7 Things Your Boss Wants You to Know About Customer Service

It might seem like a simple job, but being successful in the customer service industry requires keen intuition, thick skin, and patience. When new CSRs come to work, it’s tempting to just throw them into the fire and let them handle the stress through first-hand experience, but good bosses know better.

They know that if they don’t mentor their staff for success, high turnover rates and constant rehiring is bound to occur (which is counterproductive for any business). We’ve seen it over and over again, CSRs feel attacked or undervalued so they quit on the spot or never reach their full potential.

We’ve compiled 7 things any good boss would tell you if you asked them about working in customer service:

1. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

Customer service representatives are hired to pay attention to detail, but sometimes there’s a line one should draw before they start to go crazy. The last thing any boss wants for their staff is to have a nervous breakdown caused by work-related stress. Understand that not every interaction will be perfect, and not everything will be solved exactly the way you expect it to. Don’t let this weigh you down or demotivate you. Let your manager know if you think something on your end can be changed to deliver better customer service, otherwise, keep doing your best, it’s all that’s expected of you.

2. Approach Every Situation with a Positive Outlook

It’s imperative to the customer experience to always have someone welcoming on the other end of the line. Try going into every interaction with a smile and an optimistic attitude. If a customer senses that you have a positive outlook on the situation, they will likely feel less stressed and more likely to respond in a similar fashion. Your boss knows that not all calls will go as planned, but try to shake off those negative vibes. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

3. Always Be the Bigger Person

Like we mentioned, not all calls will go as planned and some customers will come out of the gate swinging. It’s important not to take it personally and always have a level head about resolving complaints. Never stoop to the level of an unruly customer. As they say, the customer is king, and you can’t let pride or ego get in the way of resolving an issue. Feel free to let out your rage in different ways (if a stress ball isn’t enough, try working out after a shift, that will help you let out all your bottled up tension).

4. Don’t Get Derailed by Angry or Impatient Customers

There are very few people who enjoy spending their day talking to customer service, or even worse waiting for customer service to answer
the phone (especially if your call center doesn’t have a call-back option). So more likely than not, customers will be quite agitated and in a rush to get their issue resolved as fast as possible. But not every issue can be solved in under a minute, so try your best to keep customers engaged by not only doing your job quickly but by also reassuring them that you appreciate their patience and you’re working hard to resolve the issue.

5. Remember Your Work Matters

When you feel like a dime-a-dozen, you sometimes wonder if it matters what you do on the job. Will anyone notice you slacking? Will anyone notice you doing well? Not always, but your work is being monitored and no matter if you’re doing bad work or good work the truth will be revealed during mandatory evaluations. On top of that, you should always feel valuable at your job – trust us when we say, if you weren’t needed you wouldn’t be there, so take pride in having this responsibility.

6. Own Up To and Correct Your Mistakes

Let’s face it, we all make mistakes! But there’s nothing worse for a manager than to have someone who constantly denies and avoids responsibility. It shows that they are unwilling to learn and incapable of improving (it’s also a little immature). When you know you’ve made an error, tell someone, and then go even further by asking how to do better next time. This not only helps the business, but it helps you grow on a professional level.

7. Think Beyond Your Role

It’s easy to get caught up in your own job, and not think about those around you. You might forget how hard other people are working in order to keep things running smoothly around you. Sometimes your boss is looking for a little bit of appreciation too, and for you to know that their success is dependent on your success. Ultimately, they are looking out for your best interests.

If you have one of those managers who give it their all and try to provide mentorship to staff, maybe give them a solid handshake or just a quick message saying how much you appreciate what they do. Don’t worry, it’s not brown-nosing, it’s just paying it forward.