7 Impactful Customer Service Skills for 2021

In this era of rapid digitization Customer care support or customer care service has played a far-reaching role in every business. For a business to succeed, thrive, and increase profitability in the 21st century having a strong help desk management system is essential. A company’s Customer service team is more or less the backbone of the business and not hiring customer service agents with the best customer service skills can lead to a lot of challenges in the future. Training customer service agents regularly in order to keep up with the new customer service demands and expectations is extremely important. Service desk support acts as the human face of a business and when help desk agents are poorly trained it can not only lead to a negative brand image but also decrease profitability in the long run. From having a knack for captivating conversations to maintaining a positive attitude throughout a customer interaction, help desk agents should possess various customer service skills. Having the best customer service skills not only helps customer care agents to better understand the needs of the customers but also helps them in immediate customer ticket remediation.

Below Are Key Customer Service Skills That Every Help Desk Agent Should Have in This Era of Digitization:

Art of Captivating Conversations 

Be it a customer service agent or a sales agent having good conversational skills is very important. Every time there is a help desk ticket being raised there is a very strong chance of the customer being disappointed or irritated due to various product-related issues. A good customer service agent will be able to easily put the customer at ease just by initiating a friendly conversation. Customer service agents with a knack for captivating conversations are always able to calm down an angry customer and are also able to facilitate immediate ticket remediation. Taking an interest in the customer’s interests itself is a great way to start conversations. 

Maintaining a Positive Attitude 

Maintaining a positive attitude throughout a customer service interaction is extremely necessary and important for the customer care agents. Having a positive attitude towards the customer service problem not only helps the customer service agent in quick remediation but also enables the flow of better solutions for the help desk ticket being raised. Having a positive attitude can be tiring for a few customer service agents but it is worth every second of the interaction. Being polite and maintaining a positive attitude not only improves the remediation process but also contributes towards a positive brand image which can, in turn, result in improved customer retention levels.

How Customer Service has Transformed to Serve Better?

Customer-Centric Approach 

Be it marketing or production, having a customer-centric approach always benefits the business as well as the customers. It is the same when it comes to helping desk management as well. Having a customer-centric approach to efficient ticket remediation is one of the best customer service skills that a customer service agent can have. Taking an interest in what the customer believes, how the customer thinks, their opinions about the products or services being offered etc. is an excellent way through which service desk agents can put themselves in the shoes of their customers. This will help them get a better understanding of what the customers are expecting from the interaction.

Contextual Responses 

When customer service agents fail to give responses that are specific to the customers’ issues and problems it can lead to an unsuccessful interaction. In addition to the unsuccessful interaction, it can also create a negative brand image which will, in turn, lead to lower customer retention and customer onboarding levels. Providing contextual responses is an essential customer service skill that every customer support agent should have. Having prior access to customer data can be very helpful to help desk agents. This will not only help them in giving a contextual response to the customer’s problem but also help them in quick ticket remediation.

How To Improve Your Customer Service Response Time?

Personalization 

Adding hints of personalization for customization to a customer service interaction is another major customer service skill that every agent should have. Hints of personalized conversational elements can make the customer feel valued and special. It creates a sense of comfort for the customer as a result of which they are likely to develop a bond with the brand. Adding elements of personalization can range from remembering last names to remembering a customer’s preferences. In addition to the above-mentioned advantages, personalization can also improve customer loyalty and customer satisfaction levels. 

Being Empathetic

Being empathetic and showcasing the same can go a long way in customer service interactions. Every time a customer service agent is able to understand and share the feelings of a customer it not only makes the customer feel comfortable but also helps them better express themselves in future conversions. By being empathetic or by showcasing empathy an agent is telling the customer that they truly care about their problems. Showing empathy also tends to have a positive impact on the remediation process itself. 

Impacts of the Pandemic on Customer Support

Active Listening

Listening and hearing the customer out is the first step towards a successful help desk ticket remediation. Offering solutions without actively and patiently listening to what the customer has to say can be very damaging to the business itself. Not paying attention and not hearing the customer out properly can not only reflect poorly on the customer service agent but also tends to bring down customer satisfaction levels. This is exactly why active listening is a must-have customer service skill for every service desk agent. Being mindful and attentive towards the customer will not only help in creating a positive impression but also help the customer service agent to better understand the actual problem and will help them in providing an effective and efficient solution to the ticket.

Having the best help desk agents who have the best customer service skills has now become the need-of-the-hour for businesses. But due to a lack of efficient technology like customer relationship management systems achieving search customer service can be challenging. With efficient customer relationship management applications like Kapture CRM businesses can now help their customer service agents keep up with all the customer service expectations. 

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