When things go wrong, many customers get upset. Some blow up in anger. The next time your customer is ready to explode, use these five proven steps to sanity and let customer service excellence prevail. Step One: Let them blow off steam! No one is rational when they have pent up anger and emotion. Let
I am a loyal customer. My suppliers help me build my business and enjoy my busy life. I recommend them enthusiastically to others, buy from them repeatedly and rarely challenge them on price. But there comes a point… Every month I ship packages to customers around the world. My courier company had a “bonus program”
Imagine you are the manager of a fast-food service restaurant. A mother comes in for lunch with her young son. Half way through the meal the child knocks his drink on the floor creating a big mess! What’s the first thing your well-trained crew members should do? Clean the floor? Replace the drink? Not if
I wrestled with a computer manufacturer about a technical issue that required a simple solution. During the process, I made suggestions on how the company could improve customer experience and its procedures. Time dragged on and messages accumulated back and forth. After several weeks, I was eager to get the whole thing over and done.
I appreciate it when people disagree with me. It shows they are thinking hard and often opens the door to new insights and learning on both sides. Sometimes, though, the other person puts a sting into his message – a touch of caustic comment to perturb, provoke and discomfort. I used to hit back at
A busy restaurant manager attended my seminar on creating “customer delight.” Soon after, she wrote to me directly, asking this most appropriate question about how to use good customer service skills in a bad situation: Hello Ron, I received a complaint from a customer about certain issues in our restaurant. After checking with the parties
Have you ever seen a customer who curses and screams, threatens, bangs the counter and throws things about? I have, and it’s not a pretty sight. An upset customer is understandable. An abusive customer is unacceptable. Your customer service training should cover this eventuality. If you encounter an irate customer who threatens, insults or barks
I advocate living in an appreciative manner. It spreads goodwill and attracts good service. But wait! I’m not suggesting you simply float in a cloud of good feelings hoping that everyone serves you well. Sometimes you get bad service. And when that happens to you, squeak! Why? Because the old saying is true: the squeaky
Managing customer complaints is a vital, internal process influencing customer perceptions and the attitudes of your staff. Pay attention to complaints and you can improve customer satisfaction for the better. Is your “complaint management system” up-to-date? Use this checklist to review your current approach and, if needed, make it better to improve customer satisfaction. 1.
Everyone has customers who complain. Complaining customers tell you what you’ve done wrong and how you can improve. If you measure customer value and decide to work to keep them happy, they will keep you in business. That’s normal, but there are times when you measure customer value and see a need to part ways.
