Handling angry customers is one of the keys to successful sales staff. As a professional in the sales industry, you know that you have the responsibility to be presentable, friendly, and productive at all times when dealing with customers. This does not mean that you can be rude or aggressive toward customers. The key to maintaining good customer relations is to approach every customer situation with a professional demeanor. Here are 4 tips for handling angry customers the key to a high retention rate.
Step By Step Guideline:
First, be prepared for every contingency. When customers are upset or even unhappy with your service the first thing you need to do is make sure you are there to listen. Depending on the type of negative feedback you may hear, listen intently to the customer until they calm down. You don’t want to talk yourself into something that you will regret. Always remain professional and stay focused on your customer relations training.
Second, be a good listener. If you take the time to really hear what the customer has to say, you can better understand what the problem is so you can make the necessary adjustments. If you are unsure of what the root cause of the problem is you may alienate the customer which will have a negative impact on your sales staff. Being able to better understand what is making the customer unhappy will enable you to proactively improve your customer relations training so you can avoid these issues in the future.
Third, recognize that not all customers are angry. Although most customers would like to be pleased all the time, they may just be looking for some sort of compensation. Recognizing this fact will empower you as the sales professional to communicate more with the frustrated customer so the issue can be resolved in a way that the employee feels satisfied rather than angry.
Fourth, if the customer is happy, be happy yourself. Customers want to be treated with respect and the happier they are with your sales staff, the happier they will be with your company. The happier the staff, the more motivated they will be to work harder. If you have great sales staff who are consistently happy in your store, your customers will enjoy coming into your store over again. Your bottom line will improve because people will buy more because they are happy.
Fifth, be sure your sales staff knows the right way to approach each of their customers individually. Each person has to understand what the client needs. Some customers have specific requests such as having an item in special or having a specific number of items to buy. Understanding what each customer is asking for will allow your sales staff to do the best job possible and increase the chances that they will keep the customers happy.
Sixth, remember that a customer does not want an attitude. They want a product or service that they can trust. A happy and helpful staff will increase the odds that the customer will stick around longer and will bring back more friends. If you have a lot of complaints, or if your customers don’t like how you are running your business, they might not come back. On the other hand, if you treat each customer lovingly and with respect, you will have a much higher retention rate than you would if you were constantly yelling at your customers.
Seventh, recognize when your staff is not doing their job. If an employee isn’t treating a customer well, there is a reason. Sometimes it is just that the person is not getting along with other staff. In these cases, you can talk to them and find out what is going on. If you can work things out, this will be a good way to keep your customer happy and coming back.
