"You'll never have a product or price advantage again. They can be too easily duplicated. But a strong customer service culture cannot be copied." - Jerry Fritz
I'll bet every one of us has been in the situation where we were faced with an angry customer. It's not pleasant - for so many reasons, particularly given the very wise adage: The customer is always right!
Now, that doesn't mean they are actually always 'right',
it means that we have to behave in a way that reflects this attitude on our part. Fact is, is irrelevant if the customer is right or wrong - there's a problem here and you need to solve it. Trying to 'save face' and point out where they went wrong will only worsen the problem.
Here are some quick tips on how to handle an angry customer in a way that will keep them as a customer and enable you to keep your composure in the face of an onslaught:
- Seek to
understand the message itself and not the way it's being communicated. If you can get beyond your natural feelings of anger/fear and focus on what the customer is actually needing you to know, you can speak to the problem and not the emotion.
- Make a 'no blame' apology. Just because you didn't make the mistake,
doesn't negate the need for them to hear an apology from you. You represent your entire company so saying something like: "I'm sorry to hear that..." is a wholly appropriate way to react.
- Don't interrupt, ever. Listen.
Let the customer finish their tirade, then ask probing questions: "Am I correct when I say that you are worried about...?"
- Lastly, spell out how you
intend fixing the situation and make sure the customer understands time lines, steps being taken etc.
These are just a few of the aspects of customer service we explore on our comprehensive and very real
customer care courses . We flesh out how to remain
calmly assertive, how to diffuse the situation and so on. It's no wonder this is such a hugely popular course.
Remaining cool under fire requires practise, tools and the correct approach. You'll get all of this and more on our one or two day courses.
Staff Training is a South African soft skills training provider with more than 60 workshops on offer.
Email us at
info@StaffTraining.co.za for more info or give us a call at 0861 996 660
