When we make the customer experience our number one priority—that is, when we offer high quality products, convenience, and consistently great customer service—the number of customer complaints falls to near zero. Near zero, mind you. Admittedly, we will never reach a state of zero problems because we are all human, and we sometimes make mistakes. And sometimes those mistakes are made by the customers themselves; despite this fact, fixing those mistakes often falls to us, the business operators. That’s leadership.
But the occasional problem isn’t all-bad, really. In fact, it often represents a wonderful opportunity to remind customers of how hard your business works to make their experience as great as it normally is. It also represents a bit of a wake-up call to employees, lest they become complacent and think a great experience is simply automatic. Best of all, when you take ownership of a problem, whether it’s the fault of the business or of the customer’s, you lead by example. That creates a stronger company culture, and it also gives your now-satisfied customer a reason to talk you up with his or her friends.
Shep Hyken has an article dedicated to the steps of handling complaints, but let’s boil this concept into three steps:
Listen
The first step should be a no-brainer, but it’s actually the one so many of us fail at because our natural, gut reaction is to become defensive. But it’s critical that we stifle this instinct because doing so is a useless tactic that solves nothing. Instead, employees or managers should be respectful and take the time to listen to what customers are saying, making sure to pay attention so as not to require them to repeat themselves. Nothing aggravates frustration quicker than having to explain your problem over and over! (That’s why so many of us hate calling customer support over-the-phone, especially when we get transferred from operator to operator.)
Empathize
Once the irate customer has had a chance to explain him or herself, the next step is to empathize. Understanding and expressing sympathy for the situation solves most problems, if we’re being completely honest. Oftentimes, customers just want to vent and be taken seriously—and taking the time to listen to say you get it takes very little effort. This should be a priority in all of your employee training, from top to bottom. Whether frontline staff, shift managers, supervisors, or whoever else, every employee should possess this ability.
Act
But to really make a bad situation great, you have to be able and willing to make a thing right. It shows that your attempts to listen and empathize are sincere and not patronizing. Now, it’s not always completely possible to fix a problem—sometimes the situation has resulted in a consequence that can’t simply be rectified with an apology, replacement item, or a refund. Maybe such a fix would be too late. But it’s important that we try. Indeed, even saying something like, “What can we do to make this right?” will mean a ton to the customer, improving the likelihood that he or she will give your business another chance.
Empowering your employees to take charge of problems and know exactly what to do to work towards a solution is the key. You never want to have someone throw up their hands and say, “I’m not sure there’s anything we can do.” Even if that employee doesn’t know exactly what to do, he or she should still say, “I’m going to help you with this. Let me loop in my manager so we can see how to best resolve the problem.”
The ability to transform a problem into an opportunity, or a loss into a win, might seem like some kind of alchemy. But it’s the kind of business philosophy we specialize in at The Brandt Group. We’ve been working with small businesses like yours for over 30 years, using our world-class mystery shopping and leadership training to empower owners and managers alike to take charge of their company culture and forge lasting relationships with their customers.
If you’re ready to win the loyalty of your customers, now is the time to reach out to us. Opportunities await. Why shouldn’t your business also take advantage?
