Customer service skills are the qualities and abilities a customer service representative needs to provide a good customer experience. They include a mix of technical and soft skills.
1. Empathy
Empathy is essential for good customer experiences. If a customer is upset, defending yourself can pour gasoline on the fire. Instead, let them know that you understand where they're coming from and will do everything you can to help. The same goes for customers who are sad, confused or even happy. Empathy creates connection.
Example: A customer is angry about a recent price increase. Instead of simply saying to them: "Well, there's nothing I can do," show empathy by saying: "I understand that price increases can be frustrating." Then explain why the price increased, and explain that price increases often add value to the product.
2. Active listening
Active listening can help you better understand what your customer feels, wants and needs. To practice active listening, pay close attention to what the customer is saying, noting their body language and tone of voice. Wait for them to finish speaking before you respond.
Example: A customer calls to complain about a product they bought that didn't live up to expectations. By listening carefully to their comments, you can determine if they meant to buy something else and you help them switch.
3. Transparency
When customers reach out for support, the last thing they want to do is wait on the phone for an hour. If your customer service team is busy, make sure customers know the expected wait time. You could also consider implementing a call-back system, where an agent calls or texts a customer when they become available, so the customer doesn't have to wait on the phone.
Example: You deploy an AI chatbot that tells customers how many people are ahead of them in the queue and how long they are likely to have to wait for help.
4. Interpersonal skills
When your job involves dealing with people, you need to make sure you know how to deal with people. Interpersonal skills like - good communication, positivity, flexibility and accountability - create a winning relationship between you and the customer. It establishes trust and improves communication with the customer.
5. Ability to multitask
Live chat agents are expected to handle more than one call at a time and to listen to each customer while simultaneously finding a solution. This is a skill in itself. Great multitaskers feel comfortable interacting with multiple people and don't lose sight of the bigger picture when bombarded with questions.
Example: You're chatting with two customers - one has a question and the other has a complaint. You handle both conversations without being overwhelmed or distracted, so you can answer the customer's question quickly while alleviating the other's concerns.
6. Calm creature
Sometimes it's difficult for customers to express themselves in writing. Other times, customers are succinct because they are frustrated. Support agents should have a calm nature that allows them to remain calm and pleasant in every interaction, even when they perceive that a customer is being rude to them.
Example: A customer makes rude comments. You don't take this personally and you can keep a positive attitude throughout the interaction.
7. Attention
Even if you can't meet a customer's needs immediately, you can still make them feel seen and heard by acknowledging their request and letting them know you'll help them when you can. This could mean sending them an email and saying you'll respond more thoroughly later, or responding to an angry customer on social media and asking for more information via DM.
8. Collaborative skills
Answering a customer's question often involves working with other teams or departments. Is it the marketing team or customer service that should respond to negative comments on social media? Sometimes it can be hard to tell.
If your marketing team manages your social media accounts, make sure they work with your customer service team to help with all incoming support queries. Everyone is responsible for good customer service, so agents must have good collaboration skills.
Example: When a customer service inquiry comes in via Instagram DM, the marketing team knows exactly who to ask about the next steps. A customer service solution like Zendesk enables teams to collaborate and help customers faster.
9. Emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence is the ability to perceive and control your own emotions. It can mean recognizing when you're about to get angry, sad, scared, confused or any other big emotion, and managing them accordingly. Emotional intelligence is an important skill for customer service professionals because it can help them keep a cool head at work and maintain their emotional well-being.
Example: You see several complicated requests coming in at once and you notice your heart beating faster and you start to feel overwhelmed. Then you spend a few minutes practicing deep breathing to calm yourself down before tackling the tasks in front of you.
10. Creativity
Even if you're prepared for everything, it's inevitable that a customer will have a specific need or question that you haven't heard before. Sometimes there isn't an exact answer or solution for it either. In these situations, creative thinking is key. Support agents need to be able to improvise and understand what the customer needs, and then come up with a unique solution that meets those needs.
Example: A customer asks a question that you don't know the answer to because it hasn't come up before. Instead of panicking, you take a moment to think of a solution that complies with company policy. You can respond quickly and efficiently, leading to a positive customer experience.
11. Customer-centric mindset
The customer isn't necessarily right or wrong, but their perception of events is crucial in shaping their experience. A customer-centric mindset helps your support agents prioritize the customer experience and adapt the service to meet each customer's individual needs, even in cases where they disagree. This mindset also allows agents to provide proactive service by focusing on the customer and their needs, which can change the customer's perception of incidents from bad to good.
Example: When an angry customer contacts you about an error in their order, you expect them to want a replacement and check their inventory to ship immediately.
12. Digital competence
In Zendesk's CX trends report, 60 percent of respondents said they have higher customer service expectations now than ever before. For companies looking to deliver great omnichannel experiences, digital literacy will help your employees navigate customer interactions across channels. Teach your employees how to provide great service - no matter what channel they're on - and how to use your online knowledge base to search for information. You can also automate content using a platform like Zendesk, which makes it easier to find the right article.
Example: You need to search the company's internal knowledge base to find an answer for a customer. Due to your digital literacy, you know exactly how to log in and find what you need, leading to a quick resolution.
We have extensive experience in creating great customer experiences and are more than happy to share.