When you are looking for staff that deals with clients there is more to
choosing than just the skills they possess. In fact, skills often take the back
seat to personality. You want to make sure you have someone who has the
personality to deal well with clients on a face-to-face basis.
The best type of employee to handle in personal interaction with clients
is one that combines skill with personality. You want someone who is going to
have the necessary skill to be able to handle what the client needs but overall
the personality is what is going to make the difference.
Finding The Right Employee
The first step is to find the right type of employee. This is going
to be someone that is personable. It is going to be someone that can handle all
the aspects of client interaction with a firm and calm hand. Clients are the
lifeblood of your business. The people they interact with need to be people who
can handle the full range of emotions a client might be experiencing while
remaining calm themselves.
They should also be able to work under pressure. They do not necessarily
need all the skills necessary to solve the client’s issue. They do need the
personality and skills necessary to calm a client down and reassure them that
the problem will be taken care of in a professional manner. Once the client has
been reassured the behind the scenes employees can take care of the issue the
client is experiencing.
The best way to find these employees is during the interview process.
Consider holding a mock situation to determine how the employee would handle a
variety of customer interactions. Judge the reactions of the prospective
employees. You want employees that maintain their cool under the pressure, handle
the issue and are ready to hit the next problem without needing to decompress.
While it is unlikely they will be dealing with a large amount of major issues,
minor issues can grow and it is a good idea to have someone who can move from
client to client and maintain their professionalism.
Training The Right Employee
Once you have found the right employee, it is time to take care of
training them. They might not be skilled in all the tools necessary to resolve
the issues that the client might be having, but it is a good idea for them to
have the basic skills necessary to direct the client’s issue to the right
person. This requires training.
The right personality, in the beginning, is much more important than
skill. Skills can be learned, taught and come with experience but the right
personality is not something that can come with training. The majority of it is
natural. Some people are better at dealing with face-to-face interactions than
other people are and these people are the ones you want to hire to handle
the face-to-face client interactions for your company.
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