Tip 19 - First Step in dealing with difficult people
Dealing with difficult people is one of the most challenging aspects for most of us and can make running businesses and teams a nightmare. It's is a very emotional and time consuming issue and can be deeply personal.
Everyone knows a person that seems to be able to press their ‘hot button’ or someone who consistently ignites anger, fear, or another passionate response. It goes round and round with seemingly no change.
Here’s a way of altering ... <click here> to read the full version.
Contents
Welcome
Quote of the week
Tools & Tips
Humour
Crisp Coaching & Consultancy Ltd,
143 Waltwood Park Drive, Llanmartin, Newport, NP18 2HF Tel: 0870 042 3720
Company Registration Number 05379946
info@ccandc.co.uk www.ccandc.co.uk
Quote of the week:
”Do not think of knocking out another person’s brains because he differs in opinion from you. It would be as rational to knock yourself on the head because you differ from yourself ten years ago.”
It’s always refreshing to have a nice, considerate customer every now and then. I really enjoy speaking to our customers when they are polite on the phone, even if they are just calling to complain about something. 90% of the time, if they state their case clearly and politely, I’ll try and help them out in some way or form. However, the customer I’m going to talk about today was just too damn considerate…so considerate that she actually got on my nerves.
Customer: Yes sir, I was wondering if I could speak to the person who does the embroidery?
Me: Hi ma’am, unfortunately our embroiderist is not in at the moment. Is there something I can help you with?
Customer: Possibly. I recently ordered a monogrammed handkerchief, but the letters seemed to have been stitched incorrectly.
Me: Oh, we apologize if we made a mistake, what is your order number?
Customer: 5907. I wanted the initials JOB, but instead they were stitched JBO.
Me: Ok, I’m pulling up your order right now. Indeed, you are correct! We’re sorry for your inconvenience. We’ll send you out another one ASAP.
Customer: Actually, I don’t want to be wasteful of your materials. Can I send you this handkerchief back so you can remove the stitching and re-embroider the letters on it?
Me: Don’t worry about it. You can keep that handkerchief and we’ll send you a brand new one. You don’t have to pay anything additional.
Customer: I really hate wasting anything. How about I return this hankie to you, you re-stitch it with the correct letters and return it to me. This way, you won’t have to waste another handkerchief and it will save your business money.
Me: I apologize, but re-stitching the hankie probably won’t look very good not to mention the fact that it is labour intensive.
I was kind of taken aback, but in a good way. This lady was really considerate. We were
going to send her another hankie for FREE but her primary concern was being too wasteful. This was a rare customer indeed.
Customer: How about I send you this hankie back regardless and I’ll pay for any additional labour required.
Me: Ma’am, I really don’t think it will turn out very well.
Customer: What if I send this hankie back and I’ll purchase another one as well?
Why was this lady being so persistent? While she was being extremely considerate, she was starting to test my patience. It’s kind of hard to explain, but I felt deeply conflicted inside. Her intentions were good but almost annoyingly so.
Me: Ok sure, please send us the hankie back and we’ll re-stitch it for you. In addition, we’ll send you a new one as well, free of charge.
Customer: You are such a kind young boy. I insist on paying for the additional one and any labour charges as well.
Me: There are no labour charges and no additional charges whatsoever. We sincerely thank you for your consideration.
Customer: So can I just pay you over the phone right now?
Clearly, we had a communication problem here. What didn’t she understand about no charges?
Me: Hi ma’am. I apologize for the misunderstanding. There are no charges so you don’t have to pay for anything.
Customer: Ok, I’ll place the order online then.
*click*
Sure enough, she then placed a new order for a handkerchief online. We ended up sending her two handkerchiefs, free of charge, and we also refunded her credit card for her additional online purchase.
Perhaps this was her ploy all along: if she was trying to get a free handkerchief on purpose, it worked. But honestly, I don’t think that was her true intention. She was such a nice lady, but too nice.
