Hazel鈥檚 cell phone continued to drop calls. This created some friction with her and her boyfriend because calls had been dropped during particularly tense discussions. She had called customer service twice and spent over two hours on the phone with them, yet her problem persisted. She was angry, so when Roger answered her third call, the first thing she said was: 鈥淵ou guys are awful鈥�, and launched into a long rant about the evils of their 鈥榣ousy鈥� service.
Having just completed a Handling Difficult Customers workshop, Roger allowed Hazel to vent without interruption, except to offer empathy. When she finished venting, Roger replied, 鈥淚 sincerely apologize for your sad experience. I am here to resolve this for you鈥�. Looking through her account notes he saw that the call was dropped with two previous representatives. Roger realized that the real problem was that she鈥檚 on the phone with someone else when she called, and the order was never completed.
Roger asked her if there was another number to call her back if their call got dropped. Roger assured Hazel that he would work with her until he found a solution. Hazel gave Roger the number to her parents.
When the problem was resolved to her satisfaction, Hazel said, 鈥淚 guess you guys aren鈥檛 all that bad, after all.鈥�
Handling difficult customers may seem like a thankless job. Fortunately, you can develop adaptive skills to help focus your thoughts and feelings, manage stress, listen well, and empathize with others. You will be better at meeting the challenges of difficult people, professionally and personally, if you follow these 10 tips on Handling Difficult Customers:
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Why are Some Customers Just So Difficult:Regardless of why they are angry or upset, their feelings are valid. Understanding the different reasons behind their behavior can help you resolve their difficulty, and turn the situation around in your favor.
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� The Right Attitude Starts with You: Keeping a positive mental attitude in the face of difficulty isn鈥檛 easy. Our brains seem to be hardwired to focus on the negative. But, cultivating an 鈥渁ttitude of gratitude鈥� can have dramatic effects on our sense of well-being.
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Stress Management (Internal Stressors):Internal stressors are unique to each person. These can range from feeling irritable, tired or unappreciated. Every day is different and creates emotional, mental, and physical stress. Learning to manage stress and navigate through these situations will bring out the best in all of us. Embrace your greatest opportunity!
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Stress Management (External Stressors): External stressors relate to your environment, and can often result in frustration and anger. You have limited control over the things that comes at you in life, but being adaptable and understanding what you can control are vital.
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Transactional Analysis: Transactional Analysis builds on the concept that human interaction is a series of transactions which results in positive and negative rewards in a helpful approach towards understanding our relations with customers. Every transaction is meant to make you a much better person. Anyone can handle simple and easy transactions; but it takes a person of class to bring a Cinderella ending to a difficult situation.
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Customer Over the Phone: When you eliminate some of your five senses, your other senses tend to become sharper. It鈥檚 an important factor to consider when working with a customer over the phone. Since you cannot see each other; the audio aspects of the interaction become amplified, including your tone of voice and background noises.
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Customer in Person:Interacting with a customer in person gives you greater opportunities to build rapport with that customer because now all of your body language is on full public display. This helps the customer gauge your sincerity in resolving their issue.
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Sensitivity with Customers: Being sensitive, and developing strategies for specific situations will make those difficult customers less challenging. A 鈥渙ne-size-fits-all鈥� approach will not suffice. Every situation is unique; 鈥榗ause every customer is unique!
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Scenarios of Difficult Customers: Role-playing beforehand will allow you to practice strategies that you can employ when you meet difficult customers.
鈥⒙犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅� Following up:A satisfied customer will remain loyal. Once you have resolved a customer鈥檚 issue, take a moment to ask if the situation was resolved to their satisfaction and if there is anything else you can do to make them any happier.
Much success to you as you empathize with your difficult customers!
NEXT WEEK: The Executive & Personal Assistant.
DISCLAIMER: This article was written and presented by Fas Trac Inc. Neither the editor nor this newspaper is responsible for the content presented in this article. Fas Trac Inc. provides business consultancy for buying, streamlining, or selling a business; as well as conducting workshops on various subjects for business owners, management and employees. For more success please write [email protected].
