This Call is Being Recorded For Quality Assurance: Why?

We’re all familiar with the phrase, “This call is being recorded for quality assurance purposes”, but what does it actually mean for the companies that record them? Just think about it. When was the last time you reached out to a company for something via their support line and didn’t hear this message?

In this article, we’ll explore call recording, what companies are using those recordings for, and how they can improve their customer service quality. Plus, we’ll talk about the privacy and legality questions surrounding it, and how you can easily add them into your agent’s scripts.

What is call center quality assurance anyway?

Call center quality assurance (QA for short) is a systematic process that’s designed to improve the overall customer experience when contacting call centers.

By monitoring interactions, evaluating results, and training agents to improve on their shortcomings, QA can make significant improvements to how businesses interact with their customers. It plays a crucial role in benchmarking and upholding service excellence, ensuring that every customer interaction not only meets but exceeds the expected standards.

Integrating QA processes and software enables businesses to get the full view of how their customer service teams interact with customers, how to improve these interactions, what drives customers to reach out, and much more.

Why do companies record calls for quality assurance? 6 reasons

Recording calls for quality assurance is vital to any call center that aims to deliver the best customer experience possible. It’s not about monitoring who calls—these interactions are recorded to help improve the entire experience for the customer.

Here are six compelling reasons why you might hear, “This call is being recorded for quality assurance purposes”:

• Onboarding for new employees and continuous training: Call recordings are invaluable for training purposes. They offer real-life examples of interactions that can help new hires understand expected performance levels, as well as difficult or unique interactions, and allow more experienced agents to hone their skills too.

• Evaluating agent performance to find areas for improvement: Regularly reviewing recorded calls enables you to assess your agents' performance accurately. Identifying weak spots allows for targeted coaching and development, ensuring that your team performs at its best.

• Identifying common problems and trends across all calls: By analyzing call recordings, you can detect common issues and trends that may be driving your customers to reach out. Addressing these issues helps improve your overall service level quality and customer satisfaction.

• Making sure agents are adhering to company policy and regulations: Compliance is critical for many industries. Call recordings help ensure that agents are following not just company policies but legal regulations that could possibly impact your business or brand’s reputation.

• Enhancing the customer experience: Listening to recorded phone calls provides direct feedback from customers, helping businesses understand their needs and expectations. This insight is vital for making informed decisions that enhance the customer experience.

• Dispute resolution and clarifying miscommunications: Recorded calls can serve as evidence in resolving disputes or clarifying miscommunications between agents and customers. This helps ensure transparency and maintain trust with your customers.

How QA call recording actually benefits customers

As we covered in the previous section, the purpose of recording phone calls is to discover areas that need improvement—whether for individual agents, processes, or communications. It gives businesses the most actionable data possible to identify issues and improve not just their product but the overall customer experience.

Reduces average handle time

Recording calls for quality assurance is crucial in reducing agents' average handle time (AHT). Supervisors can identify repetitive questions, streamline response processes, and provide agents with targeted training by analyzing recorded interactions. This enables agents to resolve issues more efficiently, reducing the time spent on each call.

Over time, this leads to shorter call durations, increased customer satisfaction, and improved efficiency overall.

Improves first contact resolution rates

Through detailed analysis of recorded calls, common issues and successful resolution techniques can be identified (or used for testing). This information can then be used to train agents on best practices and effective problem-solving strategies.

Equipping agents with the knowledge and tools to address customer concerns quickly and correctly increases the chances of issues being resolved in the first interaction.

Helps personalize service (and improves product offerings)

Businesses can analyze recorded calls and gain valuable insights into customer preferences, pain points, and expectations. They can then use this data to help tailor their services to meet individual needs and identify areas to improve their products.

Personalized interactions often lead to stronger customer loyalty and relationships, resulting in repeat business and increased sales.

Removes friction from the customer journey

The modern consumer generally doesn’t want to call businesses in the first place. 62% of millennials and 75% of Gen-Z customers prefer self-service to calling.

Making the process as smooth as possible can make a huge difference to the customer experience, and the best way to do that is by collecting data from recorded calls. This can streamline processes, simplify procedures, and eliminate unnecessary steps within your call center workflows so customers don’t have to feel like it’s a chore to reach out.

Ensures agent and business accountability

Call recordings provide an objective record of interactions, enabling supervisors to assess agent performance and adherence to company policies (and regulations, too). This transparency helps spot areas for personalized training. Still, it can also be used to ensure that data privacy regulations are being followed—which is essential for industries that handle sensitive data.

Additionally, recorded calls serve as evidence in disputes or complaints, ensuring that agents and the business can be held accountable for their actions.

What about my privacy? Is it legal to record calls?

When you’re considering call recording for quality assurance, one of the most glaring issues is the concerns over the privacy and legality of it. Your customers’ privacy is incredibly important, and thankfully, call recording is a highly regulated practice designed to keep them safe and private.

In many regions, laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) in the U.S. set stringent guidelines for call recording. These regulations mandate that customers must be informed about the recording and provide their consent. Additionally, that data must be securely stored and only accessed by authorized personnel.

Regulatory bodies frequently monitor compliance, ensuring that companies adhere to these standards. Violating these regulations can result in severe penalties, meaning it’s in your best interests to ensure your call center follows them.

Implementing call recording within these regulations helps enhance service quality and builds trust with your customers. They will appreciate your transparency and commitment to keeping their data safe. Plus, they can opt out of call recording if they wish.

This call is being recorded for quality assurance: 4 tips for telling customers

How do you tell your customers about the call recording? Here are 4 things to keep in mind when delivering that opening disclaimer at the start of a phone call.

• Use clear, concise language in your disclaimer. Ensure your message is clear and easy to understand and doesn’t have any legal jargon or complicated phrasing. A simple “This call is being recorded for quality assurance purposes” is simple, straightforward, and easy to interpret. Clarity helps avoid confusion and puts customers at ease.

• Tell them why the call is being recorded. Customers will appreciate knowing why their call is being recorded. Explain how these recordings are used to help train staff, improve service quality, and ensure accurate information. This helps justify your company’s use of call recordings and shows the customer that it’s for improvement.

• Give an alternative for customers who don't want to be recorded. Offer options for those who want to opt out. This could include directing them to a non-recorded line or offering alternative communication methods. Giving customers choices shows that your business respects their choice and values their right to privacy. In some rare situations where you cannot offer them an alternative, be as transparent as possible before disconnecting the call.

• Always be transparent and focus on building trust. Continually emphasize your commitment to protecting customer data and maintaining privacy. Being transparent about your recording practices builds trust with your customers. Additionally, make sure your agents keep the tone warm and friendly when mentioning it to help put them at ease.

“This call is being recorded for quality assurance purposes”: Script templates

It’s important to recognize the balance between compliance and communication. Transparently notifying callers at the beginning of a call is a legal requirement for most locales, and it also sets the tone for the rest of the interaction with the customer.

To help your agents navigate this without sounding clunky or unwilling, we’ve got a few example scripts that they can use. Regardless of what your call center ends up using, it’s important to keep it concise, transparent, and professional.

1. "Thank you for calling [Company Name]. This call is being recorded for quality assurance purposes to ensure we provide you with the best possible service. How may I assist you today?"
2. "Welcome to [Company Name]. Please be advised that this call may be recorded for quality assurance and training purposes. How can I help you?"
3. "Hello, you've reached [Company Name]. To help us continually improve our customer service, this call may be recorded for quality assurance purposes. What can I do for you today?"
4. "Hi [Customer Name], thanks for calling [Company Name]. Just a heads-up that this call may be recorded so we can ensure we're providing you with top-notch service. How may I assist you today?"

Conclusion

Implementing call recording for QA in your call center brings significant benefits, from improving service quality to impacting vital metrics like AHT and FCR, personalizing interactions, and more.

It’s a great method for companies to improve while also being transparent with their customers and how they use that data. Privacy concerns will always exist, but with an honest and open approach—alongside following regulations—you can succeed without violating any rights.

Pairing call recording data with powerful tools like Scorebuddy can help maximize its impact. You can use our powerful QA platform to improve training sessions, create agent dashboards, and track key metrics across your entire company.