What’s the difference between a cold transfer vs warm transfer
The difference between a cold transfer and a warm transfer is quite simple. Let’s have a look at the differences as well as when to use which below.
What is a warm transfer?
When it comes to a warm transfer, these calls are transferred by a person who will introduce the caller and provide any information they have already gathered from the caller so the person receiving the call is better prepared to take it.
What is a cold transfer?
A cold transfer involves using call routing to transfer the caller directly to another person without any introduction or background information.
When should you use a warm transfer?
Warm transfers can often provide a superior customer experience for your callers. This is for several reasons including less repetition. Here are some examples of when they should be used:
– Emotional situations: When emotions are involved, people like to feel they have been heard and will be helped. By using a warm transfer, the caller is chatting to two humans, who are communicating to each other and are there to ensure that the caller’s situation is handled with care and compassion.
– Escalation calls: We know how frustrating it can be to try and solve an ongoing problem and having to explain what’s happened again and again to different people. By using a warm transfer for these calls, whoever your caller talks to is clued up and able to help without having to make the caller repeat themselves, especially if they’re angry.
– Sensitive subject matters: It’s hard enough to talk about sensitive matters without having to tell multiple people about them. Warm transfer ensures the caller gets to the right person as soon as possible, meaning their sensitive matter isn’t shared with people who don’t need to know.
What are the downsides of a warm transfer?
Warm transfers have many benefits, but there are a few downsides. Although it might only be a one minute conversation between the two employees transferring the call, when busy, this time could make all the difference. It’s not just about time for the business, but also for the caller, if their matter is time sensitive, using a cold transfer would be the quickest way to get them to the right person.
When should you use a cold transfer?
Although we’ve mentioned that a cold transfer doesn’t have the same customer service touch as a warm transfer, it certainly has its uses. Here are some situations in which you should use a cold transfer:
– If your business is having a busy period, then using cold transfers can free up your staff quicker.
– When your caller has an urgent matter that requires attention, transferring them coldly will speed up the process.
They might be less personal, but a cold transfer done in the correct way can still deliver great customer service. By telling the caller why they’re being transferred and who too, as well as giving a call-back number in case of the call being disconnected, they have received a seamless and thorough customer experience.
What are the downsides of a cold transfer?
Cold transfers can be a really helpful tool, but only if done correctly. Without the warm transfer element, a few things could go wrong. The caller might have to repeat themselves to the new employee they’re talking to, which can be frustrating. The call might also get disconnected, though this wouldn’t purely be a cold transfer problem.
Are warm transfers better than cold transfers?
When it comes to customer service, warm transfers are generally preferred to cold transfers for all the reasons outlined above. Simply put, a warm transfer is more customer friendly and gives the caller a more seamless experience as everyone they talk to knows the situation and can continue to help with their inquiry.
How to provide a warm transfer over the phone
So, how do you provide a warm transfer over the phone? Here are some helpful tips to follow:
- When talking with the caller, make sure to find out as much information as possible which can help you direct them to the best person to help with their inquiry. Some people might know exactly who they want to talk to, which is great, job done! But for most, they don’t know and need you to guide them.
- Although you need to get all the information pertinent to the caller’s inquiry, don’t drag the call out for too long. If you’re not the person who can solve their problem, then they won’t want to keep chatting to you.
- Once you have obtained all the information needed, you now need to decide who is the best person to take the call, using your knowledge of your colleagues and who would be able to deal with the inquiry.
- Next, you’ll need to relay all the key information you got from the caller to your colleague in a timely fashion, you don’t want to keep your caller on hold for too long!
These are a few tips on how to provide a warm transfer over the phone, but as each business is different the best thing to do is to try them out and see what works best for your callers and staff.
Now you know more about cold and warm transfers, you can start working out which one to use within your business. Here at VoiceNation we provide live answering and call forwarding solutions to suit your business, and can use both warm or cold call transfer depending on your requirements. To find out more give our team a call on 866.766.5050 or view our pricing options.