What would you do with an irate customer?
While I understand there are times when people have so much energy behind an issue they feel an immediate need to blow off steam, I also hold strongly to the belief that a professional is not a doormat. So, I have a number of strategies for dealing with people who call in the heat of the moment, depending on the situation. Here are two of my favorites:
- Stay silent until they finish. When I use this strategy, I also stay silent for at least 10 seconds after they have finished, just to make sure they don’t have more to say. (The last thing I want to do is give them another reason to yell.) Often this results in a rather meek, “Hello? Are you there?” to which I respond, “Yes. Just wanted to make sure you were finished before I started talking.” and we take it from there. What’s nice about this strategy is that there doesn’t have to be any awkward exchange regarding the yelling or boundaries. We just move on as though nothing happened. I’m most likely to use this in a situation where there is not likely to be a repeat of that behavior and where I am not in a hurry.
- Ask for their help in helping them or let them know I can’t solve the problem when they are yelling. Once I’ve done this, if they persist I say, “Hey, I want to work with you, and I need your help, bringing it down a few notches to start. Are you able to do that now or would it be better to handle it later?” If they still persist, then the stage is set for me to say, “Okay, it seems like maybe you would prefer to wait to solve this, is that correct? I’m happy to work with you on this now, and I need you to bring it down a few notches now if you want to solve this now. Otherwise, I’ll let you go and we can talk about it later.” While this strategy may, at first, appear to be harsh, what I love about it is the fact that it gives the professional receiving the call a way to inspire the caller to regain self-control while preserving the professional’s boundaries.
I’m more likely to use the 2nd one in situations where there will be an ongoing relationship with the customer or where the person is so far past the boundary that I feel the need to train them how to respect me by respecting myself first. I want them to know where the boundary lies for future reference so we don’t have repeats.