Verizon is a leading telecoms company. Early on, they focused on traditional training methods, which were doing little to prepare their customer service representatives for the reality of dealing with customers.
The Verizon team also knew that the conventional approach was costing them a lot. And what’s more, their team engagement levels were low and individual knowledge retention was abysmal. In short, the organisation needed a solution that would train their customer service representatives in a way that would prepare them for real-life customer interactions. They decided to implement an immersive and engaging training solution using VR.
VR Application Overview
“Most people don’t show up at work every day ready to handle an escalated customer or to be yelled at.” These are the words of Cleo Scott, Director of Global L&D for Verizon Business Services. Scott had first-hand experience with customer service representatives. They had traditionally struggled time and time again to appease angry customers. They also found it difficult to convert possible leads into sales.
– Cleo Scott, Director of L&D Verizon Business Services
Verizon implemented a VR training programme called “The Verizon Experience” to address these challenges. Employees learnt how to de-escalate a conversation with an angry customer and practice essential soft skills, like active listening and speaking skills, as the customer conversation became increasingly tense. These simulated, real-life customer interactions are done so that employees can practice as often as possible. They are also free to make mistakes without fear of embarrassing themselves or losing a sales lead. The more they practiced, the better they got!
ROI Measures
Data gathered from the VR training simulations showed overwhelming success in multiple areas of the business. For instance, training employees had dropped from 10 hours per person (when using traditional methods) to a mere 30 minutes using VR. This reduced training time allowed representatives to focus on other tasks and improve their overall productivity.
In addition, the programme’s gamification and rewards incentivised employees to engage with the training, resulting in a significant increase in employee engagement – a 72% increase! Furthermore, Verizon reported a 10% increase in customer satisfaction, indicating that the VR training programme improved the quality of customer interactions.
By focusing on an immersive solution that would engage and increase the confidence of their employees, Verizon succeeded in improving internal processes and increasing the confidence of their staff, not to mention improving customer satisfaction too.
We’d love to talk to you about how you can use VR as a training tool that positively impacts your bottom-line.
