Module nine sensitivity and dealing with customers. Customer service professionals will inevitably interact with customers who provide specific kinds of challenges. Becoming sensitive to the types of customers you will deal with. And developing strategies for specific customer situations will make those difficult customer situations less challenging. This module offers examples of the types of challenging customers that you will face along with specific approaches that can make those interactions not only less challenging, but more rewarding as well as customers who are angry. Dealing with a customer who is angry requires patience and the utmost care and managing your own mood.

An angry customer can discombobulate you arouse your own anger. Here are some steps you can take when handling an angry customer. Don't take it personally. Whatever reason the customer has for being angry, it probably did not involve you personally. You can own the problem as well as the solution without owning the blame for the situation. Be aware of your own audit defense mechanisms.

Defensive thoughts such as I won't be treated this way or if I don't stand up to this I will fail to tend to engage when you feel under attack. Remember that these types of thoughts often display distorted thinking patterns. Remain calm. Take deep breaths to relax and slow your own arousal levels. No matter how outrageous your customers ranting may be coming across, look for and note any kernels of truth and their statements. Listen actively and ask questions when appropriate to understand the real problem.

Use a brief moment of silence to allow your customer to finish venting and to allow yourself to regroup. Once you respond to express agreement with your customer about any of the truth you noted, express empathy and offer an apology for their experience. This allows you to apologize without expressing any wrongdoing or accepting blame and express willingness to find a solution. Customers who are rude a customer who is rude to you can make it very difficult for you to do your job. Rude and abusive comments can be discombobulating. In addition to implementing the suggestions above for handling an angry customer, you may have to take additional steps to handle customers who are rude and abusive to you.

Here are some suggestions. Remember that your role as a customer service representative is to act as a partner with the customer in resolving the customers issue. This helps to keep you in the adult mode in the transaction, even when the other person is operating and the child mode. When a customer is being directly abusive towards you, it may become necessary to remind the customer that the personal attacks are unhelpful toward resolving the situation. However, this must be done delicately. When you point out such behavior to the customer, make sure that you do so from a place of common optimism.

You could remind the customer that you are dedicated to helping them resolve their issue. Consult with your company or supervisor regarding business policies toward customers making personal attacks. Many companies have a three strikes you're out policy. However, keep in mind that taking a step such as this may escalate the issue rather than de escalate the issue. Applying a three strikes you're out approach must be used sparingly and with careful consideration of your immediate goal of helping customers resolve their issues. If you find yourself in a position where You must warn a customer about abusive language.

Try to do so without snapping or being hurt yourself. Rather than de escalating snapping at a customer can put them on the defensive and encourage escalating behaviors, customers with different cultural values. We all come from different cultural backgrounds and the differences in these backgrounds can put you in a position as a customer service representative, where you are dealing with someone with a completely different set of values. How people express anger, for example, differs widely. Some may take the approach that they need to whip the other person into shape, or that sarcasm and ridicule can shame someone into providing the other person what they want. For example, a Japanese woman might express anger to her mother in law by arranging flowers on the dinner table haphazardly or improperly, whereas the same situation than the US might include shouting, remain open to the notion that different cultures are just as valid as your own.

Recognize any distorted thinking patterns in your reaction to a customer of a different culture. Reactions such as imperative thinking are common and should be countered. In your own thinking when you recognize customers who cannot be satisfied, there are times when you will have to interact with a customer who won't be satisfied no matter what you do. with customers with this mindset, it may be impossible to find a resolution that they are happy with. Nevertheless, you still have to try. As with any other type of challenging customer, your first step is to remain calm and functioning in the adult mode in the transaction.

Here are some additional strategies. Ask the customer directly what a successful resolution would look like to them. They may or may not be able to articulate this, if what they require is something beyond your capability, you should be upfront about this. For example, a customer may not be satisfied unless they receive a full year of your product at no cost. Most likely from your position as a customer service representative. This is something you would not be able to authorize.

Remember, if you begin to feel frustrated what the real problem is. Sometimes reframing the problem may point to a viable solution that you had not previously considered. offer a range of solutions Within your purview, if they want something that you can deliver offer alternatives that you can deliver. Occasionally what a customer is looking for in terms of resolution is something you cannot do, but your supervisor can. However, you should try to exhaust all possibilities and refrain from suggesting a supervisor as an ad hoc solution. If the customer requests a supervisor follow your company's policies regarding escalation procedures, but try to exhaust all possible alternatives within your power.

A study, Eddie stormed into the auto parts store and stopped in front of Daniel, a sales associate. Eddie was red faced and when Daniel asked how he could help, Eddie replied, You better believe you're going to help me. I've been back to the store three times to buy the same part and you idiots keeps telling me the wrong part. Daniel apologized for Eddie's experience, and Eddie replied, yeah, well, I'm sorry. All of you are a bunch of incompetent idiots. You're gonna help me are you another incompetent?

Daniel took a deep breath, pause for a second and then looked at in the eye and smiled. Daniel said, Well, I know you're in luck because they discontinue Utah in competency training sessions before I started working here, so I'm sure we can get it right. Daniel smile and joke made me smile for a second. And then he said, Why is Gaia? Well just fix my problem. Daniel asked me what vehicle he had and then re examine the part that he was returning, then you realize that the part had been put in the wrong place so that all the parts hanging there with the wrong ones.

Let me find the right part in the back Daniel said and then found the correct part and brought it out. He compared the part with the other one and confirm that he was giving it the correct part. If you have the car in the parking lot, I can come with you and make certain that it is the right part. And he agreed and they went out to the parking lot to test the new part.