What does a business owner do when customers become irate and start berating the owner or his staff, with or without reason?
Here are two answers by two entrepreneurs
“Keep cool”
In our retail and tailoring shop — we sew and sell military uniforms and other military paraphernalia and sports wear — I realized we cannot please everybody no matter how hard we try.
Customers are naturally upset when orders are not ready on time. But there are some who could be quite nasty — they yell and cuss. I sometimes find myself at the receiving end. But I have long accepted the right of the customer to react negatively when their expectations are not met. I would swallow my pride and just listen as the customer vents his or her ire.
This accepting attitude seems to work. Customers would often forget their anger after a while and come back to our store to order from us again.
Customers also turn ballistic when some of their specifications are not not followed. When this happens, I would coolly call in one of our master cutters to step in and fix the problem. Otherwise, if an order is beyond repair, a new one is made, at no extra charge to the customer.
I have learned to walk the extra mile — including losing a bit of money — to satisfy a customer.
– Edna Ponte, Thread Master, Davao City
“Systematize customer relations”
Our business is wedding invitations. And thus we are faced with a couple, the female half especially, who are subject to extreme pre-wedding pressure and jitters. This is why there is the so-called “Bridezilla” syndrome—a dreamy eyed bride turning into a monster.
I have been married for two years only and so It isn’t difficult for me to remember when I was in the same hassled state. So I know how to soothe tantrums or to patiently let them pass. But my staff didn’t and were disoriented. They would sometimes go into verbal tussles with customers. This became a major problem during our first year of operation.
That first year too, our system — from booking invitations to the release of the final products — suffered loopholes. Clients complained of late drafts, delayed delivery, confusion in specs. The criticisms went around quickly in the online community. For a time, the company had a bad reputation that had to be repaired quickly, or else …
Soon, I came up with operating manuals and customer relations guidelines. My staff underwent both formal and informal training. The leaks have been plugged, I think, but we are in a continuous improvement mode.
Today, brides and grooms who book at Wingdingz are pampered. They are served coffee, brownies and chocolate bars. The staff or I myself guide them through our catalogue with 5,000 design choices. They are happy. And so are we.
Dennise Avila, Wingdingz Wedding Invitations, Quezon City
Photo: “pointing-finger” by Purple Slog, c/o Flickr. Some Rights Reserved