Skills You Need as a Customer Service Representative: A Guide

If you're applying for work as a customer service representative in Oklahoma City, you need some very particular skills and experience in order to stand out. Many job seekers make the mistake of thinking being a CSR is simple, entry-level work without much responsibility behind it. In truth, CSR's are often the public face of their company, and they need to be reliable and steadfast workers. 

To ensure you're the right fit for a customer service representative position, take a look at the following skills and ensure you're able to perform them before applying.

Active Listening

First and foremost, customer service representatives need to be able to listen to a customer's problem, accurately assess the issue and find the best possible solution.

The ability to actively listen does not come naturally to everyone; it takes practice and experience to hone this ability. Good listeners typically make some of the best customer service employees because they are most likely to understand what a customer needs quickly and accurately. If you want to practice your listening skills and attention, try taking notes during conversations and lectures without losing focus. Remember to keep eye contact when listening and to be patient and understanding.

Clear Communication

In addition to good listening skills, customer service representatives must have the ability to communicate their own thoughts and ideas in a clear, concise manner. You may need to communicate with customers in a variety of ways, incluidng in person, on the phone and through email or written correspondence. It is very important you are able to convey your company's policies and products to customers efficiently and accurately, and to give them answers and help when they ask for it.

Memory Retention

Customer service representatives need to keep a lot of information in their heads at the same time. This can include customer names, company rules and regulations, product details, past conversations and more. They need to remember who they talked to and what it was about in order to fill out reports and to perform follow-ups down the line. They also need to be able to process and remember information from other company departments, such as sales or technical support, so they can relay specifics and details to customers who ask for them. accurately to customers.

All of this can be a lot to juggle in your head, which is why strong memory skills are necessary. Many CSR's are also excellent note-takers and organizers, which helps them find information quickly when they don't remember it themselves.

Negotiation and Persuasion

Customer service representatives are often put in the position of needing to negotiate with customers over aspects of purchases or support. This could be to persuade them to accept a particular policy, to purchase a certain product, or to accept discounts or extra services instead of canceling a service or policy. Customer service reps use these skills to keep customers satisfied and to convey information that the customers might perceive as negative. A good CSR is able to find a common ground with customers in difficult situations so that the customer is satisfied with their results without damaging the company's reputation or revenue.

Efficiency

Finally, CSRs need to be quick and efficient in dealing with customer issues. Customers want transactions to be handled quickly and accurately, and employers want CSRs to be able to handle a number of customers in short order.  This makes efficiency and speed a necessary quality in any good CSR. You cannot be the type of person who waits for customers to come to you with issues; instead, you need to be proactive in finding ways to provide faster, better service. Great customer service reps are able to anticipate the needs of their customers so they can meet them as quickly as possible.

Customer service requires many important skills, and it can be difficult to hone them. However, if you can demonstrate these skills in your resume or in your interview, you have a much better shot at getting a customer service representative job in Oklahoma City and beyond.