It’s rare, but sometimes we lose a customer. We try everything to restore the relationship. We apologize, and we offer compensation and restitution. We even offer to have someone punished or publicly humiliated. We can’t save them all. What do we do if we goofed?
Sometimes we do blow it. If you have tried your best to satisfy the customer, you have done all that you can. Try not to take it personally. Try not to rehash it with your coworkers or over and over in your own mind.
Pick yourself back up and use the experience as a case study. Use this situation as an opportunity to improve. Ask yourself these questions:
- What was the customer’s major complaint? Really.
- How did the customer see the problem? How did you see the problem?
- Who was to blame? Can the blame be shared?
- What irritated the customer the most?
- What did you say to the customer that helped the situation?
- What did you say that made things worse or seemed to aggravate the situation?
- How did you try to show your concern to the customer?
- What would you do differently?
Ask these questions, have strategies ready, and you’ll be better prepared, if it ever happens again.
Even when we have put processes in place, mistakes are made. And when we offer 100% guarantees, we sometimes have to pay up. If we focus on improvement, and learn from each customer encounter, we can minimize mistakes and maximize our marvelous.
Watch Kit Welchlin’s keynote presentation on customer service for more helpful tips and techniques. Check back to welchlin.com every Monday for a new video blog.