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Myra's Customer
Service Articles
Dealing
with a Customer's Over Reaction
It's happened to all of us: An
upset customer overreacts to something we've said or to a
problem they've encountered. We're often caught off guard by
the customer's shocking response but now you can relax and
respond professionally and diplomatically with my four tips
for handling a caller's overreaction. Read below to get my
four great tips for handling a callers overreaction.
1. Understand -
Before responding to the customer's (over) reaction, try to
understand the problem they are expressing from their point of
view. Imagine how you might feel if you were the customer and
the exact problem happened to you? Think about the kind of
response you would want from the company in this exact
situation and then offer a response that demonstrates your
understanding and empathy. A good way to start off your
statement is, "I realize this must be terribly
frustrating for you. Please accept my sincere apology for any
inconvenience this may have caused you."
2.
Have patience -
Work hard to not lose patience. Understanding the problem from
the customer's point of view and putting yourself in the
customer's shoes will naturally help you develop patience in
this situation. Don't immediately jump to conclusions, remain
objective and let the customer vent. It's important to let the
customer know you are fully available to listen to them and
help them. Never make a customer in this situation feel rushed
or that you are losing patience.
3.
Create calm -The best way to
create calm with your customer is to be calm yourself. Assure
the customer that together you can get to the bottom of the
problem (or that you can ultimately get them the
information/help they need). You can further create calm by
demonstrating a sense of urgency to get the customer the
help/answers they need. One way I do this is to say, "There
is nothing more important to me at this moment that getting to
the bottom of this. The first thing we need to do is___."
4.
Explain
-Perhaps the most important factor in problem situations is to
keep the customer apprised of your specific intentions and
timetable to resolve the problem. Ron Zemke, co-author of
Knock Your Socks Off Service Recovery puts it this way: "It
doesn't matter whether the problem was caused by the customer,
by your company, by a third party, or an act of nature; the
customer wants to know what you are doing to resolve the issue
and to get things back on track. That need for reassurance is
tantamount." With that in mind, take the time to
carefully and clearly explain to the customer what you will do
to resolve the problem they have experienced.
These four
tips will help you create an impression of being in control,
confident and authoritative - very important attributes in the
wake of a difficult situation with a customer. Your objective
in difficult situations is to regain and keep control and
never let a customer push you into a corner or push your
buttons. If you like what you read here, you will
definitely want to tune into my Dealing with Difficult
Customers web event. Click
here to review my webinar schedule and to register.
About
the Author
Myra
Golden is one of the service industry's most prominent
trainers and a highly regarded business growth strategist.
Companies hire Myra and her team to help them build, recover,
and strengthen customer relationships. She can be reached at
866-873-8419 or by email at myra@myragolden.com.
She also has a website: www.myragolden.com.
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