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.
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:
- Communication. You will need to be responsive in a timely manner. You will need to communicate with them in a clear, easy-to-understand way to solve the problem.
- 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.
After your conversation, you will likely use active listening skills to record action items and complete any follow-up tasks. Effectively working with others will require different skills to help create an effective solution for everyone. You can also easily apply skills like these to situations with colleagues, as well.
