper would irritate the calmest person. The very same could be said concerning the coffee maker or water dispenser. So consider your phone call center layout. Take into consideration positioning all office devices at the rear of the office or in one more room so no one can listen to these annoying and loud audios.
6 – Don’t Hold Meetings Alongside The Call Center Agents
Splitting up is additionally useful in the call center atmosphere. It’s a good idea to establish separate conference rooms for all team conferences, both major and one on ones.
As one Reddit commenter acknowledged “It appears that unnecessary talking between staff members as they meet in the corridor can truly aggravate others on the telephone, so take all discussions right into another space.”
7 – Treat the Call Center As a Library
One of the Reddit responders said that a few years back they visited the quietest call center they ever stood foot in. Their call center (for high-end server support) felt much more like a library.
On tour, they were asked to keep quiet or murmur (practically in whispers). “Our assistance specialists require it to be peaceful to be able to focus on addressing the clients’ technological issues.”– How revitalizing!
8 – Have an Internal Webchat System Available
Make an internal webchat for the employees and supervisors available. A set up such as an internal group or private chat would undoubtedly put an end to shouting across the room or rising to talk to the supervisor.
If you have an “Intranet” set up, then you can indeed have an IT person look into providing an internal chat for your call center.
9 – Soft and Silent
Bouncing acoustic waves off hard wall surfaces as well as wooden floorings will undoubtedly raise the sound levels in your workplace by a substantial quantity. Replace wood floor or cover with carpet and also present some plants to assist by soaking up ambient sound.
Call centers could likewise decrease noise by including sound-absorbing material in between agents or on floorings and wall surfaces. This can reduce the influence of adjoining discussions on their capacity to hear customers.
You could use acoustic panels in the furnishings, strong carpetings, blinds and also ceiling absorber panels.
10 – Use Plants to Absorb Noise In a Call Center
Using big plants in the office can help to disperse sound. The Yucca and also the Cheese Plant come to mind. Don’t overdo it though; you don’t want the call center looking like the tropics.
Make sure that you have someone to water the plants.
11 – Inhibit Representatives From Holding Discussions Behind Functioning Agents
We instruct our team never to hold a ‘conversation’ behind any agents on the phones. Firstly, it’s rude, and secondly, it distracts the working agent from efficiently doing their work.
A loud call center offers customers an understanding that it is not a specialist organization. It just makes the call center sound like there’s a cluster F*** going on in the background.
12 – Use a Two Ear Headset
Call centers are busy and noisy settings. Regularly getting on the phone can be quite challenging as you can hear the commotion around you.
A duo (binaural) headset is especially good as it lowers the noise around you; and also guarantees a crystal clear conversation. When utilizing a duo headset, the sound directs into both ears of the operator on the telephone.
Staff members will entirely focus on calls. They will also not try to speak louder to hear the customers on the other end of the line.
13 – Encourage Your Agents to Transfer to a Different Location For Breaks
You can have rules in place where the call center agents need to leave their desks while on break. It’s suitable for noise control and also great for morale to have a change of scenery while on break. It would not be a bad idea to have a soundproof break room where the employees could play pool or sit in large comfortable chairs to relax while talking and drinking coffee.
You could additionally have deals with companies that deliver tasty treats like dark chocolate and homemade pastries. They could set up at the rear of the contact center, behind a soundproof wall surface, to ‘encourage’ representatives to move to that area.
14 – Noise-Canceling Headsets In Call Centers
Noise-canceling modern technology considerably lowers background noise, allowing for a crisp interaction between the representative and client.
However, the quality of the headset is likewise reasonably important. If you feel extra comfy with a headset in one ear, then make sure you get a headset with noise canceling ability.
Noise-canceling headsets will improve the consumer’s audio experience. The additional impact is that the basic sound level in your work environment will undoubtedly be lower.
Headset innovation has gone up significantly over the last couple of years; Integrating noise-canceling and wireless abilities, which can be vital in a call center.
15 – Raise the Volume of the Call Center Agent’s Own Voice Feedback
Raising the volume of the agent’s own voice feedback in their headset can aid in making the operator talk in a lower voice. At least this way they might realize that there is no need to speak so loudly.
Talking loudly is one symptom of a noisy call center. You’ve noticed when people talk on the phone in public they tend to speak louder than if they were in a secluded room? Well, this is the same thing because by hearing the background noise the person on the phone will try to compensate by talking louder when it’s not actually necessary.
16 – Ban All Types of Cellphones and Smartphones
Individual phones could additionally be a noisy nuisance. A cellphone buzzing on a work desk while the proprietor is out at lunch or in the conference room in a lengthy meeting can lead to a cell phone being “accidentally” dropped in a cup of hot coffee!
Carry out a policy that makes certain that all workers turn their phones off if they are away from their work desk. When the phones are away the ability to concentrate on work will rise significantly.
17 – Remember the “Noise At Word Act”
As well as always remember legal obligations also. Brought into effect in April 2006, the Noise At Work Act aims to protect staff members’ hearing in a workplace setting.
The law specifies that companies need to carry out safety measures to keep daily noise exposure below 85 decibels for their employees. It is essential to make sure adjustments are produced for an efficient and healthy and balanced workforce.
18 – Try Installing Acoustic Ceiling Tiles Instead of Standard Ceiling Tiles
There are acoustic ceiling tiles that you can invest in the call center instead of conventional ceiling tiles. Acoustic ceiling tiles will make a tremendous difference if you’re in a location where the building was built back in the sixties or seventies.
If you’re in the market to refurbish an old building, then acoustic ceiling tiles are indeed the way to go!
19 – Consider Carefully About the Games You Introduce for Break
It is essential to think about just what games you introduce the workers to while on break. Games like pool, shuffleboard and even video games can lower the stress level of the workforce.
On the other hand, it can add added stress to the other agents that are not on break. Keep in might how the games might affect the noise levels in the work area of the contact center. If you don’t have sufficient soundproofing in the break room, then make sure the activities they perform are less noisy.
20 – Place Artwork Canvasses on the Wall Surfaces
It’s not only essential to have acoustic noise absorbing ceiling tiles, but you should have things on the wall that also absorbs noise. Avoid having empty walls and consider placing some artwork to help alleviate the echo.
You can buy different artwork in bulk at places like Costco where you can purchase large paintings at reasonable prices.
21 – Separate Representatives with Glass Dividers
At number 6 I mentioned going back to cubicles, but one contributor from Reddit told me that at their call center they replaced their fabric dividers with glass dividers. He said that it made a world of difference. I will have to take his word for it because I’ve never worked in a cubicle in my life, glass or fabric.
He also said that it made the agents feel better because they did not feel so isolated behind a glass divider.
22 – Utilize a Collection of Doors and Also Corridors to Different Sections of the Call Center
Specific call centers are closed off from the lunch space and elevators by an array of doors and also passages. You should also stick a note on each door going into the call center that asks to keep their voices down.
23 – Earplug In the Open Ear
This one I thought of myself because I wear earplugs to bed. The type of earplugs I wear to bed is very comfortable. Consider placing a sponge a spongy and expanding earplug in the ear the does not contain the headset (obviously).
The single earplug will almost entirely drown out any background noise the agent heard while on a call. Worth a try and it is the cheapest “how to reduce noise in a contact center” tip on this list.
24 – Seat Same-Shift Agents With Each Other
Some call centers are open 24/7 so, where feasible, try seating same-shift telephone operators with each other in the same areas.
This will undoubtedly aid to minimize the noise levels at the end and the beginning of each shift. There will be a higher level of noise as individuals are starting or ending their work shift.
25 – Play Recordings Back to Noisy Agents!
Up until you show the loud culprit the evidence that they are too loud, they simply won’t accept that it is a strain for the people around them.
When representatives are creating a disturbance by being loud on the phone, play the recordings back to them. It might work!
Conclusion
So there you have it, after a few weeks of research I came up with this list of 25 ways on how to reduce noise in a call center. Background noise is a problem in most call centers and by utilizing some of these 25 tips, your work environment should begin to feel calmer and will, in turn, make you more relaxed, focus and productive.