How do you handle frustrated customers? 😡

[ElisabethB]

Every business has them from time to time - frustrated customers. While some businesses adhere to the old saying that the customer is always right, that isn't always a realistic approach. How do you handle unhappy customers? What was your best or worst experience with a customer? Reply to share your tips and success stories (or horror stories! 👻) with us!

[sugarlab]

Almost 10 years in business and I have had my fair share of cranky customers. 

I do find that most people just want to be heard. They want to feel valued. When I have someone unhappy with a cake, which is typically not an inexpensive purchase, I usually like to listen (or read) what they have to say. I try to offer an explanation if there is one and then ask them "how can I make this right?". Sometimes they'll say straight up _% refund. Other times they say they don't know and then I come up with an answer. Sometimes their % refund is absurd and I tell them such in nicer terms. 

I think my worst customer, or at least one that I still think about, was a mother of a bride to be. They came in for a wedding cake consultation and were getting married at a venue we partnered with for the cake. Meaning that if they booked a certain package, the cake from us was included and then the venue paid us. The bride wanted a cake that looked like a birch tree with a fairly high level of detail. They showed me the picture and I said "awesome! I haven't done one that detailed before so I'd need to research how to make it realistic like that but it excites me!" The mom kept talking about one of our birch tree inspired cakes that she was shown when she came to the bakery the week prior. It was a buttercream cake that had lines to resemble a birch tree, but no one would mistake it for a tree. She kept going on and on about how horrible the one we had made was. I tried to say "well yes that's what that couple wanted". Normally in wedding tastings I'm pretty passive and agreeable; the bride (or whomever) is right even if her wedding is going to be tacky in my opinion. But I had to finally put my foot down and stand up for myself. "Ma'am, I totally understand what your daughter is asking for. She's wanting a hyper realistic birch tree cake. While I haven't done one exactly like that before, I am confident in my ability to recreate it. That other cake you keep referencing was what that couple wanted and they were thrilled with it. Please keep in mind that someone, meaning me, created that cake by hand and it's getting pretty insulting at this point. If you weren't aware, you are able to remove the cake from your package with the venue. You are not obligated to book with me so if you are unhappy with me, you can do that instead of continuing to insult me." I could tell she was taken aback. I had to get something from our kitchen so I excused myself, took a breather real quick, and then came back into the room. The bride was super nice and became the more talkative one and the mom was quiet. Thankfully, they did end up going with a different baker who I'm friends with. Oddly enough, she said they were perfectly pleasant. The florist that did their wedding also had major issues with the mom, as did the venue and wedding planner. Safe to say I dodged a bullet and I felt even more confident in myself. 

[vivisboards]

This is great. I have encountered similar experiences recently as well.  As I own a charcuterie business and the bride's mothers I feel are a bit much at times (perhaps because they are holding the wallet). However, the constant phone calls for me as they are getting a huge discount for early booking. But I also feel that people want more but, pay less as well. Yet wanting the world. Needless to say, the grazing table was great and they loved it but things get a bit hairy and stressed and I think as they project this out on us professionals questioning the work. Let's just say it comes with the territory. 😉 WE got this always. 

[ElisabethB]

@vivisboards I love that outlook - we got this! 🙌 😊

[sugarlab]

Oh yea mother's of the brides are the worst! Not all the time of course but I usually have to deal with mom-zillas more than bride-zillas. Thankfully both are few and far between. 

[ElisabethB]

@sugarlab There's always that one customer you never forget about (even for those of us who have never run a business but have been in a customer-facing position)! It sounds like you handled it very gracefully! 👏

[LukeNieuw]

I tell our team to always start with empathy. Relate to their frustrations even if it's throwing yourself under the bus a little like "ya we really need to change that" or "I know I really hate when that happens to me" etc etc. This almost immediately diffuses the situation because you "understand" them and they feel like you're on "their team". Taking notes and telling them that you're doing it so we can make sure this doesn't happen again.

That works the majority of the time. But if someone gets belligerent we won't tolerate any verbal abuse so I am happy to tell them to never come back if they act that way. 

[ElisabethB]

That's really great advice, @LukeNieuw! It never hurts to put yourself in someone else's shoes. 

[FreshPrintsSW]

This is exactly right. In most business scenarios, the client or customer doesn't know how you're business actually works. They are basing their response on what they think they know, not what actually may or may not be true. 

In screen printing, I find often that people don't know the process. I definitely have to be empathetic to that and teach them what I can when opportunities present themselves. This is probably true for most businesses honestly.

[Geno1967]

Greetings, Luke.

I've worked in retail for almost 40 years. While I appreciate your point of view, I must disagree with "a little amount of putting yourself under the bus." While I agree that you should allow the consumer to express their concerns, if you are correct, and by correct I mean that you and your staff met their commitments in a timely and professional manner, you should clarify that to the client. When a consumer complains, it is critical for your colleagues and coworkers to know that you will fully support them. Nothing is more depressing than executing an excellent job and having your supervisor side with an incorrect consumer.

[LukeNieuw]

@Geno1967 just because you empathize with a customer doesn't mean they are "Correct" for complaining nor does it mean you siding with them over your team. The problem is you're seeing this as binary and it's not. This is never a "we're correct and you're wrong" scenario. If that's the case and a customer is blatantly out of line then by all means tell them the way it is whether they like it or not. But we all know most, if not all, of these scenarios, magnify issues within our businesses. The point is to tell them "We know we're not perfect, and we're doing our best to keep improving." It de-escalates the situation and in a lot of cases turns the customer around to be on your side! I've seen this turn some "upset/angry" customers into our biggest advocates. 

[BTBerry]

Listening is key.  What they really want may be less than what you are willing to give.  what they want may be a learning opportunity to improve your business.  At least, that's how we look at it the last 32 years in business.  I do my best not to argue, but I will stand up for myself professionally and let them know that everything we do can be remedied, removed or upgraded for improvement.  I also know when to walk away, remove my product, give a full refund and invite them to never come back to my place of business.  I love what I do and am very passionate doing my work.  It simply makes me happy.

[ElisabethB]

Wow, 32 years in business is amazing, @BTBerry! 

[shopfybr]

We generally try to keep customers happy at all costs. I'd pay to have a negative review taken down so giving a refund is always better than getting a negative review, it's the cost of doing business.

Also there's that old wisdom that says a person will share a good experience with 2 friends and a bad experience with 10 friends!

[ElisabethB]

 @shopfybr Interesting - I've never heard that saying, but I think that's definitely true, especially with social media these days. 

[3DService]

   Matthew 5:25 says: 'Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.' It's one of the hardest ways to deal with public because, it'll seem like you'll always be the guy to take the beating. My dad had a repair shop for approx. 25 years. Over the years I remember an occasional customer coming in all upset but, dad always took the blame and, went above and, beyond there demands and, always stayed quiet and, was very slow to respond. I've been in the business for about 5 years on my own and, have found his method to be the best! Recently I had a customer need an accessory taken off his machine. I was very loudly and, in no uncertain terms, told the thing was ****. So I took it off and pitched in the trash. A week later he needed that old piece back and, now! I tried to tell him I had pitched it. He ventured to call me all sorts of names and I was lying to him....... I tried to reason with him but, to no avail. He was taking me to court and, you name it. I quickly offered to buy him the same piece , new. He took me up and, I doubt he''ll ever be back! The piece wasn't a $5 item either! It was $500!  

[ElisabethB]

Wow, @3DService - I hope that customer appreciated your willingness to go above and beyond to resolve the issue!

[ReverendMike]

First, the customer is NOT always right!

Customers will treat you as you train them to treat you. If the customer is right, I am the nicest guy in the world. But, if they're wrong, I won't pause when telling them so. If they don't agree, they can shop somewhere else and I'll tell them that. Being 6'3" and 300lbs, I get very few arguments. This is a Benevolent Dictatorship. I refuse to kiss someone's butt to make a sale.

You do everyone else in the world a disservice by allowing someone's selfishness to be fed.

Oh, and I live by the adage, Good customers rarely get better and bad customers almost always get worse.

[ElisabethB]

@ReverendMike I laughed out loud at "Benevolent Dictatorship"! 🤣 

[mythicrunning]

Absolutely 100% agree with you! 

The only time the customer is always right is in matters of taste.  

[ryanwanner]

Completely agree with the Customer is not always right part!

One of the best pieces of advice I've ever heard when it comes to customer service:

The customer is not always right, but the customer you want back is always right.