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Answer from our Guest Expert Donna Hall of The Right Answer, Customer Service Consultants PAGE 2 Guilty as Charged! When biz owners or their employees make a mistake in dealing with customer concerns or problems, it's critical to plead guilty as charged. Then, turn the sticky situation around as quickly as possible. No matter how bad a day you're having, never let customers know you're flustered or frustrated. It simply backfires -- and it'll leave egg all over your face. Nothing will get done when both you and the customer are in a bad mood. Sharpen Your Silver Tongue Remember, choose your tone and words carefully. You attract more bees with honey! Even a definite "no" can be received and accepted, if it's served up with just the right words. To help you do this, don't take customer comments to heart. It's a conversation between the two of you, but be a service pro and let negative comments roll off your back. Internalizing insults will only give you a sour stomach. Instead, look for solutions to accentuate the positive. Apologize if you need to and offer another solution to the problem. No matter what, look for resolutions. Crown the Customers Give customers the distinct feeling they're valued. Letting customers know they're important can take the edge off any service problem. Simply validating their value as a paying patron helps to level the tension and let them know you care about their feelings. Isn't that what we're all after? Treat your customers like royalty. Be respectful and gracious. Eating some humble pie never hurt anybody! Lastly, never assume that you'll have another opportunity to right a wrong. It's one strike and you're out for some customers who'll simply take their business elsewhere. And that's bad news. Hope this helps you overcome and learn from your customer service nightmare. Here's to more customer service happy endings! Donna Hall The Right Answer - Customer Finessing Experts back to page 1 Enter your search terms Submit search form       Search Idea Cafe Web Small Business Tax Center • Idea Cafe Home • Sign Up • Biz Grant Center • CyberSchmooz •Coffee Talk with Experts • People in Biz Profiles • Starting Your Biz • Biz Planning • Running Your Biz • FREE Trade Publications • Marketing • Financing Your Biz • Human Resources • Legal & Biz Forms • Managing Your Biz • eCommerce • You and Your Biz • Gen X • Work@Home • The Fridge • De-Stress • Send an Award • Send an eGreeting • Yoga @ Your Desk • Web Guide • Idea Cafe in the News • About Idea Cafe • Advertise on Idea Cafe • Contact Us • Privacy Policy • Site Map • Small Biz News Copyright 1995-2024, Idea Cafe Inc. Downloads are for personal use only, not for resale to others, and may not be reprinted in any form without written permission from Idea Cafe Inc. DISCLAIMER: We hope whatever you find on this site is helpful, but be cautioned that it may not apply to your own situation, or be totally current at any given time. Idea Cafe Inc. and all of its current and past experts, sponsors, advertisers, agents, contractors and advisors disclaim all warranties with regard to anything found anywhere on this family of websites, quoted from, or sent from Idea Cafe. and its related sites, publications and companies. We also take no responsibility for comments published by others on these pages. TRADEMARKS: The following are Registered Trademarks or Servicemarks of DevStart, Inc.: Idea Cafe®, Online Coffee Break®, The Small Business Gathering Place®, Take out Info®, Biz Bar & Grill®, Complaint-O-Meter®, A Fun Approach to Serious Business™, CyberSchmooz™, and BizCafe™.

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