Dealing with "difficult" customers

eth0_

Just wondering what everyone's tactics are for dealing with difficult or angry customers on the phone?

hussey

I think the phone would be alot harder to deal with people .. as your not face to face and more people find it easier to complain!


I used to work for Telecom Eireann (selling eircell phones - nothing to do with home phone lines and the likes) and people used to come in to use complaining about anything to do with TE/Eircell + had two more years P/T in retail ...

My main experience was face to face .. but had some phone complaints
what I did was talk slow .. I find that really works as when ppl are shouting they tend to talk fast so by talking calmly they tend to calm down.

also listen to what they have to say, even if they haven't a clue just by listening tends to show that you 'care'

Try not to be rude or snotty if you dont know an answer don't BS them say you don't know but you'll find out.

quarryman

How did you stick people shouting at you?!! I used to work selling phones and felt like bouncing them off some of the customers' heads.

Giving out to me (personally) because they couldn't get good reception!

My attitude to staff was different after that job. A customer who came into me and was polite got a lot more effort on my part. Its probably not a good work ethic but more human nature.

Treat me well and I'll do the same. Its amazing how many people abuse staff nowadays and think they can get away with it.


btw hussey how'd that job application go at RBS?

Woden

kill em with kindness, act nice as pie and then blame it on company policy and ask them to write a letter into head office

ballooba

Worked in sales for the last three summers. Some of our work was time crtitical but sometimes suppliers would fúck up and leave us to pick up the pieces. This is fair enough as the company are distributors and thats part of their work (taking shít).

The tactic i developed for when people started huffing and puffing was that i would listen to the details, pick out a certain bit of detail and say that i had to go off and investigate it and that i would ring them back. This gives you time to sort everything out and even the biggest a-hole has calmed down by the time you call them back.

Wolf

One of the best things to do is get them really wound up so that they curse at you and cut the fuc|<ers off :ninja:

SantaHoe

Put them on mute and call them every name under the sun...
Mostly though, ride it out and watch them eat humble pie once you've sorted out their issue.
Dunno really, I suppose it's the million dollar question for anyone who deals directly with pissy moan-bag customers.

Capt'n Midnight

Tips:
a) if they are through to the wrong dept - transfer them after telling them the name of the dept they should be on to, it's extension number / DDI number / what they should tell reception to ask for in future, so to never have them on your queue again. If possible give them the name of your preferred victim in that dept. (Boy were primitive people right about the power of names and how you never tell anyone outside your tribe your true name)

b) If they launch straight into a story - don't interrupt even if they are through to the wrong dept. - let them tell it all - use non-commital verbal nodding to show you are listening. They will calm down having got thier little speach off.

c) Put them on hold for 20 seconds - while you check something (deep breath count to 10)

d) If it is a problem caused by someone else setting an unrealistic expectation let the caller know that the problem will have to be dealt with by that person. Give the caller that persons extension number and mobile number if you have it to hand. If that person has changed depts then it is still up to them to either sort out the problem. If that salesperson (isn't always) has left the company then hack into HR and give the caller their last known address and any other info that would help the caller track them down - let the other sales people know that this is now standard policy when you wander across to take their pictures with the digital camera for the web site that you and your techie mates from other companies in the same indusrty are setting up .

e) if it is unsupported then tell them that you can't help them. Tell them what is supported and if possible direct them to an expensive toll number ("but it's expensive" - "yeah, that's what it costs, that's why we can't afford to support it..") or an evening course in the VEC - give them a straw to cling to..

f) If it is your problem then set the expectation ASAP - tell they what you will do for them and what you won't do. Don't argue just start doing the stuff you can do first "lets get this bit out of the way first". Then if they argue you go into the "I'm trying to sort out your problem and you're not letting me help you" routine
Again wrt expectation - let them know if your hands are tied or if other factors make a resolution unlikely.

g) if they want to scream up the chain then try the usual - "all that will happen is they will put the call back to me because blah blah..."

h) if they want to go legal then tell them you you are not in the legal dept (and they have just put you in way out of your depth) and any further correspondence will have to be in writing - have all addresses on hand.

i) remember alwayys the hold button is your friend - I've had some of the nastiest calls resolved by the it - take the customer off hold bracing for the vitrol and "oh just I've figured it out while I was on hold.."

j) find out what extension the hold music is on - in case you need transfer "just putting you through now , though I'll warn you their queue is a bit long today"

k) set up a web site for "european holidays for american psyco's" with a page for suitable receiptants for their skills.

l) customer tennis - when the queue is over 30 minutes (ie. all callers will be angry) and you have important things to do you and a college take turns and taking calls off the queue, putting them on hold instantly , leaving them there for 60 seconds to get the stat and then dumping them back at the end of the queue. The nice thing about this is that even if all the callers hang up the % of abandoned calls is quite low, stats are high. If a customer does get through then he will probably complain about hold times. So you can just pass him up to a supervisor, (it's not a technical issue eh?) and you can listen to the supervisor tell yer man "what are you talking about ? - the average delay today is only 2:30" and with a bit of luck he won't believe any thing else the customer is telling him...

Defenistrator

make sure you have the number for customer services or Customer Relations handy. Tell them that company policy forbids you to do XYZ for them, but if they feel they are wronged, tell them to go ahead and car CS/CR. Also make a point of telling them that YOU would in their situation.

Always avoid a confrontation, no matter how wrong the customer is. It just upsets them even more. Empethize, tell them that you can imagine how they feel etc.

If they get really sh!tty with you, ask them if they are really angry with YOU. that always gets them, it is a last line of defense, ask it in a "hurt" way. They melt like ice..... and 9 out of 10 times apologise.

RicardoSmith

Originally posted by eth0_
Just wondering what everyone's tactics are for dealing with difficult or angry customers on the phone?

Be very nice, professional, logical and factual in response....It pisses them off no end

hussey

Originally posted by quarryman


btw hussey how'd that job application go at RBS?

It's in may!!

Borzoi

Originally posted by ballooba
Worked in sales for the last three summers. Some of our work was time crtitical but sometimes suppliers would fúck up and leave us to pick up the pieces. This is fair enough as the company are distributors and thats part of their work (taking shít).

Similar boat here, and some of those supplier really have landed us in it, but what can you do.

As Ricardosmith says, be "very nice, professional, logical and factual in response", and tell the truth. we can all smell bull.

We seldom get ranting customers, they're all long standing accounts and well known. But occasionally it happens. One memorable incidence a customer was on lookng for the sales manager who was tied up with calls, so he verballed the receptionist. Within the hour our MD was on to the customer to say that he'd better apologise or his account would be cancelled along with his credit line and we'd be looking for our money immediately.

seamus

Our place is grand.

If it's a customer of ours who's pissed off, I'll either transfer them to my supervisor, or give them our customer services number. Then you make them like you by giving them a stopgap solution, and telling them that there's not much else you can do, until they ring cust. services.

If it's a customer of a customer (the nature of our business) then the words, "I'm sorry, but there's nothing else I can do for you.", will get rid of them. It's the truth too, surprisingly. If they're really really pissed off, I'll usually say the above about 4 times, and if they continue to refuse to listen, I'll hang up on them.

There's no set time limits on calls, or rules in our place

Blitzkrieger

It's always fun to give them the run around. "I'll transfer you to x dept., just a moment." Then the next person passes them on to someone else, and so on, and so on...

Tusky

pee in thier tea

Lump

Apparently, its my fault that Petrol is the price it is, it's my fault that the carwash breaks down because customers drive into it arse ways, it's my fault that there isn't fúcking sauce already on the píssing hotdogs but that you have to put it on yourself, its my fault that we have run out of one type of fag..... its my fault that Muppets dont know how to pump their own petrol so blame me saying that my pumps aren't working..... apparently its my fault for asking people to leave the shop when we are closing because I need to set the alarm and we have only been open for 16 hours yet they choose the last two minutes to do a months worth of shopping.....

I tend to just nod smile and agree with people...... fair enough if they have a valid complaint I'll listen, but when it's trivial shíte like that I ignore them.



John

GuanYin

Originally posted by RicardoSmith
Be very nice, professional, logical and factual in response....It pisses them off no end

I agree, you can hear/see rude people getting angrier an dmore frustrated the nicer you are to them.

Most Satisfying.

buddy

Originally posted by Defenistrator
make sure you have the number for customer services or Customer Relations handy. Tell them that company policy forbids you to do XYZ for them, but if they feel they are wronged, tell them to go ahead and car CS/CR. Also make a point of telling them that YOU would in their situation.

Always avoid a confrontation, no matter how wrong the customer is. It just upsets them even more. Empethize, tell them that you can imagine how they feel etc.

If they get really sh!tty with you, ask them if they are really angry with YOU. that always gets them, it is a last line of defense, ask it in a "hurt" way. They melt like ice..... and 9 out of 10 times apologise.

Then when they say "I'm not angry at you but.....", stop them and tell em that they're are no buts in an apology.

Trebor

after spending a year on a CR line i must say that there is nothing worse for the customers than a tech support guy, any excuse to get them off the line they will do it, the amount of times i have had to deal with customers because tech's put them through to us to make a complaint that their computer is not working, do i look like a technican?
what the HELL do you want me to do? i can't fix it that's what tech support is for.

best way to deal with them is to know you facts and don't let them get to you cause at the end of the day you hold the power to get their issue solved

Capt'n Midnight

t the HELL do you want me to do? i can't fix it that's what tech support is for.

.... don't let them get to you cause at the end of the day you hold the power to get their issue solved

There are a lot of places where tech support is only provided to the minimum limit that does not break the sale of goods act. Generally Techies can't book hardware unless there is a pretty obvious fault, Techies can't give people their money back or ugrade warranty or basically do any favours for customers other than get the box back to the state in which it should have arrived in.

BTW: there are bad techies out there - real fobbers - and those whom management like 'cos the answer twice as many calls as average, when in reality the rest of us have to deal with when they ring back.
Great combo - pissed off customer who has been shafted by a techie and no longer trusts them talking to pissed off techie who now has to sort out someone elses mess and take the flack.

PS. One morning I got a deaf guy ringing in about a sound card problem, luckily for me it was a sales issue...

Trebor

i understand that they don't have power to change an item if it was sold incorrectly that is a CR issue, the ones i am on about are the ones who when a customer say's i want to make a complaint about my item not working who should i talk to , then they transfer them to CR!
if it's not working because it has a fault it is up to the technicans to fix and if the customer wants to complain that it's broken then the technican should be the one to deal with it and fix the problem. AFAIK most companies don't have a complaints department they get dealt with in the department that caused the issue or the department that is responsible for fixing the issue but most consumers seem to be under the illusion that if they have a complaint they need to talk to CR
and by the way CR can't give money back either after the two week money back garantee thing but if the customer wants a refund on the grounds that it was not of merchantable quality ( it brake after the first 2 weeks ) how is a CR rep suppose to know if the item has a simple fault or is a factory defeact? they are not trained to know that sort of thing so the technicans should be the one to order a replacement or issue a refund (or at least aurthorise it) IMHO

Capt'n Midnight

That power will never be given to a techie - it would relieve to much stress....

Typedef

Originally posted by eth0_
Just wondering what everyone's tactics are for dealing with difficult or angry customers on the phone?

There is a transfer button love.

use it..... also... never underestimate how dodgy connections can cut off irrate clients right in the middle of a rant......

swiss

Heh, I think Capt'n Midnight pretty much hit the nail on the head. I find that just letting customers have their little rant helps them to vent off steam. Also, if they start to raise their voice, I will lower mine, in order to force them to calm down to listen to what I'm saying.

Only a very small percentage of calls are by the real pricks, those who have some complex or chip on their shoulder and want to take it out agains you personally. Mostly, adopting a 'no bs' attitude will help calm down people, and make them feel like their issue is being seriously considered. As a techie, I'm the resolution and not the problem, once people realise that, they usually calm down too.

QBall

I used to work in tech support (both as a tech and as a supervisor) and my tactics for dealing with irate customers always were:

1) Be VERY calm and polite. I was always amazed how many angry people were calmed down by being called 'Sir'
2) If calmness and politeness on your part relaxes them then they're just angry not an asshole.
3) If they ARE an asshole then just fix their problem and get rid of them. You'll only make them angrier and they'll stress you out more than you already are.
4) If they are particularly abusive, see if your supervisor wants to listen in. If they demand to talk to your boss your supervisor will be well prepared and will probably back you up if needed. When I was a supervisor there were few things I liked more than being able to say to a customer than "Actually, I was listening in on your call earlier. May I remind you that our technicians are allowed to hang up if they are subjected to foul language or personal abuse. If you are professional with us, we will be professional with you, otherwise I will instruct all technicians to refuse you support." The bit about no further support was a bluff, I'd never do that, but they almost all bought it. All but the biggest pr*cks would realise what they've done and apologise.
5) Don't take it personally. I've seen plenty of techs cry or break stuff because of what a customer said to them. If you find yourself in this position, you are taking what the customer is saying seriously. Don't.
6) When you're finished, under NO circumsances take another call until you've relaxed a bit.

If you work in tech support remember:

1) The customer is always WRONG! If they were right, they wouldn't have to call.
2) While 99% of callers are muppets, beware of treating the 1% that do have a clue like the others.
3) Fobbing off a customer (angry or not) generates more work not less.
4) Don't be selfish. If you figure out a way of palming off your work to others, remember you're not cheating the customers, you're cheating your workmates.

Redshift

I used to work for Stena Line as a temp right at the time when they introduced the HSS. But for the first few months they had endless technical issues with the ship plus the fact that it can't sail above force six or seven. Needless to say as a temp I got to deal with the worst of it mostly angry Brits. Two hours of people coming up to check in expecting to go on this **** hot boat and be in england in 99 mins and me having to tell them oh BTW the HSS won't be sailing due to whatever, but we will be accomodating you on the conventional ferry sailing two hours later:rolleyes:
Great fun I was physically assaulted twice during the year I worked there because the boat wasn't going or delayed but it was mostly just insults a few people were going to sue me personally so I gave my address as employee no xxx the ferry terminal, Dunlaoghaire like I'm going to give them my address
Suffice it to say it was a mad year but for those customers who were unreasonable I found being sickeningly nice done the job.
My favourites were the people who refused to accept 30ft waves breaking over the harbour walls as sufficient reason for the boat not sailing

Ryan

Kell

I work in sales and sales prolly come under a similar amount of abuse to Tech. I happen to have the highest turn around of complaints to sales than any other rep I know. Few hints-

1) If your voice mail has a message on it from an irate customer follow it up immediately
2) When speaking to an irate customer, ALWAYS let them rant at your, so long as it doesnt turn abusive. After about five minutes they calm down and start to listen to reason.
3) Decide early what you want to achieve and deal with the conversation in stages i.e. "if I do this for you Mr. customer will it resolve your problem".
4) Get the punter to call the shots and also ask them exactly what it is they want you to do. This gets them to think about what it is they are complaining about and whether you are the right person to talk to or not.
5) Bargain with them as well i.e. "If I resolve your problem for you now will you be happy to continue to do business with us?"
6) Keep asking them questions so they feel that you are doing your best to get to the root of the problem.
7) As someone said earlier, set clear expectations and dont deviate from them. Even an irritated customer is happier if they know "how" you plan on fixing the problem. Nothing worse than saying to someone "yeh, thats no problem. I'll fix that straight away. Bye now".
8) Have no fear of middle to senior management. If you are busting your balls trying to save an account and the level above you are sitting on their arses doing nothing keep at them. In fact, if your hands are tied, put the punter onto the middle management and make it their problem too.

I used to work for a large multinational and my immediate bosses who's responsibility it was to deal with escalated issues, used to bounce issues back to me safe in the knowledge that I'd make the problem go away and see return revenue out of it as well.

I never had issues mind you as I dont generally make mistakes. I used to deal with my colleagues irate customers!

K-

WhiteWashMan

if the problem is your fault, admit it and fix it.
if the problem is not your fault, tell them and then fix it.

i had the best resluts of anyone when i was doing tech support or desktop support.

and there is only one rule which i learned form an old friend of mine.

fix the customer.
who cares if you fix the problem, as long as you fix the customer, you will have no problems.

Mercury_Tilt

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