Every business occasionally encounters dissatisfied customers. Sometimes it is due to a mistake on the company’s side. Sometimes the customer misunderstood something or expected something different. There are many reasons, but the result is the same: you have to deal with the person who is against you. And if the situation goes public, taking into account that “the customer is always right”, it can affect the reputation of the company. But it’s not all bad. Angry people can and should be dealt with.
Find out the cause of negativity
You should start by finding the origins of the problem and the reasons for the anger. According to experts, it is important to understand what is behind it – the explosive nature of a person, unfavourable external circumstances or both.
From this understanding the situation changes. It is one thing when it is required to apologise, and another when all our actions are absolutely correct and do not violate anyone’s interests, but the client shows aggression.
What he demands in words, far from always expresses his wants and needs. Sharp, hurtful statements can be the result of feelings of helplessness and intense fear – for his life or safety. Understanding the true motives, it is easier and faster to enter into a constructive dialogue.
Therefore, first of all, it is necessary to understand what exactly the client is dissatisfied with and why. And it is important that the employee who deals with claims does not do this formally. Hence the following point.
Show care
There are, of course, people who just like to scandalise. And there are activists of consumer terrorism, who do not miss a chance to stir up a conflict to get a discount. But usually a disgruntled customer is a frustrated customer.
A common case for the company, which can be easily solved, often causes panic in the customer or buyer, because it is the first time he encounters something like this. And he does not know how it will end. In addition, he risks at least money, and possibly a ruined holiday, holiday or something else important to him personally.
Sometimes people come with aggression because they have had negative experiences with companies in the past. Unfortunately, often support services do not even move while you are expressing your complaints politely and trying to co-operate, and they start to move after the smell of fry.
That is why it is often necessary to calm a person down first of all. It is not necessary to do something supernatural, it is enough to let him know that his question is not treated formally, that he is heard.
Customer experience expert at digital financial service Lime.
A customer may be dissatisfied with the characteristics of a product or service, the terms of its provision and use, or the work of employees. But in fact, the reason is that the client’s expectations were not met. This reason is often overlaid with the second one – the support service is unable to provide the client with the help he needs.
It is very important not to lose sight of such a client and not to leave him alone with his problem. It is important to react to his dissatisfaction in time. For example, if he left a review on the Internet, you need to track down this client and contact him.
The best gift for a negative customer is not a promo code or merchandise, but the understanding that he was not abandoned in trouble, he was supported, that he is important for the company.
Humanity and understanding in communication in general help to lower the degree of conversation. Because in the first minutes an angry customer sees a company representative on the other end of the line. But the more lively he is, the clearer it becomes that it is just a person talking to him, on whom it is unfair to hang all the blunders of the company. And that can make the client cool down a bit.
Head of Corporate Client Support at UMoneu.
Here is one of our recent cases: a client called the support who was dissatisfied with the result of his previous request. The first manager did everything according to the instructions: he politely refused the option requested by the client, relying on the rules of service. But doing things by the book doesn’t always mean doing them well and keeping the customer’s loyalty.
The second manager showed empathy and care and looked at the problem more broadly than the instructions required. He too was unable to enable the requested option, but he managed to find an alternative option that satisfied the customer. The cherry on the cake was when the manager offered the customer additional support and made sure the customer understood the next steps.
Keeping the customer informed
Resolving an issue is not a quick process. Usually you need to do an audit, to work out what went wrong and at what stage, if the company is at fault. Or, if it is right and the client is wrong, explain to him in human language why he is wrong.
Customer experience expert at digital financial service Lime.
There are several points here. It is very important not to do it from the position of “yourself a fool”. You don’t need to talk to the client in a clerical way, for example: “Subparagraph 5.2.4 of the service agreement states that the client agrees to all additional terms and conditions, which are specified in the annex to the contract No. 12 in paragraph 7.” Such an answer may not only make an aggressor out of him, but also turn him even more against the company.
In any case, if you need to take a break to sort things out, you should not withdraw from the conversation and ask the client to get in touch later. It’s better to instruct him on what will happen and the time frame in which he will be called or emailed with an answer or additional questions. And it’s important to honour those agreements.
Don’t aggravate
Be the company thrice right, its reputation is at stake, so you should pay close attention to the right tone of communication.
During difficult negotiations it is important to remain calm and not to give in to emotions. An aggressive conversation can make you lose your temper, and then it is no longer a negotiation, but a simple quarrel.
In my experience, in the first few minutes of a conversation you will only hear the monologue of an irritated client who – be prepared for this – may shout and insult the company where you work and even you personally. You don’t have to take all these insults personally. In these first few minutes, try to understand the problem the customer is facing and start thinking of ways to solve it. You should not interrupt: the client should fully speak out and let off steam.
And it is important to react competently not only when the client is already behaving aggressively and assertively. Sometimes there is an opportunity to levelling the problem while it is still in its infancy.
