Customer service jobs

Sometimes a nametag and a smile can’t capture all the customer service magic you need to make your customers feel all warm and fuzzy. Sometimes you need to go the extra mile…or extra napkin.

Customer service jobs aren’t easy. Whether you’re working retail jobs, restaurant jobs, call center jobs or other gigs, this line of work demands the ability to simply act like a nice person – even if your customers aren’t.

We’ve come up with a few handy tips for helping you improve your customer service savvy, broken down by the most popular industries for customer service jobs:

Retail jobs can register smiles

Retail jobs can be stressful, whether you’re jockeying cash registers or stocking shelves. One way to ease the stress of these retail gigs is to embrace the diversity they offer. Ask your manager if you can switch departments, or see if you can cross-train with a co-worker to learn a new set of skills. For example, if you’re a greeter charged with making a positive first impression with customers, see if you can be a cashier and bring that sale home.

Manners are always the daily special at restaurant jobs

You’re always on your feet when working restaurant jobs and helping hungry people (who aren’t always the most polite). Plus, the late-night and weekend hours can be demanding. But these jobs can be quite fulfilling because they’re one of the few gigs where your friendly demeanor and positive attitude are directly linked to your earning potential. That’s right; tips are the bulk of the pay for bartenders, servers and even bussers. So remember: Grabbing that extra serving of ranch dressing or bringing the undercooked burger back to the kitchen after begging for forgiveness can reap you big reward when it comes to tip time.

Don’t put sweetness on hold at call center jobs

Lots of people like to chat on the phone, but imagine doing it for eight hours at a time during call center jobs. Many customer services jobs involve never seeing actually customers, but instead talking over headsets while multi-tasking. If you don’t have an onsite ergonomic expert at your telemarketing complex, here are a few basic guidelines to make sure that you won’t get carpal tunnel syndrome your first week on the job. Be sure to keep your eyes at least 20 inches from your computer screen, adjust the monitor to your eye level and keep your feet positioned firm on the ground. And don’t slouch. Working at a desk or cube all day can make you feel cramped and restless.

There are fields of customer service jobs out there we haven’t mentioned. Just remember: When conducting your next job search, be sure to turn on your customer service skills during the job interview.