Some things I've done to improve my verbal communication skills is to make sure that I know my audience who I'm speaking with and that I listen very carefully to what their issue is or what their request is. Keep a good tone in your voice. Make sure you make the client feel like they're the special person and that all your attention is devoted to them. As far as improving listening skills, have little distractions. You know who you're talking to, whether you need to use more technical terms or slow it down a little bit and talk to the person. Make sure you talk to them on their level so they can understand what you're trying to explain and show empathy if there's issues. It's super important to listen to what they're saying and reiterate to them what they're saying so the client is comfortable that you understand what they're trying to achieve.