How to deal with difficult customers

By Mike Dandridge

custo,ner really did spend thousands of dollars in our store and he never cante back. You tell me.

Listen between the lines. Is there an underlying message to your customer's complaint? Does he feel cheated. ignored or unacknorvledged? Mentiotring that he spent thousands of dollars probablt indicated he felt under appreciated.

55\ZOu mean I spend thousands I. of dollars in here. and I can't return a defective tool?" The customer leaned across the counter.

"Well, the tool isn't really defective," replied Luke, taking an adversarial stance.

"So you're calling me a liar?"

The customer now had everyone's attention in the sales counter area. His loud voice and aggressive manner caused some of the other customers to look at one another and roll their eyes as if to convey the silent message, Oft, one ofthose people.

It was my first week on the sales counter, and I was favoring the customer's point of view.

Luke continued the fight. "No, I'm not calling you a liar. This is simply normal wear of the tool. It's against the manufacturer's policy."

I was now completely on the customer's side.

He didn't reply immediately and a silence fell across the room. He straightened up, slowly scanned the other customers. and then in a clear voice, he said to Luke, "People come here as a last resort."

Then he turned on the heels of his work boots and marched out of the store. As soon as the door closed behind him, you could feel the air come back into the room. People chuckled rather nervously, then someone said, "Guess it takes all kinds." Luke said, "That guy's always a pain."

And there was the real issue. A different customer would have received a nerv tool, no questions asked. but because this customer rvore the "difficult" label, it became a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Some people aren't happy unless they're unhappy. These are the volatile handful knorvn as "difficult customers." Constantly looking for a flarv in your service. they'll take advantage of your policies by making requests that sometimes border on the absurd. But more importantly. they rvill teach you horv to deliver the service that you promise. You can learn more from the difficult customer than you could ever learn from your most loyal. Difficult customers tell you rvhere it hurts.

Listen closely and they rvill tell you rvhat is missing from your business and might even suggest rvhat you can do about it. Their feedback can be the most brutal-and the most honestgauge of your success. People conte here as a last resort.

If you have an abundance of difficult customers, it isn't because you're unlucky. It's because you're doing something wrong. The sooner you figure out what it is and fix it. the sooner you rvill bring your business back from the precipice of disaster.

Handling difficult customers may be your biggest challenge in living up to the promise you make of great service. Having a procedure in place for all of your staff to follorv is the most effective way to handle this challenge. Here's a four-step plan for dealing rvith legitimate customer complaints and the occasional difficult customer.

How to Calm a Ditficult Gustomer

Avoid trigger words: Use calming words: It's against company NW. llere's whatwe can do...

Never argue. This seems to be the toughest rule for salespeople to accept. so let's repeat it. Never argue. Even if you rvin. you lose. Especially if you rvin. Did Luke win? The e.com.

Appeal to your customers' nobler motives-their sense of fair play. Let customers know that you trust them enough to do rvhat's fair and right. A question you can use that takes the fire out of most irate customers is. "What rvould you have me do to make this right?" If you appeal to their nobler motives. customers usually live up to your expectation. Wlrat a different outconrc it could've been if Luke had asked, "What w'ould make this right?" instead of stating that the tool x'asn't defectirc.

Tell the customer what you can do. Never say. "That's against company policy." If someone in authority rvithin your company tells you to say that. then you need to reconsider your career rvith that company. Most customers don't like rules. Suggest alternatives. Luke could've looked like a hero if he'd said. "The nranufacturer's polict states that thet n'on't replace this tool. Hox'ever, that's not our policv. Let me see x'hat we can v'ork out."

Talk is cheap. Most business orvners promise great customer service. but horv many actually live up to the talk? Your customers don't care rvhat you have to say. They're rvatching to see rvhat you do. The limiting factor for most of us is that rve don't practice rvhat rve preach. Then rvhen customers call us on it, we group them into the "hard-to-please" bunch.

The truth is. no matter horv good your service. there rvill always be someone rvho is unhappy abut something. The more unhappy customers you turn into happy customers. the more rvord rvill spread that you deliver the great service you promise while others only talk about it. The best advice ever given to me for dealing rvith a difficult customer I pass on to you: "Keep your temper and. above all. let your customer save face."

- Mike Dandridge is founder of High Voltage Performance and author of The One Year Business Turnaround. He can be reached at (254) 624-6299 or via rv n u,.