Think about what an iPod shuffle looks like. One button.

ONE!

This is the primary reason that iPods continued to explode. From the outset, it was made to be user friendly and simple. And guess what? The results brought very few questions from the customers. No confusion, nothing to "figure" out, and only happy tunes to enjoy. The customer service reps for iPods are probably very bored, and that's a good mark of success.


That's the goal: Keep 'em happy!

Conversely, consider the job of a Verizon Cellular customer service representative. Those poor souls! Verizon has made their billing system so entirely complex and filled with Verizon-Speak that it has alienated hundreds of thousands of customers.

The customer service reps can speak the language well; they've endured dozens of hours of training, quizzing, and memorization of hundreds of Verizon Terms, plans, and jargon. But where does this leave the customer? Confused, frustrated and annoyed. Most of them simply cannot keep the calling plans, costs, and penalties straight. That's a mark of lost business right there.


Patience and ability to communicate - and to not bully - are the skills you want to find in your candidates

To find the best customer service representatives, it's crucial to blend personalities and skill sets of individuals with characteristics associated (both negative and positive) with the company who is hiring.

Patience: we got it:

This is the obvious trait that every customer service rep needs. They'll be trained by the organization on how to handle the unsatisfied customer, but so very much more than that "patient" personality trait is worth considering before placing someone into the field.

Language matters:

Consider knowledge base, intellect, vocabulary, and ability to speak properly. Far too often, customer service reps are hired based on their upbeat and cool personalities. Or that's the hope, anyway, right? Equally as important is the ability to simplify the corporate language, if necessary, and to educate the customer about typical confusions about a product or service.

First impressions:

What's your very first impression of the candidate? Odds are quite high that the customer will receive that person in the very same manner. Is the candidate asking pertinent, smart questions about the position? Can he or she absorb some complex explanations of a product and then restate those instructions more simplistically?

When the goal is to get it done:

Most people are familiar with their own to-do list. Here's a great question to ask a potential candidate for a job that needs to be filled:

"When you write out a to-do list, do you do one thing, cross it off, and go to the next task, or do you often have five things going at once, in hopes of checking all of them off by the end of the day?"

For customer service reps, you seek the candidate who "gets it done." While everyone has his or her own process, an excellent customer rep is more naturally inclined to get one task done, then (and only then) move to the next task. This shows an ability to work with a customer until the customer is absolutely settled and satisfied.

Ready for anything:

During the weeding or interview process, test the candidate's ability to think quickly with a few curve ball questions.

Most importantly, the customer service representative is a liaison -- a true bridge -- between the customer and the organization:

A lot of customers question whether or not their feedback is ever going to get into the right room or professional discussion. People want to know that their concerns or feedback have been heard. Feel out the candidates about what their best practices are to build trust with the customer and to convey questions, concerns, and frustrations with the management team within the organization.

An upbeat and kind personality does, indeed, matter:

But equally as important are the skills that immediately convey to the customer that the issue will be solved in a timely, efficient manner. That will keep the customers, and their credit cards, coming back for more. And most certainly, any organization using a recruiting service is looking for that exact result. As they say in customer service: "Keep 'em happy!"

Valerie J. Wilson is a freelance writer who writes for Billfloat and many other companies and organizations.