Check your customer service advisor CV against the job advert
Customer service adverts want people who stay calm, solve problems and keep good records. Show the channels, the volume and how you handled the hard ones.
Start with your advert
Every customer service advisor advert is different. The list below is what adverts for this job usually ask for, not what yours does. So start with your advert:
- Read the advert and copy out every "must have" or "essential" line, then the "desirable" ones.
- For each one, find the line in your CV that proves it. If you can't point to a line, that's a gap.
- Fill the gap with something true: a duty, a setting, a qualification or a result you really have. If you don't have it, say what you have that's closest, or leave it out.
Our guide to matching your CV to a job description goes through this in more detail.
What customer service advisor adverts usually ask for
Channels and volume
Why they askContact centre and office roles handle calls, emails, live chat or social messages.
How to show itName the channels and roughly how many contacts you handled.
Example lines: fill the gaps with your own facts- Handled about [number] [calls / emails / chats] a day about [orders, billing, bookings].
Resolving problems and complaints
Why they askAdverts stress first-contact resolution and handling upset customers.
How to show itGive a real example of a problem solved.
Example lines: fill the gaps with your own facts- Resolved [type of complaint] by [action], keeping the customer's [order / account].
CRM and systems
Why they askAdvisors work in CRM and order systems all day, and adverts name them.
How to show itName the systems.
Example lines: fill the gaps with your own facts- Logged every contact and updated accounts in [CRM or system].
Targets and quality
Why they askMany roles measure handling time, customer satisfaction or quality scores.
How to show itUse real figures if you know them; otherwise say which targets you met.
Example lines: fill the gaps with your own facts- Met [quality / satisfaction / handling time] targets [how consistently].
Shifts and working from home
Why they askContact centres run shifts, and some roles are home-based.
How to show itState your availability and home set-up if relevant.
Example lines: fill the gaps with your own facts- Available for [shift pattern]; quiet home workspace and reliable broadband for remote roles.
Only use a line if it's true for you. Swap each [gap] for your own detail: the setting, the number, the tool or the result. If you can't fill a gap honestly, cut that part of the line.
Mistakes that cost customer service advisor applications
- "Excellent customer service skills" with no example.
- Not naming channels or systems.
- Leaving out retail or hospitality experience, which is directly relevant.
Questions
Can retail experience get me a customer service job?
Yes. Dealing with customers face to face, handling complaints and using tills or stock systems are all relevant. Frame them in the advert's words.