How do you handle customer complaints?

He was prepared for a fight.

You could tell by the way he stormed into the Footlocker store, that I was managing at the time. His neck was flushed (and no he was not a redneck), and his pupils were dilated and he was ready for battle.

The rest of my staff ran for the stockroom. Leaving me alone.

Have you ever been in a situation when you had to deal with and angry customer?

How did it turn out?

Did the situation escalate into a shouting match or did that customer leave with a smile on their face?

Being confronted by a customer that is hot under the collar and looking for blood is probably one of the most unpleasant things that sales and customer service folks have to deal with. And because of this fact, they tend to try to avoid these situations. Why do you think many salespeople fail to follow-up with a customer? Because they are afraid that if they ask how the delivery or how the product is, then they will have to try to resolve any problems that may occur. And they may have to deal with angry customers.

In my next post, I will talk about why you want to seek out these complaints and how to handle them in a way that will leave your customers happy, so they remain your customers.