The Upset Customer

Click here to see an explanation on the nine tips for dealing with difficult customers.

The most important consideration, when confronted with an angry customer, is your mindset - you are in business to serve your customer; period. Whether the complaint is justified or not, how you respond can make the difference between keeping that person's patronage or losing it forever. The following are five tips for handling an upset customer:

Above All, Remain Calm - When a customer is going off the deep end, there is nothing to be gained by yelling back. In fact, all you will achieve is an escalation of hostilities.

Realize That It's Not Personal - The customer doesn't know you from Adam. They are displeased with the quality of the service you provide or the performance of your product, not with you.

Lend An Ear  - For better or worse, you are the person confronted with a venting customer, so patiently hear the person out and acknowledge the complaint. This can go a long way to defusing the situation. If you are engaging with the customer in person, be aware of your body language: keep eye contact, sit or stand up straight, and keep your arms uncrossed.

Offer Some Sympathy - Express sympathy for the customer's unpleasant experience and apologize gracefully. If you want to keep this person as a future customer, you need to convey regret for the problem whether it's genuine or perceived. A simple statement along the lines of: "I'm sorry you're unhappy with our product (or service). What can we do to make amends?" is often all that is needed.

Offer a Solution - Ask the customer what would make him or her happy or propose your own fair and practical solution. In most cases, this will provide the customer with some degree of satisfaction. If the customer feels fairly treated, you stand a good chance that he or she will deal with your company again, and that is your ultimate goal.

So, the bottom line is, respond to your customers in the way you would want if in the same situation. Your customers have lots of other places they can spend their money, so be grateful they chose your business.

The Challenging Customer

A difficult customer in my mind is a person who tries to provoke you to react in an uncontrollable manner. The important thing to remember always have control of the situation! ‎

Difficult customers come in several varieties, including:

• Angry
• Impatient
• Intimidating
• Talkative
• Demanding
• Indecisive

Get control of yourself: Never argue with customers when they are angry, displeased or complaining. If you allow a customer to push your buttons and lose control of yourself, you've lost control of the situation. Remember, you can lose a good customer if you show boredom, irritation, disdain or displeasure.

Listen and let the customer vent: Tune in to the customer; don't look for the nearest exit. The customer wants to be listened to, acknowledged and understood. Use body language to communicate that you're listening. Maintain eye contact. Show your attentiveness by standing or sitting up straight; lolling or slouching makes you seem inattentive and disinterested. Uncross your arms—this indicates you are listening with an open mind. Let the person talk and pay close attention. Repeat or paraphrase some of what you hear.

Show the customer you care: Show concern for the customer's feelings. Maintain a concerned, sincere and interested facial expression. Your voice, as well as your body language and expression communicate your attitude. People respond more to how you say something than what you say.

Don't blame the customer or the company: When explaining your store's policy or trying to clarify what went wrong, use either the indirect approach ("There are a few questions before I can give you a refund.") or "I" statements ("I need additional information.") as much as possible. Don't acknowledge that you or your company is to blame. That could lead to lawsuits.

Try to solve the problem or get someone who can: Even if solving the customer's problem isn't among your job duties, never say this to the customer. Get all the facts you can, and then tell the customer how you can help.

Finally, don't make promises you can't keep: Get help from someone who knows more, is calmer, or has more power and authority.

The Angry Customer

Customers get rude or angry for a variety of reasons - some justified, some not. But since you’re in business to serve your customers, you’ll likely encounter rude or angry individuals at one time or another. How you respond can make the difference between a customer who feels satisfied with the resolution and one who vows never to patronize your business again.

Here are tips for coping with a tense situation and hopefully resolving it to everyone’s satisfaction:

Remain calm. When a customer starts yelling or being otherwise rude, there is nothing to be gained by responding in a similar manner. In fact, that will probably escalate hostilities. Maintain control of yourself, even if the customer’s tirade makes you feel like yelling yourself.

Don’t take it personally. Remember, the customer is not angry with you, they are displeased with the performance of your product or the quality of the service you provide. Your personal feelings are beside the point.

Use your best listening skills. The first thing an angry customer wants is to vent. To do so, they need someone to listen, and, for better or worse, you are that person. Listening patiently can defuse a situation, as long as the customer feels acknowledged in his or her complaint. Hear them out. When they are done talking, summarize what you’ve heard and ask any questions to further clarify their complaint. Body language can be critically important here. Keep eye contact. Stand or sit up straight. Keep your arms uncrossed. Show how closely you’re paying attention to their problem.

Actively sympathize. After the customer vents, he wants to know you understand where he’s coming from and how he or she feels. Express sympathy for their unpleasant customer experience. Respect and understanding go a long way toward smoothing things over.

Apologize gracefully. Whether the customer’s complaint is legitimate or not is really irrelevant. If you want her to stay a customer, you need to express an apology for the problem they are having (or perceive to be having). A simple, straightforward statement is often all that’s needed: “I’m sorry you’re not happy with our product. Let’s see what we can do to make things right.”

Find a solution. Once you understand why the customer is unhappy, it is time to offer a solution. Ask him what he feels should be done or put forward your own fair and realistic answer to the problem. In most cases, that’s all the customer is looking for, and may result in providing some degree of satisfaction.

Take a few minutes on your own. After the situation has been resolved and the customer is on her way, it’s helpful for you to take your own “time-out”. Even if you’ve handled the situation in the most professional way possible, it’s still a stressful experience. Rather than let that stress linger inside you, take a short walk, treat yourself to a snack or find someone to talk to who makes you laugh. Then you’ll be ready to once again engage with your customers.

Showing Empathy and Understanding

Researchers define empathy as the ability to sense other people’s emotions, coupled with the ability to imagine what someone else might be thinking or feeling.

It’s often challenging to help customers who are lost in emotions and seem unable to be receptive. What should you say to customers who express discontent or are downright angry? This situation can sometimes be scary.

Here are some key phrases to tell your customers in order to make a first step in assuring them that you are taking the problem very seriously:

• “I can understand how frustrating it is when…”
• “I realize how complicated it is to…”
• “I imagine how upsetting it is to…”
• “I know how confusing it must be when…”
• “I’m so sorry to hear that…”

How to act with sympathy - You can drastically improve the customer experience by taking a few seconds to build rapport by simply expressing genuine empathy.

Listen carefully - Be a good a listener and try to repeat what the customer says to assure them that you are listening.

Smile - Sounds cheesy but smile when talking to customers. They will feel it in your voice.

Make it your problem - Take ownership of the enquiry, especially if it is a complaint. Have a one-to-one relationship with your customer so that they have a point of contact that they can come back to.

Allow them to ‘get it all out’ - When the customer is angry, allow them to vent without interruption. Use this time to figure out what you can do to fix their issue.

Be respectful - Make sure you talk to the customer with respect and in common language. Never talk down to the customer or talk over them.

See it through their eyes - Share your customers perspectives.

Understand their priorities - Every customer, particularly in an emergency situation, will have a list of priorities. Make them your priorities too and address them in the right order (mirroring them). This will reassure the customer that you know what they want and are taking care of them.

Show that you care - You can build rapport by showing a personal interest in the customer. For example, if a customer says they have been sick, show that you care by asking them about the recovery.

Begin with a positive statement - If the customer has spent some time explaining a frustrating problem, then beginning your response with a short, direct statement of intent can gain his confidence. Something like “Okay, we can fix this…” or “Right, let’s get this problem sorted for you…” will reassure the customer that you are taking ownership of the problem.

Avoid assumptions - Don’t make assumptions about what the customer is telling you – listen actively!

On a difficult call, you have TWO CHOICES as a professional:

Only one of these is productive. The other one ensures that a customer either does not do business with you again or complains not only about what originally made them angry, but about you and your manner and attitude as well.