As a salesperson, you are often the face of your company. You will find that customers will often call you if they have an issue, instead of calling the customer service or technical support departments. And that means you can find yourself facing more than your share of upset, angry customers. Often the problem they face has nothing to do with you, but because you are standing in as the company representative, you're the one who will face the brunt of the customer's wrath. When you find yourself in this kind of situation, remember the following eight tactics for defusing your customer's fury.
1. Acknowledge His Feelings
Whether or not you think the customer's anger is justified, you need to accept that he IS angry and trying to tell him that he's being unreasonable will only make things worse. Most of the time, once a customer's had a chance to rant and rave a little, he'll calm down and realize that fact himself. So instead of resisting, say something like, “I can see that you're very upset about this. Tell me more about it.”
2. Express Your Support
As the customer pours out his story, make a point of how serious you consider the situation. Respond in a way that shows support for the customer's issue. Ask him to expand on the details of what happened and let him know that you're writing everything down. You can also use active listening to demonstrate that you're taking in everything he says.
3. Take Your Time
Don't try to hurry the customer along. If he needs to just yell for awhile about what idiots you and your coworkers are and how he's going to sue the company for its last dollar, let him. The sooner he gets all that hostility out, the sooner you can get down to solving the problem. So let him go on and on for as long as he wants. Once it's clear he's finished venting for the moment, you can gently move him along to the next phase of the conversation.
4. Keep a Cool Head
When someone is yelling and perhaps even cursing at you, it's tempting to respond the same way. Don't let that happen. You will just turn a bad situation into a worse one if you get angry back at the customer. Instead, try to remember that he's just upset about a general situation and he'll probably be apologizing to you for yelling in a few minutes if you can just stay calm.
5. Draw Out the Customer
In order to solve the problem, you need to get the facts about what happened. You might need to wait a few minutes for the customer to finish yelling, but once he's a bit calmer, start asking questions to draw out the information you need.
6. Talk About Resolution
Once you have figured out the problem, it's time to start presenting the customer with some next steps. Hold off until he's calmed down and is in control of his emotions, then tell him what you intend to do to resolve the problem (even if it's something like, “I'm going to personally discuss your issue with the head of the tech support team.”). If he doesn't seem to be calming down enough to talk rationally, put the matter off by telling him you need to launch an investigation and schedule a time to speak with him later.
7. Set a Timeline
When you tell the customer what you'll be doing to find him an answer, let him know roughly how long it will take and when you'll be getting back in touch with him with an update. After you've finished your various investigations and have a final solution ready to go, let the customer know how long that will take, too.
8. Stick to Your Promises
Whatever you tell the customer you'll do for him, you'd better get it done. Be careful how much you're willing to offer because you'll need to cough it up or you'll just make him even more upset. Follow-through is absolutely essential to resolve a problem with a customer who is already unhappy with you. If you run into any unexpected problems or delays, notify the customer at once and explain what you'll do next.
By Wendy Connick
http://sales.about.com/
1. Acknowledge His Feelings
Whether or not you think the customer's anger is justified, you need to accept that he IS angry and trying to tell him that he's being unreasonable will only make things worse. Most of the time, once a customer's had a chance to rant and rave a little, he'll calm down and realize that fact himself. So instead of resisting, say something like, “I can see that you're very upset about this. Tell me more about it.”
2. Express Your Support
As the customer pours out his story, make a point of how serious you consider the situation. Respond in a way that shows support for the customer's issue. Ask him to expand on the details of what happened and let him know that you're writing everything down. You can also use active listening to demonstrate that you're taking in everything he says.
3. Take Your Time
Don't try to hurry the customer along. If he needs to just yell for awhile about what idiots you and your coworkers are and how he's going to sue the company for its last dollar, let him. The sooner he gets all that hostility out, the sooner you can get down to solving the problem. So let him go on and on for as long as he wants. Once it's clear he's finished venting for the moment, you can gently move him along to the next phase of the conversation.
4. Keep a Cool Head
When someone is yelling and perhaps even cursing at you, it's tempting to respond the same way. Don't let that happen. You will just turn a bad situation into a worse one if you get angry back at the customer. Instead, try to remember that he's just upset about a general situation and he'll probably be apologizing to you for yelling in a few minutes if you can just stay calm.
5. Draw Out the Customer
In order to solve the problem, you need to get the facts about what happened. You might need to wait a few minutes for the customer to finish yelling, but once he's a bit calmer, start asking questions to draw out the information you need.
6. Talk About Resolution
Once you have figured out the problem, it's time to start presenting the customer with some next steps. Hold off until he's calmed down and is in control of his emotions, then tell him what you intend to do to resolve the problem (even if it's something like, “I'm going to personally discuss your issue with the head of the tech support team.”). If he doesn't seem to be calming down enough to talk rationally, put the matter off by telling him you need to launch an investigation and schedule a time to speak with him later.
7. Set a Timeline
When you tell the customer what you'll be doing to find him an answer, let him know roughly how long it will take and when you'll be getting back in touch with him with an update. After you've finished your various investigations and have a final solution ready to go, let the customer know how long that will take, too.
8. Stick to Your Promises
Whatever you tell the customer you'll do for him, you'd better get it done. Be careful how much you're willing to offer because you'll need to cough it up or you'll just make him even more upset. Follow-through is absolutely essential to resolve a problem with a customer who is already unhappy with you. If you run into any unexpected problems or delays, notify the customer at once and explain what you'll do next.
By Wendy Connick
http://sales.about.com/
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