Five Skills Young Customer Service Pros Should Highlight

"Forbes" ranked customer service representative among the top ten best jobs for young people. More than 24 percent of workers ages 16 to 24 hold this title, and more than 110,000 openings are available each year, making customer service skills very important for young people who want to enter the workforce. Whether you are a brand-new customer service representative or you have been in the field for several years, now is the perfect time to hone your customer service skills.

1. The ability to calm irritated customers is one of the most important customer service skills for young people. Forbes.com contributor Sebastian Bailey reported on the psychological effects of customer aggression on customer service representatives in a May 2013 article on the site. He says that customer aggression actually reduced the quality of the service provided by representatives. A study published in the "Journal of Applied Psychology" indicates that verbally aggressive interactions with customers lead to more mistakes. These interactions also disrupted the working memory of those who participated in the study.
   
    
2. Your company's customer service training program should also emphasize the importance of good communication skills for young customer service representatives. Good communication is more than being able to speak clearly and communicate effectively in writing. You must also be able to listen to customers and understand what they mean. Because some customers do not communicate their needs effectively, it is up to you to interpret their words and do your best to provide them with positive experiences. If you do not master this skill, it will be difficult to provide good service.
   
    
3. If you are searching for a job, one of the customer service skills you should highlight is your ability to use computers effectively. In the past, someone with no computer skills could still make a living as a customer service representative. Now that companies use customer relationship management software, computer databases, and other tech tools to manage customer data, you must have basic computer skills to succeed in this career. The tech requirements for a customer service representative vary by employer, but you should at least be able to send emails, search for customer information in company databases, and enter order information in your company's computer system.
   
    
4. One of the most overlooked customer service skills is one that is not usually covered during a customer service training program: time management. As a customer service representative, you may be responsible for answering the telephone, greeting store customers, processing returns, taking orders, and performing other duties. You must be able to prioritize all of your tasks so that you keep customers happy. As a young customer service representative, you should use what you have learned about managing your study time or balancing extracurricular activities with academic work to develop your time management skills.
   
    
5. Young workers should also highlight their critical thinking skills. These skills allow you to solve problems that may not be covered in your company training manual, making them very valuable for inexperienced representatives.

You must have these five essential customer service skills or you will find it difficult to succeed in the customer service field. When searching for jobs, highlight these skills on your resume or in your job application. They may be enough to set you apart from other candidates who lack the customer service skills necessary to make customers happy.

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