It seems more like a million-dollar question when someone comes up to me and asks what are the best qualities that a Customer Success Consultant possesses. And what do I revert with?
Well. It mostly differs and depends!
Yes, you heard that right! Qualities are a very subjective attribute and it differs from person to person, organization to organization and that too in many myriad ways.
As a matter of fact, there is no one size that fits all policy. In the business, you will have to be considerate about a certain amount of factors such as how well you position yourself in the market, who do you cater to, what does your target audience mostly constitute of, the maturity level of the organization and the list can go on and on…
Now, let’s talk about 5 such customer success consultant qualities that are of high pertinence to the role:
1. Excellent Communicative Skills
Well, it’s not like only the ones who are born with the gift of the gab are allowed to be a customer success consultant or customer success coordinator (CSC). All that the job demands are that you need to be able to effectively communicate with your customers, within your team members and also with your counter partners.
Within the SaaS, you must also note that listening too is an essential part of a healthy conversation.
When you see that the other person wishes to contribute their bit in the conversation, give them the chance to dive in and this way there can a two-way approach of sharing, learning, and powerful reciprocation.
With this, they might also pull out insights that can improve a product or service and find more ways to add substantial value to the customers’ experience.
As Kaiser Mulla Feroze, B2B Software Executive rightly quotes:
”Companies need to prove their worth if they wish to win their customer’s loyalty and continue to earn their business.”
2. Not to Miss – Time Management
As you are aware that most of your dealings entail customers, remember that you need to be as organized as you can be. Be it in terms of meetings, or be it just time.
Your job requires tremendous attention to detail, and an ability to prioritize and manage time, which is a crucial factor in any given business. Somewhere in the venture, you will realize that these are like the two sides of a coin.
Without this not-so-vital yet important trait, it will be very difficult to keep your expectations maintained, pep up your sanity, or to effectively keep things in control. Not pretty, to say the least.
But you can always learn. There are numerous sites out there to help you with this trait. In no time, you would be able to do power yoga, chop some avocados, set up 9 meetings a day, hire a cab, and party like an animal on the weekends. No belief? Check this out!
3. Game of the Day – Strategize
As a CSC, remember strategy is the key. Be prepared to see the tomorrow through the lens of today. View the bigger picture. Get ready to tailor what the team demands and think of ways to measure it and eventually, bring it to the table.
Of the other attributes of strategy, one is analyzing a situation as quickly and accurately. Research on customer behavior, what do they want, how to enhance business in limited time, resources, and budget.
A good strategy will enable you to ponder over questions such as these and ways to unearth the answers to them.
You should always be in a position to explain the whole of customer experience to anyone at any given point in time.
4. A Passion to Progress
A great work ethic and passion to do what is the demand of the job and to make customer success is quite virtuous in customer success consultant qualities.
When you know that putting in a tad bit effort would revert in folds and get right back to you, should be the motivation enough for you.
Note that the barrier to entry and exit is very low for your customer. Your company can lose money unless you are not enough passionate about the same. It is your passion that should answer everything.
You might be wondering whether this is a skill that is inept or it can be learned. Personally, I believe that every individual is born with some of the passion, in varying degrees. The key is to ascertain the techniques for garnering those natural skills.
5. Above All, Empathy
As a CSC, each and every person on your team should be built to SERVE. Simply put, when you see that your customer is not facing the best experience, you should genuinely care. That care should be real and it should not be scripted as if you were in a skit.
Yearn to solve mistakes and help customers with their respective issues and achieve a certain value to the product.
This is when empathy kicks in. Empathy goes way beyond just fixing problems. With this in mind, you must remember that it is empathy that makes us want to avoid pain.
Your preference must always be a customer above all. You should always work proactively to create a pain-free environment so that your customer does not suffer in the first place.
Empathy will allow you to better understand how your customer is exactly feeling. Have honest discussions with your customers, then you will be able to uncover a customer’s real meaning. And only then you will be able to achieve the tag of a successful CSC. Though it’s not too tough, it is not like a cakewalk too.
Final Take
Though there can be many such facets that a customer success consultant must-have, these were just five of them. You might wish to check other links to our blogs for better clarification. Follow this.
Highly accomplished, motivated, and adaptable sales and operations professional with a track record of successful leadership. Known for an empathetic and consultative approach that consistently exceeds growth and revenue goals.
Published May 18, 2020, Updated June 07, 2023