It doesn’t matter if you were hired to sell products, services or provide customer support. You were hired to do just one thing…keep customers coming back to your business. It’s no secret that in order to survive companies need repeat business and lots of it. So they hired your fabulous self to do the job. Oh! And also to do the tasks associated with the job that come with the territory – but really that is almost beside the point. They give you a title that lets everyone know which tasks you will be performing and then when you get’ trained in’ you are shown how the company likes these tasks to be done. But, chances are they NEVER gave you any training on how you are supposed to accomplish the MOST IMPORTANT part of your job – getting repeat business from your customers over and over again.
Being responsible for such a vital part of your company’s liveliness sounds pretty overwhelming indeed – but thankfully, it’s really not that tough. However there are some basic skills that you are going to need to help you get the job done with a smile. Some of these abilities may come naturally to you and luckily you can work on those that do not.
Active listening – This is not the same as just ‘hearing’ someone. Active listening involves paying attention to ALL the ways a customer is trying to communicate with you. Listening to their words and interrupting their facial expressions and body language in order to get to the heart of their needs or issues and finding the best possible solution for them.
Communication – In addition to being able to truly listen to what customers are trying to get across to you, customer service workers be able to communicate information that is clear and to the point. Whether in person, over the phone or through e-mail or other methods of correspondence it is important that you be able to convey information about products and policies in a clear-cut and concise manner.
Memory retention – Customer service representatives need to keep a lot of information in their heads which is easier on some days (or for some people) than others. Customer names, company policies, product details. You may also need to remember transactions for customer follow-up if that applies to your business. It all takes up quite a bit of brain-space. You’ll also need to save some gray matter to be able to process information from other departments in the company so that you can convey that information to customers or department heads accurately.
Negotiation and Persuasion – Those working in customer service often find themselves in the position of needing to negotiate with customers or persuade them to accept a certain policy or product. You can use these skills to entice a disgruntled customer back into the fold or disclose less than desirable product or policy information. Possessing strong negotiation and persuasion skills can get you far at work as well as in the rest of your life.
Efficiency – Customers want their business handled quickly AND accurately. One is simply no good without the other. The desire to be efficient will drive you to find new and better ways to raise the service bar and anticipate customer needs so that you can fill them more quickly making the customer experience that much better.