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No 50                                                                               February 2005

Secrets to Handling an Angry Customer's Objection

The other day I witnessed "customer service 111: How NOT to deal with an angry customer.

I was shopping in a store when the customer from hell bullied her way to the front of the line, screaming that she demanded to see a manager because she was sick and tired of waiting and she needed an answer NOW! This woman had steam coming out of her ears, and the girl behind the counter dealing with her looked to be the age of her granddaughter. This customer started spouting a story about how she had been mistreated the day previously and she had come back to seek justice. What do you think the girl said? I can't blame her, it was instinct. She said, "Sorry, ma'am, it's not my fault. I wasn't the girl you spoke to yesterday."

Think that helped to calm the customer down? She wanted a solution to her perceived catastrophe. She didn't care if the person in front of her was directly responsible or not. She needed, more than anything, to be soothed. Eventually, the young girl buzzed her manager who skilfully handled the situation -- while those of us in line had an opportunity to watch! Within a few minutes, the customer was breathing again, and the situation was resolved to her satisfaction.

Richard Whiteley, Boston author of "Customer Centered Growth," is an expert on handling angry customers teaches:

"Over ninety percent of the time when confronted with an objection or complaint, a clerk or salesperson or service provider will muff it. This happens for several reasons: the salesperson sees it as a personal attack, is intimidated, doesn't have an instant solution to offer, or was never taught the attitude and skills to do it right in the first place. As a result the salesperson's typical behavior is: freeze -- the possum in the headlight syndrome, flee: 'I don't make em, I just sell em!', or fight: 'Well if you'd read the instructions we wouldn't be having this little problem, would we?'

Any one of these responses is destined to increase, not ease, the customer's upset, often to the point of losing him/her as a customer or, even worse, turning him/her into a vengeance seeker who wants to get even with your business.

So how do you turn a disgruntled complainer into a loyal and happy customer? Whiteley offers five steps that are all superior to what I witnessed : "It's not my problem!"

"Encourage: This is counter intuitive. Why would you want to pour oil on a fire that is already blazing away? Encouraging is sending a signal to the customer that you are on their side. View the problem through her eyes so that you can then work with her to create a reasonable solution. Try a short phrase like, 'I see this is very important to you' or 'It must have been frustrating for you to have to return this item for the third time.'

"Question: Now you want to do a little detective work. What is really behind the complaint? It is dangerous to assume you know the answer because if you are wrong you end up answering the wrong concern and waste both your customer's and your time. For example, if the complaint is that the product is overpriced, ask: 'What aspect of our pricing is most disturbing to you?'

"Summarise: Summarise what you have heard to demonstrate you have listened and therefore earned the right to respond with a solution. Allow the customer to add new thoughts that might not have been expressed initially or to correct any misconception you may have had. This gets you and your customer agreeing just before you offer your solution For example: 'Then if I understand you correctly, the issue is. . . '

"Provide your solution. (Only after doing the first three steps first!) (By now there has been at least a couple of minutes in which to think of a solution)

"Check to insure that your solution will work for the customer. If it doesn't, then the objection is still alive and you need top loop back to step #2. Example: 'How does this sound to you?'

The next time you see a steaming volcano of disgruntlement banging his or her hand on your counter and demanding justice, fight the urge to run or fight. It's not as personal as it feels. You are looking at an opportunity in disguise, if you can slide your ego out of the way.

Using Colour

COLOUR! IT'S IMPORTANT! The use of colour in your website design, brochures, catalogues, business cards, and other marketing literature can be a powerful way to get your message across ...if used properly. Colour always produces an emotional response in the reader. You can use this emotion in your message by the choice of colour. Colour background is particularly important since it can represent the majority of colour used. Consider the following when choosing a background:

RED  is the warmest colour and immediately attracts the eye. It elicits impulse, passion, action and stimulates the viewer (in fact, studies have shown that by merely looking at the colour red, both blood pressure and heart rate increase!)

GREEN is a "friendly" colour and stimulates the desire to interact. It sends a precise, analytical message to the viewer

BLUE represents security, loyalty, friendliness. It is a conservative colour and is good for sending a "you can trust us" message.

GREY is neutral, sort of a "default" colour.

YELLOW is a happy colour but elicits anxiety in the viewer. Be careful to ensure that any foreground colour generates a good contrast.

PURPLE (MAGENTA) represents a mystical or fantasy quality. Therefore it is not taken seriously by the viewer.

BROWN is a passive colour and creates an uneasy feeling in the viewer.

BLACK is interesting in that any foreground material will tend to float towards the viewer (sort of a 3D effect). It is a powerful colour and represents permanence to the viewer. It can provide "shock" value but not any specific emotion.

Writing Effective e-mail

E-mail is a world-wide phenomenon and is rapidly becoming THE way to communicate everything from personal greetings to marketing product and services and sending news releases. It is a very important tool for the NEWORKer. But, like any communication medium, it must be used carefully to be effective.

Poorly written e-mail will be viewed as spam and discarded. E-mail that is poorly constructed will cause more damage than a poor print advertisement because e-mail is viewed as being more intrusive. The message should be clear - write good, effective e-mail. Here are some important "golden rules" to keep in mind …

1. Compose the Message Carefully. Think through what you want to say and write it as succinctly as possible. Make sure the "message" appears in the first paragraph. If your e-mail software does not spell check, compose the message in a word processor and spell check there.

2. The Subject Should Say Something. This is your headline. Make it count. I immediately discard messages with no subject or with messages like "make a million." The subject should make the reader want to take a look at your message. Would you read this message? "Internet e-mail accounts for $5/month"

3. Keep it Short. Present your message in as few words as possible. Keep paragraphs short for easy reading. Don't use an excessive amount of capitalised words or other attention getting tricks like a line of asterisks.

4. Target with Care. Don't broadcast your message to the world (unfortunately this is very easy to do with e-mail). Send only to a targeted audience - doing more is wasting bandwidth on the internet and will be viewed in a negative light by recipients that have no interest in your message. If possible, address each e-mail individually rather than using a mailing list.

5. Use Attachments. If you are sending considerable supporting information, do it with an attachment. In general, use text format which can be read by just about everyone. DON"T send an attachment larger than about 100Kb unless your audience is expecting it since download times can become excessive.

6. Ask for Action. Tell the reader what to do, if they are interested in your message.

7. Check. Reread your message one last time. Check to ensure the proper attachments are in fact attached. Check the TO: address carefully.

© 2003 The Nework Centre   |   email neworknz@yahoo.co.nz

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