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Customer Service –  Dealing With Difficult Customers Objectives Customer Service –  Dealing With Difficult Customers Objectives

Customer Service – Dealing With Difficult Customers Objectives - PowerPoint Presentation

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Uploaded On 2019-11-06

Customer Service – Dealing With Difficult Customers Objectives - PPT Presentation

Customer Service Dealing With Difficult Customers Objectives Discuss steps to take when encountering difficult customers Identify the difficult customers Aggressive Passive Identify reasons that customers are difficult ID: 763830

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Customer Service – Dealing With Difficult Customers

Objectives Discuss steps to take when encountering difficult customers Identify the difficult customersAggressive Passive Identify reasons that customers are difficult Discuss techniques for managing the situation

Dealing with difficult customers In this session, we are making underlying assumptions Difficult customers are often expressing emotions such as anger or frustration The expression of these emotions creates difficult situations that need to be defused and managed

Dealing with difficult customers To help put this in perspective, difficult is defined as Hard to understand or solveHard to deal withHard to please or satisfy Hard to persuade

Sometimes, we are so busy that we jump right into the situation without recognizing we are engaging a “difficult” customer To defuse a potentially difficult situation, we must first recognize that the person is angry, sad, frustrated or just plain “difficult” Step 1: Identifying difficult customers

Anger, sadness and frustration are just emotions Recognizing that the customers are simply expressing emotions should impact how we engage them Step 1: Identifying difficult customers

Aggressive This person expresses emotions quickly AngerHostility Step 1: Identifying difficult customers

Passive These customers do not express their emotions out loud, but you can tell by their body language that they are not responsive and are angry or frustrated Step 1: Identifying difficult customers

Once you identify customers as angry or frustrated, you have to begin to understand the reason that they are angry or frustrated Many times, you will work with customers who are frustrated for reasons that are totally out of your control Sometimes, the issue is related to services received in the One-Stop Career CenterSometimes, the issue is unrelated to the One-Stop Career Center Reasons customers become “difficult”

Other reasons customers are “difficult” The customer is tired The customer is overwhelmedThe customer is defending his or her own self-esteem Reasons customers become “difficult”

We simply do not know when customers walk through our door what has happened to them in the past few minutes, hours or days Have you ever taken your frustration out on someone else? Reasons customers become “difficult”

We have all taken our frustration out on someone else, whether consciously or unconsciously We learn to express our emotions to get what we want early on Verbal cuesNon-Verbal cuesCustomers will use the same attacks and tactics to express their feelings and get what they want Reasons customers become “difficult”

First, you have to be aware of the “bait” Once you recognize customers are angry, you can recognize the “bait” they are throwing out to get you to react You can recognize what you need to do to avoid “taking the bait”Reasons customers become “difficult”

You are a person, too It is natural to want to defend yourself However, if you “take the bait” and react, the negative exchange will continueIf you “take the bait," you are giving control to the other personStep 2: Recognize your own feelings

It is imperative that you remain the voice of reason Technique: customers are not angry with you. Customers are angry with the situation Step 3: Remain calm

During this step, you are affording customers the opportunity to discuss issues with you Some customers will not be able to express why they are frustrated in a calm way Technique: let customers vent their frustration by demonstrating active listening skillsStep 4: Seek clarification

Active listening is the sincere effort to find out what is bothering the customer by hearing what the person is saying and learning about what the person is feeling It is hearing to understand Requires FocusEye contact Concentration Effective body language Step 4: Seek clarification

During active listening Ask questions Show you are listeningSummarize the informationStep 4: Seek clarification

Another technique Take a learning approach that focuses on interaction instead of reaction Step 4: Seek clarification

Technique: avoid hot words “Whatever” “I don’t care”“That is not my job”“That’s policy” Step 4: Seek clarification

Work with customers to create a solution If a solution cannot be reached, provide the customer with his/her next steps Step 5: Resolve the issue

Sometimes, our angry customers are talkers. And, it seems like they will never stop talking Your strategy, especially if on the phone, is to say nothing Eventually, the individual will stop talking to find out if you are still paying attentionWhat is a strategy for getting a talker to stop talking? Frequently Asked Questions

You followed the first step of recognizing angry customers, which is great Now, you have to employ the next steps Try starting with small talkPick a topic that brings about positive emotionsOffer a drink of water What do you do if a customer appears angry when you approach them? Frequently Asked Questions

Get very quiet. When you respond, make sure that your response is provided in a quiet manner Remove the audience What if the customer keeps getting louder and louder? Frequently Asked Questions

Remember step 2, you are a person with human emotions Take deep breaths and say to yourself This person is not mad at meI am not going to get pulled into this customer’s emotional trapI am going to listen and take it one step at a timeSlow down your responses When we get angry, we tend to jump right in and quickly state what we feel Stop before you speak Speak slowly What if I feel myself get angry, what can I do? Frequently Asked Questions