Customer Comfort – Angry Customers and How to Handle Their Needs
Irate customers are rarely fun to deal with. However, there are some basic steps you can take to resolve your concerns and keep your business. Here are three steps you can take to help track down an irate customer, make them happy and even more loyal to your business:
- Start by being empathetic
- Focus on future solutions, not past problems
- Ask the customer how to follow up
Oftentimes, customers won’t be upset about the failure of your product or service, but about something completely unrelated that happened to them before. Being patient and empathetic with their problems is a great way to defuse the situation. In other cases, their frustrations are justified. If this is the case, you should find out what all the issues are before proceeding to the next step.
Once you have a good understanding of all the issues, you can enlist the customer’s help in developing solutions. Consulting with the client is critical, as the solution(s) you offer will either be acceptable to them or have little or no effect on making them less angry. Instead, focus on what the business relationship should look like in the future and what it will take from both parties to make that ideal future happen. Sometimes, you will determine that there is no potential for future customer retention for your business. If this is the case, just say so and wish the former customer the best on their journey. If you part on good terms, they may come back if they have future needs or speak well of you to others, which is a good outcome.
Finally, once you have a tentative set of solutions for the client’s needs, you should ask how best to follow up with them. While no one likes dealing with an upset customer, all customers appreciate a business person who cares about them and their well-being. They especially appreciate someone who wants to make sure the job gets done right the first time, or can be fixed to their satisfaction. When you do this, customers no longer have reason to be justifiably angry with you. If they still are, then the problem is with them and not with the service of your business.
So, by being empathetic to customers, focusing on problem-solving solutions, and following up properly with an irate customer, you can meet their needs and typically keep your business in the long run.
Copyright 2010, by Marc Mays
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