If you work in the customer service industry, it is only a matter of time before you are confronted with an incomprehensibly irate customer. Dealing with these customers is what the job is all about. Using the best live chat software like the one provided by Kayako can help with volume, but angry customers need a human touch. Here are some tips to help you deal with angry customers.
#1 Don’t Get Agitated
This is the very first thing that you are going to have to bear in mind. Getting agitated is not going to do you any favors, in fact it is going to make your customer even angrier and potentially even cause you a lot of problems if the customer ends up complaining about how you treated them. If you get a call from an angry customer, the first thing you need to do is take a deep breath and stay as calm as possible. This will help you keep a cool head while you deal with your customer’s complaint as well.
#2 Say Their Name
This is something that a lot of CSRs forget to do, mostly because of the fact that they get flustered and don’t really know how to react. If you don’t know your customer’s name, ask them, and once they have told you keep using it. Doing this is going to make your customer feel like they matter. Nothing annoys a customer more than the feeling that they are just a number to you. Saying their name is going to give them the impression that they are being taken seriously, which is very important if you want to calm them down.
#3 Let Them Talk
This is one of those things that a lot of CSRs think they do well but in reality they are not very good at it at all. When your customer is talking, you need to let them go on until they are done. It is absolutely essential that you don’t interrupt them otherwise you could end up getting an unnecessary earful. You also need to make sure that you consistently give them indications that you are listening. Things like “Yeah,” “Mmhmm” and “I understand” are going to go a long way towards making your customer feel just a little more important.
#4 Mute If Necessary
We are talking about your mic, of course, not the customer. While you are listening to your customer, it is perfectly okay to mute your mic so that you can communicate to someone else the situation at hand. While your customer is going to talk, you will be able to talk to other people as necessary without making them feel like you don’t care about what they have to say. This is also a way for you to not take their ranting too seriously, because we all know that sometimes a customer can be angry for no reason.
#5 Be Courteous Yet Firm
While it is essential that you remain as polite to your customers as possible, it is also important that you remain firm. Your customers do not have the right to be abusive, so if they start crossing a line it is essential that you stop them in their tracks and tell them that they are out of line. Customers like this can’t be helped, they just need a punching bag. For the sake of your own mental health it is important that you stay away from such customers and deal with them in a way that would prevent you from getting abused.
#6 Note Down Important Details
When your customer is talking, make sure that you write down whatever is going on. Also, tell your customers that you are doing this. This is because of the fact that it will calm them down and make them a little more coherent, as they are going to want to have their problem resolved as quickly as possible. If telling them this does not have the effect of calming them down, chances are that you will have to apply the previous tip on this list because a customer with a serious complaint will always calm down if you tell them you are taking notes.
#7 Talk With a Smile
This is a trick that a lot of CSRs really need to learn about. If you smile while you talk, you are going to sound brighter and happier. It is important to use this trick only as and when necessary, otherwise you could potentially make your customer feel like you are not taking them seriously. That being said, if used in the right place at the right time it will definitely make your customers feel calmer because they are going to start responding to the tone of your voice.
