Skip to main content

The ABCs of Customer Recovery

 Facebook


This week, I'm presenting 26 little ideas to help you respond to complaints and difficult customers with much more ease. Customer Recovery ABCs.

A ct as if every lost customers sales come out of your paycheck.

Believe the best of customers. Dont make the mistake of assuming most customers are out to simply get something for nothing. The truth is, less than 1% of customers contact companies with ulterior motives in mind.

C ommunicate with diplomacy and tact when you final answer is no and when explaining company policy.

D ont tell a customer she is wrong. Telling a customer they are wrong never makes them want to agree with you. It only pushes them more forcefully into their original position.

E mpathize with unhappy customers and allow this empathy to season your responses.

F ind a way to say yes to customers. Instead of saying no or telling the customer what you cant do, think critically about what you actually can do.

G ive a token item such a coupon as a concrete form of apology.

H ave a sense of urgency. Demonstrate with your words and speed of response that getting to the bottom of the problem is just as important to you as it is to your customer.

I nvolve customers in the problem resolution process. Sometimes its very helpful to simply ask, How do you see us resolving this?

Jot down the customers name and details of the problem they are describing so you don't have to ask the customer to repeat information.

K eep customers apprised of your timetable and progress toward resolving their problems.

L isten with the intent to truly understand your customer, not with the intent to interrupt, reply, or correct.

M onitor your customer service calls to ensure your tone is friendly, helpful and willing.

N egotiate resolutions that balance both the interests of your company and your customer.

Open the door with unhappy customers with open-ended questions. Make your questions demonstrate a sincere interest in better understanding the customers problem or experience.

P ut yourself in the customers shoes. How would you feel if the exact same problem happened to you?

Q uickly apologize. Apologize both when the company is at fault and even when the customer is responsible for the error. An apology goes a long way in creating calm, diffusing anger and regaining goodwill.

R ecognise that the issue is not the issue. The way the issue is handled becomes the real issue.

S ay no diplomatically and without causing resentment. The best way to do this is to start out by telling the customer what you can do.

T hank customers for their feedback.

U p-Service your customers by suggesting products or services that enhance the value of their current purchase.

View the customer as the reason for your work—not as an interruption to your work.

W OW customers.

Ex amine the root cause of problems and work to eliminating problems at the root.

Y o u are the company to each customer. Never underestimate your power to influence the customers future buying decisions.

Zero in on the customers needs and wants.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

What Does Your Logo Color Say About Your Business?

And not only your logo, but also your website, brochure, business cards, and marketing materials.   Yes, colors do matter They communicate feelings and emotions. They represent ideas and thoughts. So before you create a logo or any other piece of marketing make sure you select the right colors to communicate a personality that accurately represents you and your business. Following are some generally accepted principles of color and the emotions they evoke. Keep them in mind when selecting colors to represent your business. White/Silver: purity, truthfulness, faith, contemporary, refined, wealth Black : seriousness, distinctiveness, boldness, power, sophistication Blue : authority, dignity, security, faithfulness, heritage, trust Brown / Gold : history, utility, earthiness, richness, tradition, conservative Gray / Silver : somberness, authority, practicality, corporate mentality Green : tranquility, health, freshness, stability, appetite Orange : fun, cheeriness, warm exuberance, ap...

WebSite Promotion Ideas for Small Businesses

  Website promotion You've already figured out that your small business needs a website to compete with the big boys and maintain every aspect of your relationship with your customers. But once you have your website up and running, you'll need website promotion ideas so that people know about your website. After all, no one will visit your website if they do know it exists. The first of your website promotion ideas is submitting your website to all the major search engines. Search engine traffic is a major draw to websites and most web masters will tell you that the vast majority of their traffic comes from search engine clicks. Most of the major search engines have a specific page you can use to submit your site. Once it is submitted, it will usually take a few days to a week before it starts showing up in keyword searches. Other website promotion ideas include advertising your website on internet message boards and discussion forums centered on subjects related in some way to...

How do I build a winning business plan?

Starting or running your business without a business plan is like being a human without a skeleton! Not only will the use of a sample structure highlight any areas that you haven't fully thought through, but it will also give you a good idea of what makes a good business plan, and what doesn't. The importance of your business plan as a motivating factor in running or starting your business cannot be underestimated. You will find that your commitment continues to build as you gather information, research and write each section. Your business plan should always accompany applications for Small Business Loans, and lenders or any kind of angel investor will simply refuse to consider your business proposal without one. Once you've commenced trading your small business plan will act as a steak in the ground, and help you measure where you expected to be against where you actually are. It will help you take corrective action as necessary. Sample Business Plan Structure :- All plan...