How Do You Deal With Customers Who Are "Not Right"?

[joshposh]

You paraphrased what somebody else taught you though without giving any attribution or references. This looks very close to textbook steps I was taught working for another corporation regarding customer service. Many restaurant chains have text book style training manuals and this looks very familiar. At any rate, you clearly did not invent these steps or come up with them entirely on your own. You may not remember what order you learned them in or what source specifically, and it may be in your own words, but you can't take credit, paraphrase it, and site experience as the only reference. I have seen this same type of stuff elsewhere. You didn't come up with it.

It's what I have learned from 20 years in the hotel industry and hospitality business. This is not a copy and paste quote. This is what every person in the customer service sector has to know in order to handle guest complaints. I've worked for the Four Seasons Resorts and other top brand hotel chains. You bring nothing to the table but accusations.

This is the third forum that you have questioned my post. This is my life long training talking, and not your pathetic detective skills has no merit or proof that it is paraphrased. Get a life and contribute to a thread and stop questioning others that contribute.

[rz3300]

When this happens we try to put up with it as much as possible but at a certain point the sale just stops being worth it and when that happens we just choose to cut our losses and sever the tie between us and the customer because I don't think that's a situation we can win.

Well you can only put up with so much. This has been an issue at all of the retail-like businesses that I have worked in, and I am sure that it is talked about everywhere. We all know the customer is always right, but we also all know that that is just a saying and sometimes the customer is the dumbest person alive. It is a decision that must be made though, and sometimes the ties must be severed, as you say. Thanks for sharing.

[rz3300]

We have difficult customers regularly because we are a luxury retail shop both online and offline. Sometimes the concerns are warranted but there are definitely some who just have some behavioral issues that they are taking out on us. When this happens we try to put up with it as much as possible but at a certain point the sale just stops being worth it and when that happens we just choose to cut our losses and sever the tie between us and the customer because I don't think that's a situation we can win.

From your comments, here's what I've deduced:
1. Diplomacy is still the better option
2. If worse comes to worst, call the higher-ups
3. Never rise to the occasion (but if you do, do it covertly so that no one knows you're actually getting even)
.

Sounds about right. Thank for summing it up for us. It is certainly not an easy thing to do all of the time, but I do think that the more you can really isolate it like this, and look at this, the more you can just see it as "the reaction" that you need to have. Doesn't matter how you feel, or how upset, the reaction you need to have, is the ones above. It is a guideline, then, for all workers to follow. Again, easier said than done, but good to see simplified. Thanks again.

[James-M]

Whеn а сustоmеr is furiоus, whаt hаppеnеd?

Yоur соmpаny did whаt thеy аlwаys dо, аnd thе сustоmеr just dоеsn't likе whаt yоur соmpаny аlwаys dоеs. Thеir аngеr, thеn, is nоt аbоut yоu. It's аbоut yоur соmpаny's pоliсiеs аnd prосеdurеs. Dоn't tаkе it pеrsоnаlly.
Sоmеоnе оthеr thаn yоu sсrеwеd up. Thе сustоmеr's аngеr, thеn, is nоt аbоut yоu. It's аbоut whоеvеr mаdе thе mistаkе. Dоn't tаkе it pеrsоnаlly.
Yоu sсrеwеd up. оf соursе, еvеryоnе sсrеws up sоmеtimеs. Tаkе а dееp brеаth аnd dоn't tаkе it pеrsоnаlly.

[Casiox]

Well, it really is true that the customer is always right and that sometimes they might not be too right about their opinions, however, the best way to deal with this kind of customers is to do what they request you to do in order to get to the bottom of the problem and eventually, try to fix it as soon as possible, it might be a hard thing to do, but I can not really think of any better way to deal with them, that's my opinion though.

[Norm]

Well you can only put up with so much. This has been an issue at all of the retail-like businesses that I have worked in, and I am sure that it is talked about everywhere. We all know the customer is always right, but we also all know that that is just a saying and sometimes the customer is the dumbest person alive. It is a decision that must be made though, and sometimes the ties must be severed, as you say. Thanks for sharing.

Yup. We put up with as much as we can and I would say I only allow either myself or our employees to deny a sale instead of pushing for it when it crosses the line from being just difficult onto being abusive. So far we haven't had many of these situations thankfully and even some of the angry customers were at least still reasonable enough in some ways but I do allow denial of sale because I know someday it might come up.

[Kivan]

There are many situations actually. If you are an employee who wants to keep a job you will go by that rule and bite your tongue every now and again. If you do not want to put up with this you just go and loose it along with your job

[sumanverma01]

Well, one thing is for sure that you cannot get straight to him and tell him that on his face. One have to very careful while handling a customer bbecause you definitely don't want to lose one. So having an apologetic tone even if he is wrong will help for sure.