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It’s possible that you will encounter a customer from time to time that has a negative opinion of your organization because of a past experience or possibly something they have heard from others. Depending on the circumstances, the customer may feel forced to deal with you. Dealing with a customer that has a negative preconceived opinion can be a challenge. Here are a few suggestions to turn the situation around.

Tune In:

Always take notes during a conversation. Even the best memory needs to be prepared for a laundry list of issues.
Listen for the main point, without ignoring other issues. The main point is usually conveyed at the beginning of a conversation, even if there are several other issues that are pointed out. The main point is typically repeated more than once during the conversation.
Let the customer know you are listening. If you are in front of a customer, you have the advantage of using body language to show you are listening, including eye contact, nodding your head, and using facial expressions to show your concern. On the telephone, you need to convey you are listening by using your voice, but without interrupting. You may just say uh huh or mmm a time or two in order to convey you are tuned in.

Acknowledge

Let the customer know you hear his concerns and you are ready to take action. “It sounds like we need to get some detail for you on these invoices”

Don’t Take The Bait

Stay away from responding to the accusations from the past. Stick with the current issue. Re-focus the customer to the issue at hand, by saying something like, “I understand how frustrating that must have been. Let’s see if we can improve your experience with our organization. Now, about that billing question…”

Remain Professional

Don’t take it personally. It’s difficult to not take it personally when the customer says something like, “You people can’t seem to get it right”, but if you can mentally re-phrase the customer’s request to “Please get this straightened out”, your response will be more focused on the business at hand - “Let’s see what can do to help you”.

Commit To Only What You Can Do

Don’t get yourself in a bind by over-committing. Let the customer know what you can do, and if you need to research something for the customer, be realistic on the time frame it may take you or others to get the information. It’s much better to over-deliver.

End On A Positive Note

The closing is an opportunity to leave the customer feeling like he had a good experience. Let the customer know you appreciate his business by thanking him. “John, thank you for calling and bringing this to our attention. We appreciate your business.”

Testimonials

“I just had to drop you a note about your Communiquette program I attended last week. I have had the opportunity to listen to many motivational speakers and participate in a number of technical and inspirational seminars. Your program and the presentation was at the top of the list. I recommend your seminars to anyone looking to improve their organization and would be pleased to talk to any person interested in your programs.”
Keystone Corp.

“Your presentation was very well done and I have enjoyed all of the positive feedback received today. With all the new and exciting things our company has to look forward to, I am viewing this as a great opportunity to implement new procedures that will benefit us as a growing company.”
Visionary Communications

“We have gotten very positive feedback from your time with us. Thank you for a great presentation.”
Northern Fire and Communications