For sure, you can have a great career focusing on live chat work only. Thousands of people do this very successfully. But what if you could add another string to your bow and bump up your earning potential?

Many live chat agents are doing precisely this by getting into voice chat work. This is a natural extension of what you are already doing, so it’s a fantastic option to consider. 

Voice chat work is all about providing customer support over the phone. Instead of chatting to customers using text chat, you will have a regular telephone conversation with them.

For various reasons, many live chat agents don’t like the idea of having a real person-to-person conversation. If you feel that way, that’s OK—there is plenty of text chat work out there for you. But if you are prepared to do voice chat, this opens up a new way to make more money.

Because employers find it hard to hire people to do voice chat work, rates tend to be higher. And if you are able and willing to do both text chat and voice chat work, they are higher again. So it’s well worth adding this extra string to your bow and putting more money in your pocket. 

Voice chat work is not difficult. In fact, it can be very enjoyable. You can often choose your hours, and the compensation is favorable. 

The most important skill for a voice chat agent is the ability to speak the required language well. Native speakers are preferred in most cases. However, second-language speakers may also qualify if they have a high level of fluency.

What customer service managers care about most is the user experience. If customers have trouble understanding what the agent is saying, this is obviously a problem. But if you speak the language well with a clear voice, you should be good to go. 

The next most important factor is a friendly and helpful attitude. If your style is abrupt, or you seem uncooperative, customers will get upset. This job is for you if you can be cheerful and approachable—even when the customer is upset or even angry.  

Thirdly, you need good communication skills. Just as in text chat work, you need to keep customers in the loop. Don’t keep them waiting too long, and ensure they know what’s happening. Nobody likes being left on hold, wondering what on earth is going on. 

The responsibilities of a voice chat operator are similar to those of a text chat agent:

If you enjoy talking to people, then you may find you love the voice chat role. You will get paid just for talking to people...that may be just up your street!