Skills for Customer Service Representatives

Today, I am presenting you with skills and tools that we all need as customer service representatives.

We need them especially now since more individuals are working from home.

Customer service is both a type of job and a set of job skills. As a job, customer service professionals are responsible for addressing customer needs and ensuring they have a good experience.

As a skill set, customer service entails several qualities like active listening, empathy, problem-solving and communication.

Customer service skills are the set of behaviors you rely on when interacting with a customer.

They can also be useful when following up after an initial conversation.

For example, if you work as a virtual assistant for a technology company, you may need to help customers troubleshoot problems with their devices.

To accomplish this, you will likely use several different skills like:

Communication. Communication should consist of representatives being responsive in a timely manner. You will need to communicate with customers in a clear, easy-to-understand way to solve their problem or inquiries.

Empathy: Your interactions may begin with someone who is frustrated or unhappy. It is important that you understand and identify with the feelings of others and communicate accordingly.

Patience: Clients and customers might ask several questions, be unhappy or ask you to repeat instructions several times. Patience is important to keep the conversation on track, remain personable and provide a positive experience.

Technical knowledge: To effectively solve problems, you will likely need to know a bit of technical or industry knowledge to help them resolve the issue at hand.

Customer service is used in many jobs at every level.

To succeed in a customer service role, you’ll need a variety of communication skills and personal attributes such as:

Active listening;

How to handle Conflict resolution;

Having Empathy;

Nonverbal communication (such as, body language and eye contact);

Negotiation skills;

Organizational skills;

and Professionalism.

Depending on the position you choose, you may also need additional industry-specific knowledge and training.

Practicing your soft skills can help you find positions and transfer across industries.

Soft skills are any skill or quality that can be classified as a personality trait or habit.

There are many soft skills that you could list on your resume or cover letter. Some of the most sought-after soft skills include:

Effective communication skills;

Teamwork;

Dependability;

Adaptability;

Conflict resolution;

Flexibility;

Leadership;

Problem-solving;

Research;

Creativity;

Work ethic;

and Integrity.

Customer service skills are traits and practices that equip you to address customer needs and foster a positive experience.

In general, customer service skills rely heavily on problem-solving and communication.

Customer service is often considered a “soft skill,” including traits like active listening and reading both verbal and nonverbal cues.

While traditionally you might think of customer care as a service from a business to a consumer, it is also applicable within a business.

For example, you may be in a role that provides services to other, internal teams.

In this case, you would want to ensure that you understood and were able to meet their needs. I hope that this information will help job seekers with a better understanding of the customer service industry and the type of candidates companies are looking to hire.