If you work as a liên hệ center agent, you’ll have đồ sộ giảm giá with angry customers sooner or later. That’s just part of the story. But, đồ sộ slightly modify a famous Charles R. Swindoll quote, the quality of your daily life as a liên hệ center agent depends 10% on what happens and 90% on how you react đồ sộ it. In this article, we prepared some essential tips for you on how đồ sộ handle irate customers in the best possible way. 

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Why Is It Important đồ sộ Help Upset Customers

No matter how great a business is, sometimes things don’t go according đồ sộ plan and customers get upset. The problem starts when nobody đơn hàng with them properly. 

What happens when a customer is unhappy with a company? They might ask for a refund or suspend their membership. There’s also a high chance that they’ll post bad reviews about their experience, warning others đồ sộ stay away from the company. 

Learn how đồ sộ communicate successfully.

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It’s not hard đồ sộ figure out that such actions can lead đồ sộ churn, loss of revenue, and trust. 

Customers pay đồ sộ get great tư vấn, and they have every right đồ sộ be upset with an unhelpful, reckless, or rude agent.  

On the other hand, if angry clients get outstanding customer service with an effective solution đồ sộ their problem, they might even leave more satisfied. They accept that mistakes happen, and will be sure đồ sộ leave a top-star rating about your assistance.

If you learn the necessary soft skills, you’ll also make your daily life as a liên hệ center agent more pleasant, and you’ll likely be able đồ sộ handle conflicts in your personal life better.

How đồ sộ Deal With Angry Customers

We compiled the most important principles on how đồ sộ giảm giá with irate customers as a liên hệ center agent. Keep them in mind, or print them and keep them next đồ sộ your computer if you prefer. If you follow these guidelines, handling difficult customers will never be a problem for you again. 

1. Improve Your Active Listening Skills

The first step of handling an angry customer is not figuring out what đồ sộ say.

The first step is đồ sộ learn đồ sộ listen.

But, listening doesn’t just mean letting the other person talk while you’re silent. 

You need đồ sộ listen in a way that makes the customer feel heard. 

Even if there’s no solution đồ sộ the problem, or you find it unjustified, your first job is đồ sộ acknowledge that the customer is unhappy and understand their point of view without judgment.

How đồ sộ practice active listening: 

• Never cut into your customer’s words. Even if you’ve heard the same problem the 20th time that day, don’t rush them by finishing their sentences. Acknowledge that they matter and show patience. Whatever it is they’re dealing with, don’t trivialize it. 
• Take notes during the conversation. Get down every detail ví that you can be efficient when finding a solution. This way, you won’t waste the customer’s time by having them repeat the whole story. Write down the customer’s words ví you don’t fall into a Chinese whisperer’s trap when you have đồ sộ escalate the issue đồ sộ other departments. To avoid this, you can also use đường dây nóng center tools lượt thích CloudTalk’s Call Notes and Call Tags. That way, each of your colleagues will see what the customer’s issue was about.
• Use verbal cues. Occasionally, use positive words đồ sộ show that you’re paying attention. This can be as simple as “Oh I see!” or “Yes”. 
• Ask questions, never assume. Don’t try đồ sộ fill in the gaps by yourself. Asking questions about a situation is another way đồ sộ show the customer that you’re ready đồ sộ help, and getting as much information as possible helps you crack the case more quickly. 
• Summarize, paraphrase and repeat back the issue. While continuously asking the customer đồ sộ repeat the issue shows that you’re not listening, asking for confirmation through paraphrasing and summarizing does the opposite. You can start your sentences lượt thích this: “So if I understand correctly, the issue is…” or “Just đồ sộ make sure I got it correctly, what you’re dealing with is..” and then summarize the issue in a few keywords. But, don’t trivialize the problem. Summarizing also helps you make sure you truly understand what needs fixing.

2. Be The First One To Apologize

Before providing a solution, be sure đồ sộ apologize for the inconvenience the customer is having. Even if you don’t agree with the situation, a genuine “sorry” can go a long way. 

How đồ sộ apologize the right way: 

• Don’t just throw in a few meaningless “sorrys”. Make your message specific. For example: “I’m sorry đồ sộ hear you’re experiencing an issue with the mạng internet connection today” or “We’re truly sorry you had a bad experience with the quality of the product”. Without specifying, it may sound lượt thích you’re not actually sorry at all. 
• Make your apology solution-oriented. While an apology is important đồ sộ keep a customer feeling good, it’s still empty unless you pair it with the promise of a solution. For example: “I’m sorry that your package hasn’t arrived yet. I’m going đồ sộ liên hệ the logistics department right now, could you please hold for a moment?” or “I’m sorry about your bad experience, please give má a moment đồ sộ initiate the refund process.”

3. Show Empathy

Showing empathy đồ sộ your customers means that you try đồ sộ put yourself in their shoes and imagine what they go through. Even if you can’t fully understand why they lose their temper over seemingly insignificant details, remember that you can never know anybody’s full story. They might be going through something that you have no idea about.

But even if they aren’t, treat them as if they were, and you’ll automatically giảm giá with them with more empathy.

How đồ sộ show empathy đồ sộ your customers:

• Use empathy statements. For example, “I see how difficult this can be” or “I understand why it puts you in a bad position, let má help you”. 
• Don’t judge. Sometimes, the issues customers giảm giá with don’t actually exist. For example, they didn’t find a piece of information or a button on the screen that, for you, is obvious. Don’t make them feel bad for mixing things up or missing something. It happens đồ sộ the best of us.
• Think lượt thích a customer. When we know too much about a topic, the curse of knowledge prevents us from understanding how it feels đồ sộ be a beginner. Think back đồ sộ the time when you knew as little about the products as the average client. It will help you empathize with frustrated customers.

4. Remain Calm

How could you calm someone down without being calm yourself?

No matter how strong the urge is, avoid fighting back at all costs. You are a professional, representing a company, which is paid by the very same people that you’re dealing with. 

How đồ sộ remain calm

• Practice potential responses. If you struggle with formulating good responses on the fly, write down a few answers đồ sộ the most common scenarios and practice reading them in a calm, friendly voice. If you have trouble reacting, you may use real-time help from your supervisor. 
• Ask your supervisor for feedback. They’ll be glad đồ sộ give you pointers on your previous calls, and let you know if you sound frustrated, upset, or passive-aggressive. With CloudTalk features such as Call Monitoring or 3-way Calling, you can invite your supervisor đồ sộ be on the đường dây nóng and help you without the customer knowing about it.
• Avoid negative thoughts or venting đồ sộ coworkers. A little venting can be helpful. Yet, if you catch yourself often having negative comments about the customers you’re dealing with (whether it’s in the breakroom, or just in your head), you’ll automatically feel less patient and empathetic while interacting with them. Instead, try đồ sộ always put yourself in your customers’ shoes, even when just thinking about them. This prevents you from getting too annoyed. 

5. Don’t Take Anything Personally

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If you still struggle with remaining calm, learning đồ sộ take a step back and not taking the insults personally can help. 

It’s not just a tactic đồ sộ make you feel better: customer insults are really not personal. 

Sure, some clients tend đồ sộ get into personal attacks quickly when they’re upset. But even if they comment on your voice, style, or assumed background, always remember that they were already agitated before they even knew that they would talk đồ sộ you. 

Granted, this doesn’t make it any more pleasant đồ sộ giảm giá with raging clients, but with patience and a relaxed voice, you’ll often find the same customer switching đồ sộ a friendlier voice soon. 

How not đồ sộ take the insult personally 

• Keep reminding yourself that you’re the middleman, not the target. The customers are angry with the products or services they paid for, not you.
• Ask your supervisor and experienced colleagues for advice. Every liên hệ center agent goes through the same process. Those who have been working with customers for a long time and still look motivated have developed the right toolkit đồ sộ avoid taking unpleasant interactions too personally. Don’t be afraid đồ sộ pick their brains! 

6. Use the Customer’s Name

According đồ sộ Dale Carnegie, author of How đồ sộ Win Friends & Influence People, “A person’s name is đồ sộ that person, the sweetest, most important sound in any language.” Remembering and using your customers’ names helps khuông and strengthen relationships and build trust.

How đồ sộ get it right:

• Remember the caller’s name. If you have trouble remembering names, jot them down as soon as you hear them, and use CloudTalk’s Real-Time Customer Card tool đồ sộ always see information about the customer while talking đồ sộ them.
• Don’t say your customer’s name too often. If you try đồ sộ insert your customer’s name after every sentence, it’ll feel forced and unnatural.
• Avoid assumed nicknames. If the customer introduced herself as Samantha, don’t đường dây nóng her Sam. Some people detest their nicknames, which might irritate them even further when they’re already upset. 
• Mirror their style. Some customers, depending on their age or cultural background, might find hearing their first names from you annoying or disrespectful. Mirror their level of formality: if they prefer đồ sộ talk đồ sộ you formally, it’s best đồ sộ stick đồ sộ Mr/Ms or Sir/Madam.  

7. Stay Positive and Always Provide a Solution

Although it might be different than thở what the customer expects, there’s always a solution. 

Assure your customer that you will find the best possible resolution đồ sộ their issue. A good customer service representative never uses the word “no” – or its variations, such as “it’s not possible”, “we can’t” or ”it can’t be done”. Even if it’s not the perfect solution, the person on the other side of the line will be happier đồ sộ hear what you CAN tự for them. 

How đồ sộ find a solution: 

• Never overpromise. Commit đồ sộ what you know is possible. For example, instead of saying “I’ll fix this for you” say “Let má take a moment đồ sộ look into the best options for compensating you”. Saying what you already know is possible prevents you from keeping your customer’s hopes up (e.g promising a product fix or a refund which is not possible). That makes the situation even worse. 
• Always know who đồ sộ reach. You don’t need đồ sộ know the answer đồ sộ every question, but it helps đồ sộ know where đồ sộ find them fast. 

8. Keep the Conversation Factual

When a customer is overwhelmed with negative emotions no matter what you try, it’s best đồ sộ steer the conversation toward cold facts. Simply outline the situation đồ sộ the customer, which helps them đồ sộ focus on providing information instead of venting. 

How đồ sộ stay factual:

• Use statements that help the conversation stay factual. You can start with a sentence like:  “Let má kiểm tra if I’ve got all the facts straight” and then summarize the issue. To get more details, you can ask: “Is there anything else about the situation I need đồ sộ know?”
• Offer đồ sộ bring in the supervisor or a different agent. You can mention in a calm voice: “To guarantee we find the best possible solution, may I bring my supervisor into the call?” or “To provide you with the best tư vấn regarding X, let má transfer this đường dây nóng đồ sộ our highest-skilled agent specified in this area“

9. Stay Loyal đồ sộ Your Company

It might be tempting đồ sộ agree with the customer about his negative experience just đồ sộ get out of the unpleasant situation and avoid further conflict. But don’t forget that, no matter what, you’re representing the company you work for. 

This doesn’t mean that you have đồ sộ lie — you can admit if the company made a mistake — but you should always avoid bad-mouthing the place for which you work. 

How đồ sộ avoid going against your company

• Always stay diplomatic. Remember that the issue is between the company and the customer: you’re a middleman, helping đồ sộ soothe the situation. While you should always empathize with the customer, don’t choose their side or join in on the venting. 
• Do what’s best for the client as well as for the company. Most companies know that their number one priority should be treating their customers right. Taking the company’s side and looking out for your customer can therefore coexist.

Bottom line

We hope that following our advice will serve as a toolkit for the next time you have đồ sộ giảm giá with irate customers. The best is đồ sộ follow them in order; however, any one of these tips will help you handle angry customers better and stay calmer.

Interested in how CloudTalk can make your daily đường dây nóng center life easier?