These Four Lessons are why Everyone Should Experience a Customer Service Job
The four lessons I’ve learned from working a customer service job for just over a year:
- Professionalism
- Punctuality
- Communicating Effectively
- Problem-Solving
I’ve worked at my customer service job for over a year now. It’s simple, easy even. I scoop ice cream for customers and get paid $15 an hour. I have been babysitting and teaching swim lessons since I was 13; however, this is my first job where I pay taxes, get paid minimum wage, and have to clock in and out for every shift. I have a boss, co-workers, and, of course, at the center of our work, customers.
I came into this job not thinking much of it and honestly nervous about entering the real world with the start of a real job. I was overwhelmed with training sessions (I know it sounds weird, but it’s true, you do have to get trained to scoop ice cream), W-4 forms, a uniform, and 20 new co-workers. It wasn’t until a year after working that I realized the soft skills and life lessons I have learned from this simple customer service job.
It’s a sunny day. The temperature is around 70 degrees, with a little breeze. A typical day in May. It’s my third week working, so I know the drill. I step out of my car, dressed in my uniform with my hair pulled back. I remember to grab the key since I will need to close up the shop tonight.
LESSON 1: Always be prepared and professional. Being professional can look many different ways depending on your job, but for my job, I need to wear the uniform to show cohesiveness with other employees and the store. Having my hair pulled back is also an essential part of being prepared because we are working with food, so we need to make sure our hair isn’t getting in the way, which also shows professionalism to customers. I am also responsible for the key needed to close and lock the shop. Without it, I am at fault if anything happens to the store. This preparedness for the shift “allows you to relax, thrive, and be confident, as if you have prepared properly you will know that you are going to succeed.” (U2 Tuition)
I lock my car and make the short walk to the shop’s entrance door — my final moment of peace. I see people lounging outside the shop, happily eating their ice cream. I open the entrance door and am met with a large crowd swarming in front of the ice cream displays, waiting for their order. It’s going time. As soon as I walk through those doors, my customer service persona is on, and I am thrown into what will be a long shift. I quickly move through the crowd to clock in on the iPad and officially begin my shift. As I clock in, the morning shift workers, who have been waiting all shift for me to arrive, breathe a sigh of relief at my presence, knowing that I am there to take over and they can go home.
LESSON 2: Always be punctual. As the saying goes: early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable. You are responsible for making it to work on time, no matter the traffic or obstacles you may run into. Always leave enough time to account for those things you might come across. Kelli White, in her article, 8 Reasons Why Being Late is Unacceptable in Events, says, “By being late you are telling others that you don’t value their time and this can lead to many challenges in your career.” (White) Morning shift workers depend on you to be on time so they can leave as soon as their shift ends. It’s disrespectful to them if they have to wait past their end shift time because they were late. It also shows a lack of commitment and that negative behavior will shine through your work. I advise setting alarms or establishing a plan with enough time between events so you can always be sure to be on time.
I put my bag down in the kitchen, wash my hands, put on my gloves, and I am ready to work. I pick up where the morning shift workers left off and jump right in. I smile and ask my first of many customers my rehearsed line: “Hi, how are you? What can I get for you today?” Though the line of customers is now out the door, I take my time with each customer and grant them the respect they deserve. I stay smiling and continue being my bubbly self — another aspect of being professional.
The shift keeps us busy with scooping ice cream, serving soft serve, making milkshakes (which are a feat themselves), answering Doordash orders, making sure tables stay clean, and lastly, answering the phone in case someone wants to order a cake or ask a question about the store.
LESSON 3: Communicate effectively with customers. Whether you’re answering the phone or speaking with a customer directly, it is vital to be clear and answer orders with grace so that customers are always ensured a good experience. Even if a customer is being unreasonable or short with you, it’s true what they say: the customer is always right. As Michael Barnhill, a specialist in product development and marketing, said, “Take care of each problem, trust your customer and do what’s right even if you feel wronged. The mental energy it takes to be upset with a customer is never worth it.” (Barnhill) Stay kind, apologize to the customer, and move on. Then it is up to the customer to reciprocate that kindness and realize it was a simple mistake.
With how busy it gets as the shift continues later into the day, it’s no surprise that I make some mistakes. This is where lesson 3 comes into play. I double-check with customers about which flavor they want and apologize if I make a mistake on their order. Instead of dwelling on the error, I move on and correct it. Some customers will take it the wrong way and get mad, but it’s important to keep composure, weigh the situation, and act accordingly.
I see a large family approach the ice cream display freezer, anticipating their orders getting taken. With me and my co-worker in our groove, she takes the register, and I prepare to scoop. Of course, with the huge line out the door, half of this family orders milkshakes, and the other half orders hot fudge sundaes. Let me tell you something about the milkshake machine, nine times out of ten, it won’t work how you want it to. The trick with the machine is to get a perfect ratio of milk to ice cream so it blends well. I start strong and perfectly make a strawberry milkshake and a vanilla milkshake. Then comes the chocolate milkshake. I scoop the usual two scoops of ice cream into the cup and add about 5 ounces of milk. What I forget, though, is that the chocolate ice cream is extra frozen today and won’t blend as well. As I go to mix the milkshake, it sprays everywhere. And I mean everywhere. It’s all over my shirt, the milkshake machine, the counter, and the floors. Of course, that happened. I grimace at my co-worker, who silently chuckles to themselves. I peer over my shoulder and see the crowd of people and realize there’s no time to dwell on this mess, and I have to surge forward. I laugh and assure the customers that, don’t worry, this happens all the time, and I will get right onto working on their next milkshakes. I do a quick clean-up and redo the chocolate milkshake. I make sure to mix it a little before putting it in the machine. All the while I’m multitasking, cleaning my mess, and continuing to make milkshakes, my co-worker is making hot fudge sundaes and working the register. Except she gets some bad luck too. The hot fudge machine stops working. Now this might be the point of giving up for some people, but in a customer service job, you push through and problem-solve. Enter lesson 4.
LESSON 4: Be ready to problem solve. It wouldn’t be a shift in customer service if it weren’t filled with little problems. Something always goes wrong, and you must be prepared to deal with it, whether that means prioritizing which issue should be solved first or coming up with a quick solution that can be used before you find a long-term solution. If a problem directly affects a customer, say running out of hot fudge and having to use chocolate syrup instead, be apologetic to the customers and offer the alternative. Surveys on customer satisfaction found that “Only 43% said that they were satisfied with just a financial solution; 50% said that they enjoyed a remedy that involved empathy, an apology or other outcomes unrelated to money; and 60% said they were more satisfied when they received both.” (Alcántara) So be sure to pair the solution of an alternative with an empathetic tone, and then you have done your best to solve that problem.
I finish up the last milkshake and ask the customers to wait just one minute so I can clean up the counters. I do a rough job, but I will fix it when there is a lull in customers. Rather than cleaning the floors, I decide to wait until closing to clean them as I need to prioritize the customer’s orders and clean only what they could see. My co-worker scooped all the ice cream for the hot fudge sundaes, and we brainstormed how to finish making them. Quickly thinking on my feet, I remember we have chocolate drizzle sauce in the kitchen, so we decide to use that as a substitute. Of course, that is not a long-term solution to the hot fudge machine breaking, but it gets us through this rush of customers, and we will alert our boss once we’re done. We finish the entire order even with the bumps in the road and apologize for the wait to the customers. And so the shift continues.
Considering it’s a Friday night, we don’t stop scooping ice cream until the last minute of being open. Crowds come in and out, and our uniform shirts get progressively dirtier.
Thankfully it hits 9:00 pm, and we have served our last customer. We breathe a sigh of relief and get started on closing up shop. We divide the tasks, and I begin sweeping and mopping the floors. As a sign of respect to the workers coming in tomorrow morning, I do the job well. In fact, I break a sweat while doing so, but I am left with a glistening floor once I’ve finished. I collect the trash cans and bring them out to the dumpster. Finally, I breathe a breath of fresh air after being in the shop since 2:30 pm. It’s an interesting feeling to go into a building when it’s bright and sunny and then leave when it’s completely dark out.
As soon as the last tasks are finished, my co-worker and I clock out and go our separate ways after a hectic shift. I take a minute to myself in my car to take what feels like my first deep breath all day — time to go home.
While I am only 17 and this job is just part-time, it’s taught me lessons that carry over into every aspect of my life. I advise everyone to experience a customer service job because it’s the simple day-to-day workings of a job that subtly teaches you the most.
Bibliography
Alcántara, Ann-Marie. “Customer Complaints, and Their Ways of Complaining, Are on the Rise.” WSJ, The Wall Street Journal, 12 June 2020, www.wsj.com/articles/customer-complaints-and-their-ways-of-complaining-are-on-the-rise-11591998939. Accessed 26 May 2023.
Livermore, David. “15 Tips on How to Work in a Customer Service Job.” ToughNickel, ToughNickel, 10 Apr. 2013, https://toughnickel.com/industries/How-to-Prepare-to-Work-a-Customer-Service-Job. Accessed 25 May 2023.
“Professionalism.” Skills to Pay the Bills: Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success, United States of America, Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy, Washington, D.C., 2012.
U2 Tuition. “The Importance of Preparation and Time Management: U2’S Guide to Academic Success in 2023.” U2 Tuition, 15 Apr. 2020, www.u2tuition.com/resources/time-management#:~:text=Preparation%20allows%20you%20to%20relax,that%20of%20%E2%80%9Ctime%20management%E2%80%9D. Accessed 25 May 2023.
White, Kelli. “8 Reasons Why Being Late Is Unacceptable in Events.” Skift Meetings, 17 Sept. 2016, https://meetings.skift.com/why-being-late-is-unacceptable-in-events/#:~:text=Tardiness%20is%20Rude&text=They%20respect%20the%20time%20of,many%20challenges%20throughout%20your%20career. Accessed 25 May 2023.
Youth Entrepreneur Council. “Nine Impactful Customer Service Lessons That Can Change Your Business Approach.” Forbes, 21 Apr. 2022, www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2021/12/14/nine-impactful-customer-service-lessons-that-can-change-your-business-approach/?sh=69c656e17594. Accessed 25 May 2023.
