Dealing with difficult customers...

Managing difficult customers is inevitable for any business person, whether corporate or commercial. There is no ‘fresher’ or ‘veteran’ in managing difficult customers because receiving a tongue lashing over the phone or in person from a customer is never easy. It’s human instinct to react... but my law of excellent customer service says responding to situations pay you more than reacting, on the long run. Unfortunately, I’ve had my share of angry customers, horrible experiences that have left me ‘upset’, but then I learned and am still learning several strategies to use, to help manage conversations headed for the warpath, and making them lighter…

One step to managing difficult clients is...

Avoid Sending Emails

It is quite natural to want to respond to issues via email, to avoid a verbal confrontation with an irate customer. Unfortunately however, the results can be disastrous. Like I always tell people, talking over the phone makes it easier to pass across more emotions/feelings than sending emails. When on a voice call, it is easy for the receiver to tell that you are happy, amused, angry, confused, attentive or irritated. Via emails however, it is a different ball game. People tend to blow things out of proportion and misconstrue words used and the ‘tone’ of the sender. To avoid this, it is always advisable to converse verbally (on the phone) or in person. This saves you the stress of sending emails back and forth with no resolution plan in sight, and prevents either party from misunderstanding the other.

However, it is important that a "Further to our conversation..." email be sent, after each voice call. This is a format used to document every transaction/communication made with the customer, just in case it is required by another staff or management, in the near future. It is a proof that you had that conversation with the customer. 

Adjust Your Mindset

Your mindset has a lot to do with how you handle customers, whether over the phone, or in person. You have to be aware that your customer is unhappy and your first priority should be to make him/her happy, because a happy customer brings more business.

To adjust your mindset, you have to put yourself in your customer’s shoes, set aside the feelings and thoughts of “this isn’t my fault”, or “this customer has made a mistake” or “this customer did not do what I asked him to do”. What should matter to you at this point is that 

your customer is unhappy, and you have to make him happy. Your mindset will also make you talk slowly and calmly, knowing that this will lower the tension, and ensure that you do not escalate the situation by getting upset, yourself.

Adjusting your mindset makes you focused on your customer 100% and aim to correct the current situation.

 

Listen Attentively

Every good conversation starts with good listening.

Listening attentively is the most important step in the entire process of managing a difficult customer. You have to listen, hear and understand your customer’s grievances. Allow the angry customer to talk through their problems and get it all out of their system. However, do not be silent all through as this might further infuriate the customer and give him the impression that you are not listening. So, to assure the customer you’re only focused on his/her problem right now, make indications that you’re listening such as “uh huh”, “yes”, “really” etc…

the next step is to go over all the customer has said, to make him know you actually listened.

Repeat the problems/issues mentioned and Ask Questions

Once the customer is done explaining why he is upset, go over all he has said and make sure you get the right issues. If necessary, use phrases such as “If I understand clearly” …

This tells the customer you were listening to his grievances and you are willing to help.

Going over the issues raised also gives you and the customer an opportunity to agree on the mode of resolution.

Go further to ask questions about the facts and details of the matter at hand. This will help in providing accurate solutions.

Apologize/Be Sympathetic

As soon as you are certain you understand what the customer wants, make apologies. Let your customer know that you understand why he’s upset. In doing this, you also have to be sympathetic and make sure that the customer knows that you understand their frustration with the situation, and then acknowledge any mistakes that have been made.

For example, you could say “I am sorry for the inconveniences this has caused. I understand why you are upset, and would be too, if this happened to me.”

Present a Resolution Plan

After apologizing, the next step is to let the customer know how you intend to resolve his issue. There are two ways to present a solution.

• Present the solution you are certain will take care of the issue and make your customer happy, or 
• Ask the customer how he wants the issue to be resolved (if you or the company you work for are totally wrong) in the issues raised. This option should also be used, when you are not sure what the customer wants from you.

For instance, you could say, "If my solution doesn't work for you, I'd love to hear what will make you happy. If it's in my power I'll get it done, and if it's not possible, we can work on another solution together."

Act and Follow-up

Further to your agreement on a resolution plan, take action. Explain the steps of the resolution path to the customer, and let him/her know if they would be involved in one way or the other.

Also, take note of the customer’s phone number (or a means of reaching the customer again). This will aid you in providing and receiving feedback, and follow-up with the customer. Also make sure the customer has your name and contact details, so they can follow up, if necessary. This gives the customer a sense of control because he/she would be able to reach you again, whenever the need arises.

After resolution of the incident by you, follow up with your customer over the next few days to ensure that the customer is happy with the resolution, and find out if they had other challenges. Gain agreement on your resolution. Make sure your customer understands what has been done, and even if the issue is not totally resolved, gain agreement on the resolution that was reached.

Use the Feedback

The last step to dealing with difficult customers is to ensure that you reduce the risk of the situation happening again. Use the feedback received from the customer to identify how the problem started in the first place. Find the root of the problem and make sure that it's fixed immediately, and also, ensure that you're managing complaints and feedback adequately, so that you can improve that way that you do things.

In conclusion, dealing with difficult customers though challenging, can be managed, if the situation is handled well. Excellent handling of difficult situations may help improve your relationship with customers and create further opportunities.

It is advisable that if you aren't sure about how to tackle a particular situation/issue, ask your customer what will make him happy. If it's in your power, then get it done as soon as possible. Follow up with your customer to make sure he was happy with how the situation was resolved. 

Article by: Vivian Michael

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