Customers complain and get upset every once in a while in every business. A proper and timely response can be the difference between keeping a frustrated customer loyal or completely losing their business, regardless of what caused their dissatisfaction. The key is to de-escalate angry customers' situations and regain their trust. You will learn how to respond to angry customers in this blog.
1. Acknowledging
Getting to the bottom of a frustrated customer's complaint starts with acknowledging the complaint. If a customer's unhappy with a feature, your support team can say, "Sorry to hear about that. At the moment, we don't have anything that works that way." Hearing another person agree that there is a problem or acknowledge the issue can be a significant step toward calming your customer down.
2. Aligning
When a support agent acknowledges a customer's issue, they put them at ease. Next, your support agent has to align with the customer, so they feel on the same page. When customers ask for a feature, they can reply, "I agree that having that feature would be very useful, especially for your use case." Responding this way puts your support agent in a human position instead of a product-based one and lets them know you're listening. It shows the customer they understand their needs and agree with them.
3. Assuring
Last but not least, the support agent has to reassure the customer that they're forwarding their information to the right people or that the issue has been resolved. These responses usually come after acknowledgement, alignment, and explanation, making the customer feel heard. Make sure to reaffirm their claim and commit to working on the problem if it isn't fixed.
In a closing statement to a feature request, say something like, "I can't promise that this will be built soon, but I will let our team know there are people interested in this. Would you like me to pass along any additional insights you have beyond what we've already discussed here?" It shows you care about what customers have to say and want them to feel like they can have an impact.
Final Thoughts
Be calm, look over the chat history and speak confidently.
Encourage your support team to read the entire message and the history before typing a reply and also pull their fingers away from the keyboard, and take a deep breath. Don't let your team get frustrated with your customer before talking to them or understanding their perspective. Remind your team not to let stress fester when they feel frustrated, and get them to go for a walk, grab a snack, or find someone to laugh with.
Get to know the customer's history so they are prepared to talk to them. Make sure your team takes a deep breath and gets some ground before starting. Is there a persistent issue that hasn't been fixed, or is this customer really picky about features and bugs? Have a support system that captures chat history and other information your support team can use.
Customer support software, like our DSM 2.0+ Omnichannel Support (powered by Zendesk), can help get your team started, letting them see all the chat history customers leave across chats, messages, and support tickets. It also integrates seamlessly with an eCommerce site, CRM, and ERP, so your team can get the order, payment history, and customer preferences to provide more comprehensive support.
Alternatively, if you want to start immediately (without integration), you can use Zendesk Suite (Support, Chat, Talk & Guide). Our partnership with Zendesk allows us to assist you with everything from sales to implementation support and integration. Please get in touch with us at sales@zooloo.asia.
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Tags: #zendesk #omnichannel #digitaltransformation #digitalintegration #digitalsolutions #smestrategy #ecommercestrategy #emarketplace #customerengagement #customerretention #customersuccess #edg #psg
