Recent research points to the majority of customers having higher expectations of good service than they did pre-pandemic, with a greater demand for fast and accessible interactions with companies. 71% of consumers believe that businesses showing empathy will earn loyalty. This demonstrates that service is not just about solving problems, but also our perceived experience and relationship with our customers.
So, if it’s widely accepted that customer service can make or break a brand, that also explains how company behaviour when dealing with complaints and angry customers has got a massive impact on how that brand is perceived.
Why do customers get angry, and why is this an issue?
Despite millions of dollars being spent on customer service, a good deal of interactions with customer support still leave people feeling angry, frustrated, and dissatisfied. Particularly now, with the explosive nature and impact of social media, it’s never been easier for customers to share their experiences and reviews with a large audience. A recent example of this was a customer who spent $1,000 on X (formerly known as Twitter) advertising to express his anger over his father’s lost luggage with British Airways after the company didn’t respond to his original complaint after two days. This generated thousands of impressions on X alone, then went viral on other social media platforms, and was even picked up by the traditional media. Even then, it took the airline another 24 hours to respond. Pretty terrible.
You may be wondering, why do customers get so angry? Well, it’s not always the issue that drives the anger, but the perception of the issue. Most of us would agree that managing customer anger is about managing the perception of the issue, which helps diffuse the customer’s emotions and behaviour, particularly if you’re face to face. Easier said than done, right? But at the core of perception is always the belief of how we are being treated and respected through the process.
How companies inadvertently create angry customers
Many companies have rigid policies that inadvertently create disrespect. For example, consider the disrespect for customers’ time through being put on hold. They’re manoeuvred through multiple customer support departments, trying desperately to get to someone who can actually help you get a solution, only to find that they get put on hold again. It’s all very frustrating. This loss of power and dignity is doubly insulting when our public message is that our customers are the priority, but our actions transmit the message that we couldn’t care less. There are countless examples of poorly managed and avoidable incidents where companies come across as impolite, sarcastic, rude, and dismissive.
Another common issue we see in some organisations we serve is customer’s beginning and end-state experience being very different. When the customer is looking into a product or service, sales coaxes them in with social proof of a customer-centric culture where the customer is valued. They set the bar high and create high expectations. This is a great example of sales doing their job well, and there’s nothing inherently wrong with this. The problem arises if the product, service, or support available (i.e. the back-end) doesn’t meet these sold expectations.
We all know what it’s like to buy into a product or service, only to have an issue crop up that requires resolution by a support team member. What should be a straightforward process becomes a nightmare as you’re put on hold for elongated periods of time. Or the modern equivalent, get stuck chatting to an automated bot or virtual assistant trying to get through to a real person. This leaves you feeling disempowered, unheard, unseen, and angry.
We want to avoid this type of situation at all costs.
How to diffuse and respond to angry customers
Respect is the cornerstone of building trust. To be received as genuine, this respect needs to be driven and represented through the organisation at all levels. Less than 4% of customers will actually let you know they’re angry, and 91% will never return. So it’s critical that organisations work to understand the source of angry customers’ frustration and use those insights as opportunities for improvement. To that end, here are five fast and focused tips to deal with angry customers.
- Empathy before direction. Establish your customer’s value and importance. Then listen to their needs before you give them directions. Even though your priority is to fix and solve, their priority is to feel that you care and respect them first.
- Ask before telling. One way to do this is to respond by asking questions, versus trying to explain and defend against your customer’s attacks and accusations.
- Positive acknowledgement. Always respond using positive acknowledgement phrases. For example, “I appreciate it’s frustrating” or “I understand it can be very confusing when you get conflicting messages on how to resolve this.” Well-placed apologies can be useful too. Your customer just wants to feel validated.
- Establish a calm state before attempting to solve the issue. Wait until the customer displays signs that they’re starting to calm down and come off the ledge before you start working on the resolution.
- Ask for feedback. Get an update on your customer’s status, how they’re tracking, and express gratitude and appreciation to them. You never know what you’ll learn when you take the time to listen. Their piece of feedback may lead you to revolutionise your product or take your service to new heights.