Must-Have Customer Service Skills In A Saturated Job Market

What makes you stand out from other professionals in the customer service field?

Most employers prefer to hire candidates who have the right skills and can deliver excellent customer experience that aligns to their brand.

Think about it; you have the right technical skills, knowledge of the business and products but how rigid are your customer service skills?

As a professional what customer service skills are needed in this tough job market?

Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence is the capability of individuals to recognize and understand their own emotions and those of others. This is a vital skill for customer service professionals because it helps with conflict resolution.

Are you able to show empathy while under pressure during your interactions with customers? Can you effectively use positive moods to diffuse customer complaints?

For instance, a customer service agent with high emotional intelligence is careful of the kind of language they use with customers. Even in an angry state, they will not use offensive phrases to get back at the client. As an alternative, they will use positive phrases and an understanding tone to calm the client and solve their problem.

Active Listening

All a customer wants is to be heard and understood. Show customers that you care by actively listening to their needs and responding in a way that says ‘I understand you and respect your point.’ This in turn makes a customer feel recognized and reduces stressful situations.

Active listening also builds trust. As you speak to the clients without arguing, using positive language and relating to them, let them also know that you are doing everything in your power to help them. For example, you can use statements such as “I see”, “I understand” to show that you are on their side.

Listening to customers actively takes an assortment of skills that can either be learned or trained but get better with practice.

Using The Right Tone

How can tone affect the way our words are interpreted?

I remember a few years ago, I replied to a client on email about one of our services. In my head, I knew that the reply would clear things right up. Unfortunately, the client was offended by my email because I had used a general tone that was interpreted as condescending.

It is quite hard to convey tone in words; be it email or text.  But in our increasingly digital world, friendly communication is important. You should be able to converse in a casual, positive tone all the time.

Perfecting your customer service tone depends on you, your voice, and your customers. Treat every customer interaction as a chance to get better at your tone.

To conclude, take time to understand what your customers want by listening to them, understanding them, and responding accordingly. Remember, it’s a conversation not just a sales pitch.

If you are coming up short on any of these skills, consider taking up our Free Customer Service Job Training Program to improve these skills.