eHarmony Blog.com

A customer service-industry trade magazine called “1to1 Magazine” published a write-up of eHarmony’s Customer Service department in its October 2007 issue. It talks about the day-to-day lives of CSRs in their call centre, from recruiting to training to staff recognition (“birthday lunches, drawings for prizes, and daily gift incentives”). It also talks a bit about the upgraded FAQ on the site, and the CSAT (Customer Satisfaction) surveys they send after each customer contact. It told stories of a couple of successful call-in experiences.

The article is also the first published source proving that eHarmony Call Centre reps can let you retake the questionnaire and change your first name in the system.

An excerpt:

One way in which the company elevates the agents’ status is by delivering empathy training, because they find themselves, in many cases, counseling the customers. As a result, Ackerman has abandoned average handle time and instead encourages his reps to stay on the phone as long as possible to meet customers’ needs. “We let our agents talk to customers as long as necessary,” he says. “We can get more resolution with a customer on the phone. Typically one answered question leads to another, and we spend more time…adjusting the accounts to have the best experience.” …

eHarmony member Wende Kozlow raves about the service she received from eHarmony’s customer care department when she was searching for her match. When she first signed up on the site four years ago, she completed the lengthy personality profile and then put it aside because of a change of heart. Two years later she decided to revisit the site, but knew she had changed since filling out the original form. The company’s policy is not to allow members to alter their personality profiles, but after explaining to the agent that she felt as though hers no longer accurately represented her, the agent reset it.

In a separate experience, she called customer care to ask to use an alias first name because she wanted to remain anonymous. When the agent could hear the concern in her voice, she allowed Kozlow to change her name. “It’s dealing with a different thing,” Kozlow says. “It’s not like your computer isn’t working, it’s a sensitive issue and I thought they were quite sensitive to that.” …

eHarmony also recognizes and motivates its agents through the Inspiration Wall. The company receives feedback from members daily, and spotlights agents who receive positive remarks by posting the letters on the Inspiration Wall. Most of the messages are thank-you notes to agents for understanding their customers’ concerns and for providing support and encouragement. “I find myself walking by it for an extra pick-me-up,” Yoshizawa says.

Here’s the link: 1to1 Magazine, October 2007 (registration required)