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It's Only Common Sense: Dealing with a Furious Customer

No matter how good you are and no matter how much you care about your customers and want to do what’s best for them, you will still face instances where a customer becomes irate. It’s not a pleasant experience for sure, but, with the right approach, you can turn the entire experience around and create a customer for life.

Look, even the best companies in the world make mistakes--you just can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. In our business, it’s all about quality and delivery. Oh sure, when buying the boards it’s all about price; but once that deal is made it’s down to the stuff that’s really important--building perfect product and getting it there on time. When any part of this process doesn’t happen, the customer no longer cares that you were the cheapest guy with the fastest quote when he placed the purchase order. All he cares about is that his boards are late or that they have a quality problem--that is now the issue of the day. How you handle the issue will mean the difference between keeping and losing the customer.

Let’s assume that you have a problem with a customer and, as hard as it is to imagine, let’s also assume that you screwed up. You messed up and his boards are late. You scrapped them out and tried to build the boards on time, but failed. Now you are in a rebuild situation and, because of material issues, you are going to be two days late in getting them to the customer.

Your customer service associate has already called the buyer and he’s furious. It’s the end of the month and the quarter, and the fact that your boards are late means that four of the customer’s units are not going to be able to ship on time and revenue projections will be missed.

The president of the company is now on the phone and he wants to know what you are going to do about the problem. He thinks that if he puts enough pressure on you, you’re going to be able to somehow change the physics of time and get those boards to him before the end of the month. What are you going to do? What are you going to say to him to calm him down and, most importantly, keep him as a customer?

The first thing you are going to do is take the phone call. Does that sound too obvious to you? There are more than a few times when a guy in your position will chicken out, so it’s not incredible that some would just try to dodge the call or at least postpone it for a while. Don’t do that--get a backbone and face the music.

Shut up and listen. This person is mad and wants to let you know he’s mad. He wants to rant for a while. Often, he could be on a speaker phone or in a room with the rest of this team so he wants to put on a little performance to show them how to handle a vendor who has let the company down. At this point, it’s your job to listen. No matter how painful it is, listen. Even if some of what he yells is incorrect, keep your mouth shut and listen. He will view an interruption as an excuse to get even madder. Your job at this point is to defuse the situation--not incinerate it. You want him to get it all out there, to rant and vent to his heart’s content.

Once he’s finished, let him know that you get it, that you understand the situation. Repeat back to him the cogent points he’s made in a way that shows concern. Ask a couple of good questions about his situation so that he’ll know you are trying to do everything to not only understand the hurt you are causing his company, but that you are trying to figure out a way to solve the situation or alleviate some of the pain.

Explain what happened, why it happened, and what you are going to do to correct the problem. This is the time for truth, no matter how painful it may be. This is your fault--admit it and get it over with and the guy will respect you for it. After all, once you admit that it’s your fault, the argument part of this situation is over, and you can move on to the solution.

Your solution might not be what he wants to hear, but it will be better than what he thought when he began the phone call. You have to let him know that his company and his product are your top priority, that you feel his pain, and that you are going to move heaven and earth to alleviate that pain. It may not be what he wants, but it may be what he needs.

Share with him what needs to be done to get the boards to him in two days. List with him the actions that must be taken. The key here is to solve the problem together. Once you reach this stage you have won him over. But wait, there’s more: Maybe there are ways to shortcut the process; maybe if you’re allowed to substitute materials you can cut a day out of the process; or maybe your customer knows how to get you some of the material you need--he might even be willing to go to another supplier and buy a few sheets. Now you’re on your way to a solution. You and the customer are now working together to solve the problem and you are now allies rather than adversaries--you’re on the same team.

Tell him you are going to stay in touch every step of the way. Once you have that material, the ball is in your court and you can deliver the boards only one day late, which just might work if he has his team lined up and ready to assemble them when they arrive. Now, because the two of you are communicating, he will know exactly when they will arrive.

You have not only solved a problem, but have made a customer for life. In a way, you’ve shared an adventure with your customer; you have done the impossible and done it in such a way that when you both finally meet for dinner one night, you’ll be able to talk about the days you solved a big problem. It’s only common sense.