Caring for Your Customers

Caring for Your Customers
© Terri Seymour

You probably think I am going to say something like,
"The customer is always right." Right?? Wrong.

I have many philosophies when dealing with customers,
but I definitely do not believe that the customer is
always right. However, when the customer is wrong,
you must handle the situation delicately.

There are many types of customers and each one needs
to be treated with respect and consideration no matter
how difficult they may be. I have found that most (not all)
people can be soothed out of their "nastiness".

I used to work at our local casino and I would get all
kinds of customers to deal with. Most of them were
very pleasant as in the IM business, but there were a
few that were very difficult. There was this one night
when I came in contact with this particularly difficult
lady who, of course, was having bad luck. She was
just a bit**in" and blaming the casino!!

I calmly yet firmly talked to her in a reassuring and
respectful manner each and every time I came around.
I noticed that each time I did talk to her she became
more and more relaxed and controlled. Until finally,
later in the evening, I went into the Ladies Room and
who should be there, but the difficult lady! Well, as
I came in, she burst out, " There she is. There's that
girl who was so nice to me all night long and made
me feel so much better"! She could not have been
more grateful. ;-)

Now this will not happen everytime you run into a
difficult customer, but it could happen often. Treat
people with respect, kindness and consideration and
more often then not, you will be able to calm down a
dissatisfied, belligerent customer. Listen to the
customer and let them know you will do everything
possible to get the problem resolved. Show them that
you care!

You need to actually care about your customer and
care about making sure they are satisfied with you
and your service and/or product. Do not just think of
the customer as another sale.

If you get the eternally nasty customer who will not
be consoled no matter what you do, do not lose
control or sink to their level. Remain calm but firm.
The customer is not always right no matter how much
they think they are. Be courteous and polite.

Since I have been online, I have only encountered
about three customers of the eternally nasty type. ;-)
I did my best, but to no avail. So I had no choice
but to send them on their way. I stood up for myself
and for MOE and did not insult them in any way. But
as we know, there is just no pleasing some people.

I would say that 99% of the people I have encountered
online have been absolutely wonderful! They make it
easy to treat them with respect and courtesy. I, who
has been painfully shy most of my life, love working
with people and enjoy interacting with them online
and offline. I think all (well, almost all) people
are good in one way or another and deserve to be
treated as such.

This is why I do business by the motto:
Treat others as you would like to be treated and
Be true to yourself and your customers!