Team Building Locations

Here are the most common TB locations frequently used by Call Center employees:

• Pansol, Laguna - You're either new or not a call center agent if you haven't been to any resorts in Pansol. My teammates and I used to joke about it. Pansol naman para maiba. (Let's go to Pansol for a change.) **with a matching sarcastic tone**
• Linden or any similar hotel suites - If you're team is just looking for a place to drink booze, then, these suites are the best picks.
• Videoke bars - Tight on budget? There's Muchos near MetroWalk or anywhere in QC circle is fine.

Now, for those who have allotted some money for their Team Building or those who won a prize money from their respective companies, here are the top destinations:

• Batangas resorts like Blue Coral, Kabayan and Munting Buhangin
• Puerto Galera - If you can't afford to go to Boracay for its white beach, then, try Galera.
• Boracay - Station 1 houses the exclusive and expensive hotels and resorts. Station 2 is the 'party station'. Although hotels are still expensive at Station 2, they're cheaper than that of Station 1. The good thing about Station 2 is that most of the bars and parties are located here. Station 3 are for those who are trying to spend less on hotel accommodations in order to spend more on parties at Station 2. lol! **Oh yeah, the pic above was taken at Boracay in one of the team buildings I attended.

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

The Irate Caller

Caller: Your f*%&ing service sucks! I've waited 50 minutes on your stupid automated system just to be transferred by a f&%*ing idiot to you. So don't ask me what I'm calling about because you should have that f$%^ing information in front of you!!!

toot... toot... toot.... **call released**

LOL! But seriously, how do you deal with an irate caller?

A colleague once asks me how I keep my composure sometimes because even if my callers are irate I'm not usually affected by them. So here are my answers:

1. Don't listen to them when they rant. If you have a team conference, chat with your teammates instead. Just let the customer say what he wants to say. Once he calms down, ask for the issue.

2. Don't interrupt. Just let the caller rant all he/she wants.

3. Stop apologizing. They get more irritated if you do that. Don't say the line, "I understand where you're coming from."

4. Engage yourself on other matters while the customer is shouting in your ear piece. Try to check possible causes of the call. Check previous documentation from agents, perform some line tests and so on. Once he's done talking, ask him about your findings and go from there.

5. Use your company's abuse script if the customer tends to shout all the swear words that can't even be found in the dictionary. If they want to be respected, then, they should learn to respect you as well.

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

Wasiwas Mode

The act of ending a call without arriving at a correct resolution to a caller's concerns is called 'Wasiwas'. The term is also known as 'Para-Paraan' or 'Ways-Ways'.


Have you already seen the movie Real Steel? If you have, then, you should be able to recall the scene where Charlie (a role played by Hugh Jackman) received a call from the people he owed money from. Do you remember what he did on that scene? That's a Wasiwas mode. If you haven't watched the movie yet, I suggest you do so. It's a good film. ;)


Agent1:  Tara, lunch break tayo! (Let's have our lunch break.)
Agent2: Sandali, tapusin ko lang tong call ko. (Wait up, I'll just finish this call.)
Agent2: Caller, remove the splitter and plug your modem direct to the phonejack instead.
**Call got disconnected**
Agent2: Na-wasiwas ko na call ko. Lunch na tayo. (I just did a wasiwas mode. Let's go grab some lunch.)

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

Veteran Moves to Lower Down AHT

AHT or Average Handle Time is comprised of 3 components namely; Talk Time, Hold Time and ACW (After Call Work).

Legit way to ensure you're hitting your target AHT is ensuring that you're troubleshooting effectively and within your scope of support, not placing the customer on hold and not using ACW by completing your notes before the call ends.

Admittedly, that's not easy. Right? I know you'll agree with me. Lol!

So here are some veteran moves to lower down AHT. Take note that the following tips WILL NOT GUARANTEE success and may even be the cause of your termination. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!

- To lower down your talk time, ask your customer to remove the dual line splitter and have the modem directly connected to the phonejack. This technique only works for those tech support reps that handle DSL connection and only if the customer is calling from the phone connected to the same dual line splitter. lol!


- Remember that Hold Time is computed by the total number of minutes you use the hold button over the total number of hold times you made. So, in order to lower down your hold time, you'll need to add a lot more divisor. Do a 1-second hold on some of your calls. This will only work if you're using the hard phone.


- As for ACW, instead of pressing the ACW button, press instead the AUX button. Don't do this regularly or better yet don't do it at all!

There you have it folks. Again, following those veteran moves can get you into trouble. But hey, if you want a different career, then, that's the easiest way to do it. lol!

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

Wireless Connection - Limited or No Connectivity

Yeah, I know that I mentioned that I will do away from technical stuff but from this day on forth I will post one or two tech info each month. Well, hopefully this will help bring down the call volume for DSL tech support centers out there. Or probably not. Haha!

Alright, Limited or No Connectivity issues for wireless on WinXP computers are mostly the common issues that we, Technical Support Reps receive on a daily basis. So, what triggers that error? It's down to four factors:
- wireless key or type mismatch
- wireless interference
- wireless adapter driver issue
- gateway/router

How to resolve Wireless Limited or No Connectivity issue for WinXP. Follow the steps in order:
1. Check if the wireless password you're using is correct. Check also if the wireless type on the router is set to WEP key or not. If it's set to WPA, then, I suggest you change that to WEP encryption.
2. Change your wireless channel. Go for channel 9 or 11. Or try to tweak the channel until you get it.
3. Disable/Reenable the wireless driver. You can find that under Device Manager / Network Adapter's list.
4. Powercycle (turn off/on) your gateway/router. Last resort is reset but only do that if you have only one device connecting wireless or all your devices are failing to connect wireless.

If the steps are not clear or you'd want a step-by-step instructions, feel free to drop a comment.

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

Video Clips During Training Days

During CCT (Cultural and Communications Training), a trainer will always show you some clips/videos to improve your communication skills. Mostly, the videos they show feature the common mistakes we encounter when we speak in English.

SBC Packers - This is a classic video clip and in the 3 call center companies I've been with, they always show this video clip. Pack that sheet! Pack that sheet!

Maritess VS the Superfriends - Another great clip from Rex Navarette who made the clip above.

Now, how about an audition for Music Idol? "Ken Lee... Tu libu dee boo douchu..."

Or a different version of the song, "Jesus Take the Wheel"?

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

SupCall anyone?

For those who are not familiar with the term "Supcall", it's a coined word from "supervisor" and "call" which means a Supervisor-requested call. Here are the reasons why a customer would be requesting for a SupCall:

• The caller got irritated with the agent because they can't resolve the issue
• Agent has a condescending tone and that the caller felt mistreated **although in most cases, the agent will not pass the phone to his supervisor and instead release the call to avoid getting a sanction**
• Immediate request due to a bad experience with another agent
• No particular reason. Some callers think they can just request for anyone

I'm proud to say I only get the last 2. Okay, I probably had some from the first one when I was still a newbie. lol!

Supervisors avoiding supcalls? You bet. There are a lot of them out there. I'm not sure as to why they have the title of a supervisor if they won't accept a SupCall.

Personal Experience with a supervisor from a different team:

Me: Hi, Supcall please. My TL is not around and there are no 'floorwalkers' available.

TL: I'm sorry but I'm doing audits. Try to look for other TLs.

**Here comes one of his agents**

Agent: TL, tara yosi tayo.

Supervisor: Sige pare. Kanina pa nga akong walang ginagawa dito.                             

       WTF!!! 

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

NCNS? - No Way!

NCNS - No Call No Show. Simply put, agent is absent and didn't call an hour or 2  before his/her shift to explain why he/she will be absent.


"I can't go to work today because I have CEPHALGIA."


What the hell is that?! Well, that's the explanation that one of my colleagues once gave to our Command Center in order not to be tagged as NCNS. Look that word up in the dictionary, then, laugh out loud!

I guess he ran out of reasons or types of illnesses he can use as an excuse. Haha!

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

The Reason Behind the Name

BuhayBampira - In english it means "Living like a Vampire". And why did I used that as my website's name? It's because call center agents here in the Philippines are awake at night and asleep during the day. We're just like the vampires in the movies. Kuha mo? (Understood?) lol! ;)


From this day forth, I'll be sharing some bloopers from a friend of mine. Let's call her Miss Classic.


Caller: What is my system password?
Miss Classic: A as in Apple. F as in F*ck... oh Foxtrot! O as in Zero. I mean O as in Oval...

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

Petiks Mode

Also spelled as 'petix' or 'peticks'.

Meaning: A state when a call center agent is logged in on the phone but not taking in calls. And no, the agent is not on break schedule either. He/she was either pulled out for a training, coaching and meeting OR simply lucky that there are just few customers calling in for the day.



Normal call scenario:

Agent: Please close all the windows that are open on your screen.
Caller: Okay, I'll do that.
---after 5 mins---
Caller: Sorry, it took so long.
Agent: That's alright. Now, could you please open control panel?
Caller: How do I do that? And what will I do about these many Internet Explorer programs on my screen?
Agent: Ahm... Didn't you close those windows down earlier?
Caller **laughs**:  I thought you were asking me to close the windows in my house.

Closing Spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for visiting. Have a Nice Day!

The Vampire Diaries

Wait, you're mistaken. This is not a review of that TV series. This is an account of my life in the call center industry. Uh-huh. You've heard it right.

I've been with the call center industry for the past 6 years of my life and surprisingly I'm still alive and kicking! Don't worry, this blog won't focus on troubleshooting internet connection (yep, I'm a tech support agent) but rather on a whole lot of stuff: bloopers, hearsay, supcalls, floorwalkers, relationships and the likes. Ahaha. Just kidding.

Hmm... I see some eyebrows raised.

Nagtatanong: Call Center ka?
Agent: Hindi. Tao ako na nagwowork sa call center.

Closing spiel: Again, this is Yallit and thank you for reading. Have a nice day!