What is frontline customer service?

This is basically the first line of defense for any company or business. These people interact directly with customers and help address their concerns, needs and questions. They also listen to your complaints, problems with their product or service, troubleshoot issues and offer the best solutions to make your experience with their company better.

Frontline customer service roles are not very easy and can vary depending on the industry and company but a few examples of them include receptionists, help desk technicians, chat support specialists and call center agents. They are the face and voice of a company and are expected to perform up to standards to create a big impact on how customer see the brand.

Why is frontline customer service important?

It’s like the first impression you want to make on a first date, of course you want it to be good. Frontline customer service is super important for any business because they are again the first point of contact between companies and customers. If customers have positive experience with frontline customer service, they are most likely going to feel good about the company as a whole and will want to continue doing business with them and proactively recommend it to their friends and family based on that positive experience.

If a company sees the importance of this and provides the right training, support and resources, they can help their employees do a better job at assisting customers and creating a great customer experience. This leads to better reviews, happier customer and more business for the company. They are the key of building and maintaining a strong customer base.

How to hire the right people?

Managers should always look for individuals who have the right combination of skills, work experience and personality traits. They should try to base their hiring process whether a person right for the job rather than looking for a person can do the job.

1. Communication skills

As in any business, effective communication is important. Managers should look for candidates who are able to communicate clearly both in verbal and writing. This can be assessed during job interviews through asking questions and scenarios to test their comprehension and communication skills.

2. Patience and empathy

Since frontline customer service representatives are the ones who deal and experience customers who are either upset, frustrated or anxious, they need to be patient enough to try and understand their customers and show empathy. Again, this can be assessed through interview questions or even a role-playing scenario.

3. Product knowledge

It is best to find individuals who are eager and willing to be trained for them to have a deeper understanding of the products or services they are supporting for the company. With well developed product knowledge, they are able to answer customers questions and provide timely solutions quickly. Managers can look into candidates who have worked in a similar industry or have a strong interest in their company’s products and services.

4. Problem solving skills

A candidate that has a creative problem-solving skill and can think on their feet is a bonus. Hiring managers are expected to look for this talent in individuals who also have experience in a similar role.

5. Positive attitude

Managers should look for candidates that have a genuine and positive attitude and desire to help customers. Employees who are upbeat, friendly and easily to approach can create a better experience for their customer and help build trust and loyalty with the brand.

The techniques for frontline customer service

It is important to make sure your employees have the necessary styles and techniques to provide the best possible customer experience. Here are some techniques we have gathered to help:

1. Listen actively

By listening actively to your customers, it lets them know you care about them. This helps you focus on what they need and makes it easier to engage on conversation with them. Do this by making nodding, asking follow-up questions and of course making eye contact.

2. Be empathetic

As you can see, this goes hand in hand to what makes a business successful. By putting yourself in the perspective of your customer, you gain understanding and connect with them. You will be able to easily identify how they feel during that conversation and may cause positive or negative results to their experience.

3. Communicate clearly

When talking to customers, it is ideal to speak clearly and use language or terms that are easy to understand especially with customers of age because it might confuse them. Employees may even make sure to try and repeat important information to see that customers understand your solution or advice regarding products or services.

4. Be patient

As mentioned before, patience is important in any of business. By being patient with customers, they can feel that you are genuinely there to assist them and not rushing on just making a sale. Employees should remember that their primary goal as customer service representatives is to resolve customers issues and make them feel valued.

5. Provide solutions

As usual this comes with communicating clearly, once you have identified any issues the customers may have, provide them with the correct solutions or options to resolve it. If any issues are not immediately addressed, it may escalate to into something that is difficult to solve. If you do not have an answer to questions, it is important that you try and reach out to your team and managers for support and let customers know the right steps into better assisting them.

6. Provide follow-up

After resolving an issue, try to follow up with your customers to make sure they are happy and satisfied with the solution and ask how their experience with you was. This will show them that you are genuine and committed to providing excellent customer service.

Just a friendly reminder that delivering top-notch customer service isn’t just about solving problems, it’s also about creating a fantastic and unforgettable experience for your customers. Luckily, there are a few techniques you can follow to ensure that your frontline staff are providing the absolute best customer service out there. So, let’s make sure your customers walk away feeling happy and satisfied.

For more information here are some additional resources:

• Learn more about “The Importance of Good Customer Service” From the Forbes article where it demonstrates how customer service can impact your business. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesfinancecouncil/2021/12/22/the-biggest-factor-for-company-success-customer-service/
• There are essential skills that every frontline customer service team member needs. Help Scout has provided highlights and skills that Customer Representatives should have and also how they can improve on them. https://www.helpscout.com/blog/customer-service-skills/
• When you hire customer service staff you need to look out. Here we have the ultimate guide from Hubspot showing how to provide and improve excellent customer service. What Is Customer Service? The Ultimate Guide (hubspot.com)
• Would you like to learn “The best techniques for handling customer complaints”? A post by INC has a range of helpful techniques to help turn your negative interactions into positive ones. https://www.inc-aus.com/young-entrepreneur-council/how-to-actively-learn-from-customer-complaints.html