Which Job Positions Customer Support Representatives Can Work

What Does a Customer Service Representative Practice?

Written by Coursera • Updated on Sep 24, 2021

Customer service representatives play a key part in company success by directly helping customers. Detect out if a customer service job is right for you.

A customer service representative in a blue and white striped shirt speaks with a customer on her laptop.

Customer service representatives piece of work directly with customers to provide assist, resolve complaints, reply questions, and procedure orders. If you enjoy helping people, a task equally a client service representative could exist a practiced fit. In this role, y'all'll discover career opportunities in almost every industry, ranging from brick-and-mortar retail stores to telephone call centers to your own living room.

Learn more about what customer service representatives exercise on a daily ground, and how you can become i.

What does a customer service representative do?

As a customer service representative, your master task is to serve customers. Customer service reps piece of work for most any business that engages with customers, including retail stores, banks, and insurance companies. Their chief tasks may include greeting and communicating with customers in person, past phone, or by estimator via chat or e-mail. Specific duties will vary depending on the visitor and manufacture where you work, merely they may include:

Answering customer questions about the company, products, or services
Resolving customer complaints
Directing customers to the right section or supervisor
Taking orders or processing payments
Making changes to customers' accounts
Treatment returns and exchanges
Addressing billing concerns
Keeping records of customer interactions
Selling products and services

Where practice customer service representatives work?

Customer service representatives work in a variety of environments and across many industries. They may communicate with customers in person or via phone, chat programs, or email, and work. In that location are currently near 3 million customer service representative jobs in the The states, co-ordinate to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics [ane]. Industries that employ the highest percentages of customer service reps include the following:

Largest employers of customer service reps	Percentage
Retail trade	14%
Insurance and related businesses	xiii%
Business back up	10%
Wholesale merchandise	7%
Professional person, scientific, and technical	6%

1 part inside customer service expected to grow 9 per centum from 2022 to 2030 is that of a computer support specialist. Working in It support tin not only lead to more job opportunities, just higher pay as well. Customer support specialists across all industries fabricated a median salary of $35,830 in 2022 in the US, while calculator back up specialists fabricated $55,510—close to a $twenty,000 difference [2].

9 tips for getting a job as a customer service representative

If you're ready to start exploring your career as a customer service rep, these tips can assistance y'all build the feel and education you need for the job.

1. Develop your workplace skills.

Workplace skills are crucial to existence an constructive customer service representative. You lot'll often exist tasked with interacting with customers with a positive attitude and empathy to resolve their issues. Stay calm and diplomatic nether pressure, and you'll be ameliorate able to bargain with difficult or stressed customers. Other important traits for customer service representatives include flexibility, an center for detail, and the ability to acquire and remember quickly.

2. Build your reckoner skills.

Customer service representatives can spend long hours at a computer. You'll likely need typing and information entry skills, as well as familiarity with programs similar Microsoft Give-and-take and Excel.

Take courses through a local community college or vocational schoolhouse, or learn at your ain pace with an online course. Here are some options to get you started:

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Customer Service Fundamentals

Knowledge Accelerators

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Create Customer Support Information with Google Sheets

Coursera Project Network

iii. Consider certification.

Certification isn't necessary for many customer service jobs, but it may be required for some advanced positions. Earning an industry certification tin can also validate your skills to recruiters and hiring managers. Some common certifications in client service include:

Certified Customer Feel Professional person (Client Service Institute of America)
HDI Customer Service Representative
Certified Customer Service Professional (National Customer Service Association)

four. Railroad train for a particular industry.

Many positions offer on-the-job training for new hires, which tin can entail working alongside a senior employee. Certain industries may require more intensive training. You may fifty-fifty meet specific rules, depending on factors like the state or industry y'all work in. This is often the case in finance and insurance customer service careers.

5. Take a communication course.

Communication is often a crucial aspect of the work. You can improve your written and verbal skills with courses similar Improve Your English Communication Skills offered by the Georgia Institute of Engineering.

6. Gain some customer service feel.

Employers may similar to come across that you have experience working with people. Consider gaining some experience with other positions that entail working with the public. This could include working equally a cashier, server, or sales associate in a shop. Volunteering with your community can as well bring you valuable customer service experience.

7. Learn a second language.

Beingness bilingual tin exist helpful in speaking with customers who may not speak English as their get-go language. Learning a second linguistic communication can help your application stand out above the others. Mandarin and Spanish rank among the well-nigh in-demand.

8. Finish your pedagogy.

A postsecondary degree isn't required for most customer service jobs. However, many employers may want you to have a high schoolhouse diploma, GED, or equivalent. Consider joining volunteer clubs or other activities that will permit you lot to gain customer service feel.

9. Practice for your interview.

When y'all're ready to utilise for a job, make sure you're prepared for the interview past reviewing questions y'all might encounter in an interview. These might include:

Depict a time when you successfully solved a problem for someone.
How would you handle an upset customer?
What would you lot do if yous didn't know the reply to a client's question?
Describe a situation where yous had to remain calm during a chaotic state of affairs.
What would y'all practice if you had to work with someone yous didn't like?

Next steps

Start building the skills y'all need for a role in Information technology customer service with the Google IT Back up Specialist Professional Document on Coursera. Acquire at your ain pace from industry experts at Google.

Ofttimes asked questions (FAQ)

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Commodity sources

1. US Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Customer Service Representatives, https://world wide web.bls.gov/ooh/role-and-administrative-support/customer-service-representatives.htm#tab-1." Accessed September 23, 2021.

ii. The states Agency of Labor Statistics. "Reckoner Support Specialists, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-support-specialists.htm." Accessed September 23, 2021.

Written by Coursera • Updated on Sep 24, 2021

This content has been made bachelor for advisory purposes just. Learners are advised to carry additional research to ensure that courses and other credentials pursued meet their personal, professional, and fiscal goals.

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Source: https://www.coursera.org/articles/customer-service-representative