Hired for a customer service position. Was told at orientation that up to an additional $5000 per month is available for selling services to the existing customers we encounter. After 6 weeks of training, I learned that there is a monthly sales goal which is multiplied by your success at keeping customers from having to call back. It is in reality a requirement because your calls are routinely monitored to see if you are doing "discovery" by asking personal FORTE questions about Family, Occupation, Recreation, Travel, Entertainment on every call. You are told to use this information to convince customers that they need to add a line. If you do not meet the sales quota and are not making offers based on discovery (you can’t just ask if they want to add a line) you receive verbal and written warnings that can escalate to termination. Keep in mind that customers needing to add lines are routed to the actual sales department. As a service consultant, I get calls from customers with such issues as high bills, unwanted features and lines added when only a phone upgrade was needed, line cancellation, and over billing. Although I am very good at solving problems, I am told to "hold the resolution hostage" by not working on it while I make "discovery". Because once you solve their problem, they have no reason to talk to you anymore. You are told that making a sale takes priority on every call. You are told to make the customer feel that you are giving them a special deal just from you to them, but these are available to all customers. I have asked to listen to the calls of successful reps to learn how to make my quota but am denied because of privacy issues besides "every call is different so that won’t help". Getting help from supervisors comes quickly if a sale is in the works even to the point of cutting in on the call with distracting advice that the customer can’t hear. If meeting a sales quota is so important that it can result in termination, shouldn’t that have been covered in orientation and training?
