Good customer service is one of the most vital things about a business. Once you have it, it will seem like you have the power to find out all the secrets of success. Giving flawless service is not always so easy. And while searching for great customer service abilities and skills is a more recent endeavor, a lot of CEOs argue that it is very elusive. Even if you send out millions of customer service skill assessment survey, a lot of the customer psyche will remain a complete mystery. Fortunately, researches have been gathering data on client service satisfaction for many years. This research for good customer service comes with a much more detailed road map than ever before, and it all starts with the people you will be hiring. Here are the most important things for every customer support service you will need.
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Empathy
Good customer service skill is impossible without the most important thing, empathy. Empathy is the ability to understand and feel another person’s emotions and think from their point of view. Are you wondering how empathy is an important support service skill? Consider that 75% of buying experiences are completely based on how the customer felt they are being treated. It is not about whether the issue has been solved, how much time was spent or if there was a successful refund. Business people are so focused on the bottom line, but in most customer’s mind the bottom line is emotional, it is not financial. Emotions are simply more important than facts.
Source: sabre.com
Persuasion skills
Think about the most persuasive speaker in your business. Is she or he a salesperson? The answer is probably yes or something close to a salesperson. Persuasion has been recognized as a very crucial sales skill, but it can also be vital for your customer service. Every day, your reps turn issues into solutions and customers into loyal brand clients. This is all because they have good persuasive skills. 70% of consumers have stated that they have spent more with a company because of their positive service experiences. Persuasion is that effective. So make sure all your reps can stay positive, speak confidently and offer compelling arguments that will ultimately lead to conversions. However, if you have good Customer Relationship Management or CRM, you should be equipped to handle this challenge properly by integrating ticket sources and making your customer information available at all times. Customer service reps need that mental flexibility so they can respond to any type of situation in whichever way your clients will prefer at the moment.
Positive language
If a customer contacts you, it is usually because she or he has a problem. But despite a customer’s frustration, defeatism or anger, your reps must stay positive. It is fine for your rep to empathize with the customer, in fact, it is a vital component of good service, but make sure they keep it as positive as they can. Always steer the conversation toward some positive outcome with positive language by focusing on the solution. Thanks to your customers for their loyalty, understanding, and patience.
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Source: boomerangmessaging.com
Clear communication skills
This may seem like a very obvious thing, but you will be surprised how many customers struggle to properly communicate with their customer service rep. 40% of clients say that efficiently answering questions is probably the most important skill that a customer service rep can have. Using unclear language, losing focus or mumbling can be the source of a lot of dissatisfied customer experiences. Your customer service representatives can be the most positive, professional and empathetic people in the business, but they also must be able to have good communication skills when talking with your customers. Hire good communicators and give everyone on your customer service team proper training.
Adaptability
When you are working directly with the public, your business days will never be the same. People are not the same. Did you know that about 65% of customers change how they contact you all depending on what they are doing and where they are? That means that you will get different kinds of inquiries coming in via social media, email, phone or maybe even in person.
Source: blogs.servicenow.com
Self-Control
When you are working in customer service, you will never know what you are going to get. It could be a completely confused person one minute, and an irate customer the next, or even a perfectly patient and understandable customer who then goes and criticizes your company on Google reviews. In a world where only one negative social media review about your business can have a much larger impact than ten positive ones, that is a pretty big deal. As anxiety-inducing and stressful customer service can be, your reps will need to have self control at all times even when their customers do not. They need to remain positive when faced with pessimism, professional when a customer gets personal and remain calm even when attacked. There are virtually no consequences when a customer attacks a rap, but the consequences when a rep loses self-control while interacting with customers are very big.
Always taking responsibility
Just because you solve your customer’s problem does not mean they will stick around, but how you solve the problem is just as important, if not even more important than providing a solution. The important thing is to take responsibility for the customer’s care. Your customer service agents are on the front lines of satisfaction, but how many of your representatives are the cause of the issue? Probably very few. They can take the responsibility for how the solution occurs, however, 35% of customers say that the ability to handle the requests without any escalations or transfers if one of the most important skills for a support service rep. This is a big deal, as 65% of customers who have left companies say that they would have stayed if their problem has been resolved in just a single interaction instead of multiple.
