08/15/2022 | News release | Distributed by Public on 08/15/2022 13:10
In today's competitive environment, customer service professionals are vital to the success of a company. Not only can they help boost customer satisfaction, they also can improve repeat business, which has a direct impact on company profitability. The Salary Guide From Robert Half finds that call center staff and customer service specialists are among the hottest jobs in administrative and customer support. To thrive in the current landscape, companies need to hire customer service specialists who meet or exceed industry standards.
But these days, skilled customer service professionals can be harder to find. And many potential candidates are working from home, which can limit opportunities for in-person interviews.
Here's an overview of several common customer service roles, salaries, interview questions to ask, and tips to streamline the process of hiring remote employees.
A critical first step you should take to hire customer service specialists is to create or update your job descriptions to ensure they contain the key details, duties and responsibilities of the respective role. Make certain they accurately reflect the kind of workers you want most. If you then include keywords from the job description in the job posting, you'll increase your chances of attracting candidates with the desired skills and experience.
While every company is different, here are four examples of customer service positions and their typical job duties:
Customer service professionals should have a solid understanding of all the company's products and services. They should also be savvy at data entry paired with interpersonal skills, which are crucial in this role.
These specialists should be great communicators so they can handle customer questions and concerns with a professional demeanor. If there's a chance applicants will start the job remotely but move to an office in the future, you also need to assess their flexibility and resilience.
Job interviews are predominately conducted remotely now, and because many customer service and call center jobs are already remote by nature, interviewing job seekers by phone or video is an ideal way to assess their communication abilities and professionalism, key competencies needed to achieve success in the role.
Here are some questions to ask yourself during the interview:
In addition to assessing their communication skills and professionalism, here are a few questions to ask customer service specialist candidates, with added considerations.
The right compensation package can help you attract talent for various customer service roles. You can get the latest salaries and trends shaping the hiring market from Robert Half's Salary Guide.
With this resource, you can also localize your insights and get starting salaries for different job titles and experience levels.