How to Deal With Unruly Customers
No matter which company you work for or how good the customer service in your company is, chances are you have come across angry customers. Having these kinds of negative behavior together with the conflict that can arise will surely turn a great day to a bad one in just a snap of a fingers.
Now, we are currently in the “Golden Age” of customer service where businesses aim to make sure that their customers have the utmost satisfaction in the products and services they provide. An employee’s behavior and reaction towards a conflicting situation can result in the customer having an unsatisfactory experience and hence giving the certain business entity a negative feedback, which is something that businesses don’t really like.
Handling these kinds of customers has never been easy. But if you follow these 7 techniques, you can diffuse the situation and make it a smooth process which will result in the customer having a wonderful experience and hence having customer loyalty.
Remain calm and collected
There are times that the customers will yell, curse and disrespect you.
Don’t respond in a similar manner. Remain calm and understanding towards the situation. Don’t let these words get into your head. The customer is not upset towards you, they are upset with the service that they were provided at the moment. They may be upset or frustrated because the products that they purchased turned out to be damaged or are not working.
Take a deep breath and respond in a slow, calm and collected manner. Reacting in the same manner as the customer may result in a more tense environment which leaves room for miscommunication and unprofessionalism.
Listen to your customer
Upset customers need to be heard and be acknowledged for their complaints. Listen to what they have to say first. When they are done raising their concerns and understanding what they are upset about, you can address it. Repeat the details that you have heard in their complaints and ask for questions that are needed. This will build rapport with the customers and make the customer. At times, this could also be enough to dissipate the situation.
Respond like every customer is watching you
Imagine that you are talking to an audience that is watching the interaction. This change in perspective would give an emotional cushion whenever the customer is being verbally abusive and it allows you to think for a better response. And considering that unruly customers can be the source of negative publicity, assume that they’ll repeat this exchange to other potential customers, this mindset can help you be at your best in addressing their concern in a calm and gentle manner.
Know when to compromise
Come to an agreement that will satisfy the customer and save you time addressing the concern and having the problem escalate. Remember that the best relationships with the customer comes after you solved their problem properly, efficiently and professionally. Once you have done this, you will surely have even more loyal customers because they understand that you are willing to bend.
Customers will feel grateful and pleased for saving the time for needless arguments. Obviously, the settlement must be mutual. Always consider keeping customers as customers.
Know when to stop
There are times that customers are just plainly being rude and you must cut ties with them to prevent wasting time. If the customers keep on refusing to come to an agreement and continuously make eccentric demands or remarks, then it’s time to close the door. Apologize and move on.
Remember to Apologize
Leave the situation by apologizing for the customer’s negative experience and try to assure them that this situation won’t happen again. Also, remember to end the situation on a positive note.
Keep in mind that when dealing with customers, we want them to have a great experience when interacting with the brand or company. A satisfied customer can spread word about how good the products of your brand are which will then attract even more customers. It takes a lot of positive reviews to outweigh one negative review.
Hence, as much as possible avoid having a negative review by always catering and satisfying your customers needs. .
