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How Do You Handle The Irate Customer?
by Joe Gorman
Customer service is the name of the game of the 90's. But an irate customer makes playing the game tough! Irate customers test the limits of courtesy and patience of any front line bankers.
Irate or difficult customers have many names-egotists, bullies, complainers, dictators, screamers, know-it-alls, and some we can't print here! When one of them is at your desk or teller window, you may not recognize their personality style, but you do know you want to solve their problem…and quickly! The whole atmosphere in the office can be affected by this person, and you want to de-fuse this situation as soon as possible.
First you have to take care of their emotional state before any problem solving is possible. Remain calm and react professionally. The trick is not to match the emotional state of the customer.
This is not an easy task.
The natural reaction is for you to strike back and "put this person in their place!" A calm reaction comes with time and practice. You certainly don't look forward to these situations but every time you handle one well for both the customer and institution, you gain confidence for the next time it happens.
Confidence And Control
We said it before-we'll say it again-the key to servicing any angry or upset irate customer is through confidence and control.
You must have the confidence that comes from knowing your products, your policies, and the philosophy of your financial institution, and confidence that the problem situation can be solved once the facts are obtained. And you must have control of the situation.
Really listen. Really concentrate in this situation, as you need to disregard the hostile remarks, (especially the personal ones), and forge ahead with getting facts from the customer.
Once you get the facts, then you can begin to solve the problem.
In many situations, you had nothing to do with the cause of the problem (for instance a returned check), but now you have to become a detective in piecing together the facts. Stay calm, show interest in the customer's problem, and keep a positive attitude that convinces the customer this problem can be solved.
Could you do as well as Ms. Service illustrates here?
Customer (indignantly): "Can't you people do anything right? I opened my account last month and put a lot of money in it. But look at the treatment I'm getting! I'm being charged for my account when I was specifically told there would be no service charges. My credit card limit is ridiculously low-$500! The name on my checks is misspelled. What do you people do here, take stupidity pills?!"
With that, the customer dumps a pile of papers and checks on the desk.
Ms. Service: Standing to meet the customer-now has eye contact and is not being looked down on: "Please have a seat. I'm sorry you have been inconvenienced. I'll help you as best as I can. I need to ask you some questions in order to get information concerning your situation."
The service rep. staying emotionally calm even when confronted with the "stupidity pill" name calling.
After asking some questions, and being patient with the customer, the customer service rep. was able to:
Locate the opening account form and realize an encoding error was made on the service charge schedule.
The customer rep, aware of the procedure to correct this, did so then and there.
A photocopy of the credit card application was attached to the account opening form. The requested line of credit was $3,500, but the customer's signature had made the "3" illegible, and apparently was processed for $500.
The customer service rep. had the customer sign a new form for the original amount requested, and called the credit card service center and asked for "priority" treatment due to the circumstances.
An order for new checks (at no charge to the customer) was then put through. The error was apparently done at the printer, as the original order form was typed correctly with the customer's name and address.
All this took 30 minutes to complete.
It would be nice if this real situation had a happy ending. But it didn't…
Ms.Service: "Well, I'm glad I could help you with this situation. Everything should be okay. Here is my card, and please call me if there is anything else I can do."
Customer: "Thanks for the card, but next time I'm here, try to be quicker. This took entirely too much time. I have more important things to do."
After the customer left Ms. Service quickly went to the employee's lunch room. Filled with emotion, she sat down and doodled on a piece of paper. A few minutes later she wrote:
"I am a professional."
"I do my job to the best of my abilities."
"I am important."
"I make a difference."
When finished, she sat a few more minutes and then walked to the door leading to the branch, looked into the small mirror hanging there, smiled and thought, "I'm confident. I controlled this situation and my emotions. I handled this hassle very well. This place is lucky I work here!"
Pulling open the door, she thought to herself, "I wonder what other surprises today has in store!"
Copyright © 1990 Bankers' Hotline. Originally appeared in Bankers' Hotline, Vol. 1, No. 12, 12/90
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