Show customers you care and you are more likely to keep them

Practical ways to handle customer complaints.  Heather Atchison, of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, explains the dos and don’ts

YOU can’t stop customer queries, comments or complaints.  And nor should you want to.  Customer feedback — good and bad — is vital to help the whole customer experience.

Quite often, a customer’s first one-to-one contact from a company is the response to a complaint.  So it makes good business sense to make sure you respond to them in the right way, the first time.  Most of us can easily remember a poor response to a complaint we’ve made.  It took too long to get a reply; They didn’t answer my question; I got no apology.  These are all common reasons for a customer to complain again or take their custom (and money) elsewhere.

However good your response is, if your customer doesn’t get it within a reasonable time frame, you’re already on your way to saying goodbye to them. While recent IT innovations and new communication channels have helped speed up response times, they’ve also meant customers have come to expect instant gratification.  There’s a job to do here for companies in terms of sorting out their internal processes and operational policies.  IT systems and staffing issues are often the biggest hindrance to getting back to the customer on time, and with the right answer the first time.

Managing expectations is all-important.  But if customers feel they’re just receiving a standard response — even if it’s a quick one — it will leave them with a bad taste in their mouths and eyeing up the competition.

So what makes a successful written response to a complaint?  Whether by letter or email there are certain key ingredients to a good response.

Address what’s really bothered the customer Agents sometimes overlook things when they respond, which creates disgruntled customers and more work when they write or phone again.  It’s worth making sure people have the time to read complaints carefully and a system for noting key points when complaints are more complicated.

Respond on a personal, human level No matter how quick it is, a response that sounds bolted together from standard paragraphs is likely to be a huge turn-off.  Each one should sound personalised and the agent should show that they understand how the customer feels.  This may mean taking a bit more time with each response, but is well worth it in the long run.

Don’t dodge the bullet Today’s consumers are pretty clued up.  When something’s gone wrong they know it (and have usually experienced it first-hand). So unless a legal case is looming, we need to be open and honest about what happened.  This doesn’t mean going into great detail about internal procedures, but a simple Yes, you’re right — we did get it wrong on that day. This is a breath of fresh air for most customers.

Write clearly and in a tone that reflects your company’s brand Customers want to know that they’re getting “what it says on the tin”. So if they think they’ve bought into a fresh, dynamic, friendly company and then get a response that sounds bureaucratic and formal, it’s a big let-down.

This is why the likes of Virgin, O₂, London Underground and the Post Office — and a whole host of others — have all invested in improving the tone of their complaint responses in recent years.

The simple rule these days is to write it as you’d say it.  Use clear, conversational and polite language and your complaint responses will sound more customer-focused and genuine. The result: a positive customer experience and customers believing you really do care.

Compare these two sentences:

“I trust that this information has been of assistance to you in understanding our position on this matter.”

“I hope I’ve answered your questions clearly.”

One sounds stilted, company-focused and a bit patronising.  The other is warmer, more straightforward and so more genuine.  Which would you rather hear?

With a little effort you can transform your written complaints handling. And doing this has several clear benefits.  It reassures the customer of the company brand values they first bought into, helps close enquiries quickly and efficiently, and leaves customers feeling happy — or if not, at least satisfied that you’ve done as much as you can to help.  It gives them a better experience when interacting with you, even though it all started off with a complaint.

Finally, here’s a template for a good complaint response:

Acknowledge the specific customer complaint

Understand and show you understand – how the customer feels and say sorry

Explain what happened or will happen as a result

Thank the customer for their feedback and finish on a positive note, if possible

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