About 90% of global customers consider customer service important in fostering loyalty to a brand. As such, savvy companies put only the best employees on the communication frontlines.
Here are seven key qualities to look for in a stellar customer support agent.
High Emotional Intelligence
The role of customer service and support agents revolve around interacting with people — often frustrated customers. As such, it falls upon them to defuse tense situations.
The ability to handle disgruntled clients requires high emotional intelligence. To maintain their cool, a customer service agent must control their impulse and think (quickly) before speaking.
As the person who’s resolving the problem, they need to understand the emotional reactions and motivations of the person on the other end of the line so that the situation is resolved successfully and calmly.
Positive & Friendly Attitude – Always
Part of a customer support agent’s job description is to be a bona fide representative of the company. They give the business a human element and make it more approachable to the clientele.
No client wants to deal with grumpy or curt representatives. For stellar live answering services, the agent must be friendly and willing to go the extra mile for their caller.
Everybody can feign friendliness, but it’s hard to sustain it as you interact with multiple frustrated customers throughout the day. So the best customer support agents are those who are naturally sociable.
Adaptability
Customer expectations change rapidly, and businesses quickly rise to the challenge. As a result, companies quickly roll out new customer relationship management technologies and continually improve workflows.
A flexible customer support agent adapts to these changes quickly. They learn how to use different platforms to provide a five-star customer experience without calling a senior customer support agent.
Without innate flexibility, customer support agents will feel lost as they navigate the ever-changing customer relationship management landscape.
Problem-Solving Skills
Customers come to customer support agents with a problem. When they talk to a live person, they expect their concern to be addressed immediately.
The customer support agent must quickly analyze the problem and offer a solution. Companies have ready-made solutions for common problems, but some issues require a creative resolution, and it’s up to the agent to figure it out.
Strong problem-solving skills are a requirement if you want customers to put down the phone happy and satisfied.
Excellent Communication Skills
No matter how fast an agent solves a problem, or no matter how friendly they are, they won’t be successful at their job if they can’t communicate well.
That’s why employers look for excellent communication skills as early as the first job interview questions. With excellent verbal and written skills, the customer support agent listens actively to understand what the customer needs. Next, they can deliver the message in a way that all customers understand.
Strong Time-Management Skills
While it’s noble to take your time talking to a customer, it’s not very productive. They are, after all, not the only customers that need help — there’s a long line of clients wanting to talk to the agent.
Strong time management skills ensure that the agent delivers high-quality customer service without wasting time. This entails maximizing every interaction, asking the right questions, and offering an effective solution.
A customer agent also understands that some cases need more time and attention. It’s just a matter of knowing the value of their time.
Product & Service Knowledge
Product and service knowledge is the hallmark of a customer support agent. A customer will be thankful for talking with someone who knows the product or service like the back of their hands. This mastery enables the agent to analyze what’s wrong and determine how to correct it.
Products and services are included in a customer support agent’s job briefing, but it’s not a reason to be lenient. A dependable agent will go out of their way to review the company’s offers.
Choose Your Customer Support Agent Through Always Answer!
It takes a lot to be a reliable agent, and not many people are cut out for the job. And for companies, it is expensive to hire and retain high performers.
Choose the cost-effective way and outsource your live answering service to Always Answer. No need to find the right people for the job — we have assembled a team of customer support agents with all seven key qualities!
