Whenever you hear the words customer service, you think of a person who knows exactly what a customer wants and needs – and knows them even before the customer does. A customer service person has people skills: he or she is patient, but never condescending; and will do everything he or she can do to help a person, but will never be desperate. If you are in customer service, you can understand the fulfillment that comes with helping a customer successfully – and you will know the frustration that comes with seeing an irate, dissatisfied customer walking away or slamming the phone down on you.

If you are applying for a job in customer service, you will need a resume that speaks of your background in the field; a transcript that shows your educational attainments; and other certificates that your prospective employer might ask for. To hold all these together, you need an effective cover letter that can land you the job.

Many people underestimate the value of a cover letter, but it is actually a powerful tool that can show exactly what abilities you have in customer service. In fact, applying for a job can be likened to customer service: you are the service provider, and the person offering the job is the customer. As you have to please your customer in the best way possible, you also have to apply customer service principles to your job application in order to succeed.

To effectively carry out customer service, you need to know exactly what the customer wants. Your customer is your prospective employer; your prospective employer has his or her own needs, wants, and goals for the company; your prospective employer wants and employee who can help a company meet all these needs, wants, and goals. Are you the person for the job?

Do as much research as you can on the company that you are applying to. Is it a conglomerate, a multinational, or a small enterprise? Does it aim to expand its market, cater to a small group of customers, or sell as many products as possible? Who is your employer, and what will your duties be? Know all these completely, and they can help you write an effective customer service cover letter.

When writing the cover letter, keep in mind that you are already on the job. You need to add a personal touch, so address the prospective employer by his or her name; sign the letter personally; and make sure that your finished product is neat. State that you are the person to meet the company's goals, that you can think on your toes, and that you work hard to get what a customer wants. Talk about all of these in three or four brief paragraphs: like your customer in your textbook case of customer service, your prospective employer has no time to listen to you prattle on or grovel.

Stand up and don't sell yourself short! Be confident! You need to show your abilities this early, so make your cover letter both content-rich and brief. Provide all your contact information, but make sure that you can live up to your promises. If you promise to show up for an interview, do so. If you give your mobile phone number, be prepared to answer the calls as they come. Remember, you are in customer service even as you apply for the job, so prove to your prospective employers that you are skilled even before they hire you.

Customer service is an art that only a few are very well skilled at, so show those skills in your cover letter. With an effective cover letter, you can get the customer service job that you want and need. And, with that great customer service job, you can please many more customers through your great people skills.