• A Customer Service Consultant ( CSC ) focuses on customer service, sales and marketing. They can be the important link between customers and suppliers in their local area. They work in the same time zone, speak the language, know the business culture, how to build and handle relationships. They meet with customers as necessary, build rapport, goodwill and provide product and service details. Good presentation and persuasive skills are key.
  • Learning to become more entrepreneurial, they can develop the mindset of a self-starter builder, doers with passion and inner drive, self reliant and resourceful. A CSC should learn to perform well a couple of key roles.
  • Service and Liason Role
    • Some customers wish to avoid the local import distribution layers for costs reasons, for a more direct approach in sourcing overseas themselves. For this type of customer: 
    • Liase with the customer mainly on a customer service basis to keep the customer happy. 
    • Focus on having an open book value chain, with transparency in all aspects of the supply chain, from suppliers to logistics to customers and other third party vendors, such as printing and labelling.
    • Unless specifically requested, do not perform the functions of a local importer, such as clearing products through customs,  handling local deliveries and warehousing, as this can add extra layers in costs and inefficiencies. This type of customer often prefers to bring the product through customs themselves.
  • Full Service Role
    • Other customers prefer the Customer Service Consultant to behave more like a local importer with a full service approach. They prefer more local importing assistance,  such as warehousing,  local deliveries and returns. Be responsive, hands on and organizational to get tasks done.
  • Ask useful questions:
    • How, What, When, Where, Why?
    • What product or service do I see opportunity?
    • Who could be a good next potential customer to follow up with?
    • How to build customers and brands?
    • What products from my own region could good for exports?
    • Which local bodies can help me build?
  • CSC’s often multitask:
    • An intelligent and creative use of technology can make one more productive and more effective.
    • Technology also allows more creative ways of working, whether online or remotely or via mobile.
    • In the digital era, one has greater freedom to pursue a partnership, freelance model.
    • One can combine different job descriptions.

Q and A with CSC:

What is your name?

My name is Grace.

Where are you located / live?

I live in Hong Kong.

How long have you worked with WFExports?

I have been working with WFExports for 6 years.

How did you hear about WFExports?

I know WFExports from my friend’s connection.

Position:

What position do you have with WFExports?

My position is Customer Service Consultant in Hong Kong.

What does your job entail and what do you do on a day to day basis?

My job duty is mainly keeping a close contact with the local clients to understand their needs and provide the sourcing solution to them. I also need to deal with product enquiries, logistics, quality issues and after sales service. I would say I am like a bridge to communicate between working partners in Canada and clients in Hong Kong.

Who do you communicate with and what tech tools do you use?

I have constant communication with the colleagues at WFExports, local clients and suppliers in Canada. We usually use phone calls, Whatsapp, Slack, email and google shared drive. I also need to keep contact with the trade department in the Canadian Consulate in Hong Kong to help to promote Canadian products and new products from Canada.

What is your experience in terms of working remotely with WFExports?

I found it’s very a new way to work remotely at anytime in anywhere, even when travelling in different countries. It’s flexible enough to match with my own schedule. It’s absolutely a great way to work without boundary.

What skills and knowledge do you think are important to do well in you job position?

A good communication and interpersonal skills are important to be successful in this position. A good sense of the product knowledge, market trend and customer spending pattern can also help to do well in this job.

What took time to get used to when you first started your job?

It took time for me to get on well with my busy clients as they were always engaged in the meetings and calls. Once we have built a good relationship, it is always easy to get a hold of them with Whatspp or a quick phone call.

Is this your full time or part time job?

It is my part time job and I am planning to turn it to my full time (  ) as I love the flexibilities that WFExports brings to me.

How do you organize your work and time schedule?

It’s easy as I just take a short time to talk to clients if needed or leave them a message in Whatsapp that I check during lunch, work breaks or after work. I always keep efficient communication with the working partners in Canada as Hong Kong is 15 hours ahead of Canada. I usually get the response in the next morning when I get up. So, our team is like working 24 hours a day in these two countries.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

Although I have a busy work schedule,  I still enjoy to cook, read and hang out with friends in my spare time. I also like travelling around the world and I’ve visited 29 countries.

Remote work culture:

What personal qualities do you think are important to be a successful member and contributor to the overall team at WFExports?

A self starter with the proactive approach is critical to be a successful member and contributor to the overall team at WFExports. As I am based in Hong Kong, I learn what the market trend is and actively communicate with the local clients, then feedback to the sourcing team in Canada. It generates more business opportunities.

Do you feel positively challenged and feel you are learning new things over time?

I do feel positively challenged as I am not doing the same thing in my full time job. I appreciate WFExports has given me a chance to develop different skill sets outside my normal boundaries. I am happy to learn new things over time.

Do you find it easy or difficult to get help from your co workers when you need it?

It’s always easy to get help from my team in Canada as I said previously we can communicate freely with different tech tools at anytime anywhere as long as I have an internet connection.

Do you have any difficulties that you have encountered with your clients?

The difficulty that I have encountered is the working culture of Hong Kong and Canada might be different. So the speed and expectation of work might be different sometimes.

How do you manage it?

I had to spend more time to explain to both parties to get the things done. So, patience, good communication and consideration should always be kept in mind.

How would you like to see yourself growing within WFExports?

I would like to see myself continue to grow the Hong Kong business gradually and successfully. I believe that I can do that as I started with zero in 6 years ago and I would say I earn a pretty good extra income now.

What’s your achievement in your WFE journey?

The biggest achievement in my WFExports journey is growing the business in the challenging year of 2020. I can’t have face to face meeting with clients, so keep the close contact with them by phone calls, emails and instant messages. I am so proud of working with the team supporting each other around the clock internationally.