Handling Client Complaints as a Small Business Owner: A Calm, Practical Approach
When your business is your passion, negative client feedback can be disheartening. Those feelings can be intensified for neurodiverse business owners, especially those experiencing Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD).
Whatever the circumstances, it may feel difficult to take a step back and remember that the complaint isn’t personal. But having procedures and strategies in place can help you manage those feelings.
Your client complaint handling process can also be the difference between a customer returning in the future and looking elsewhere for your product or service.
Sometimes, things go wrong. Whether an order got lost in the post or a deadline was missed, mistakes happen! But an issue doesn’t always have to result in feelings of panic, a disgruntled customer, and a negative review.
No matter what type of business you run, here are some tips for handling complaints in a friendly, calm, and approachable manner while still being professional.
Always engage with complaints promptly
While dealing with unhappy customers may feel like the last thing you want to do at times, it’s important to engage with them as soon as you can — even if it’s a simple response to say the complaint has been received and you’ll be in touch to resolve it fully soon. This will ensure your client or customer feels heard and prioritised. It also means you can rectify any issues quickly.
If you don’t have capacity to respond to complaints or negative reviews day-to-day, why not consider support from a virtual assistant? A virtual assistant (VA) can be there to regularly check your email inbox, create and update customer response templates, and make sure complaints are acknowledged in good time.
Acknowledge the customer’s frustration
There may be times when you feel a complaint is unreasonable or the problem wasn’t your fault. Whatever the circumstances, listen to what your customer has to say and acknowledge how they are feeling.
Try to avoid phrases that dismiss their point of view or make them feel unheard. For example, instead of saying “I understand, but…” or “That’s just our policy”, try “I completely get why that’s frustrating” or “I’d just like to explain why we handle it this way”.
Ask questions
Getting as much information as possible will help you pinpoint where things went wrong, find a resolution, and minimise the risk of it happening again.
If the customer has raised a vague complaint, such as “my order hasn’t arrived”, try to find out the specifics.
When did they place their order?
What was the address?
These details will allow you to find the root of the issue — whether the postcode was recorded incorrectly or the problem lies with a courier — so you can decide next steps quickly and efficiently.
Offer a genuine apology when relevant
In situations where you or your team has made a mistake, let the customer know that you are sorry. Offer a sincere apology and try not to over-explain or shift blame. Aim to keep your apology concise and on-topic, with a view to finding a resolution the customer will be happy with.
Stay calm
If you find yourself feeling frustrated or angry, take a moment. When dealing with unhappy customers via email, stop and take a break before sending a response. You’ll be able to get your point across far more effectively when emotions have calmed.
For phone complaints, don’t be afraid to pause to gather your thoughts before replying. It’s far better for there to be a slight delay than using rash words in the heat of the moment!
Need a hand with phrasing? Check out these email templates for handling tricky client situations.
Be true to your boundaries
Of course, you want to resolve the issue and make sure everyone involved is happy. But that doesn’t give your clients and customers carte blanche to be rude or abusive or to pester you for a response at all hours of the day.
It can be helpful to:
State response times and provide a resolution timeframe
Direct complaints to a single channel
Give a polite warning that abusive behaviour will not be tolerated
Follow up
Once the complaint has been acknowledged, investigated, and resolved, follow up with your customer to see how they are feeling.
A quick email thanking them for their understanding and offering a chance to provide feedback on your complaints handling process can not only provide you with ideas on how to improve but will also help your client or customer feel truly heard and valued.
Put a structured complaints process in place
Having a structured client complaint handling process in place will help streamline resolutions for happier customers and less stress for you! The exact process may vary depending on your business model, but consider:
Having a dedicated complaints channel, such as a specific email address. (Don’t forget, a virtual assistant can help monitor this for you).
Automating responses for initial contact to let the customer know their concern has been acknowledged. Within this, detail a response timeframe to help manage expectations.
Assigning one person to handle the complaint. This might be you or a team member, but having a single point of contact will lower the risk of miscommunication and help your customer feel heard.
Aiming to come up with a solution within a set timeline (again this may vary depending on your business). Keep the customer updated at every stage.
Sending the customer a feedback request once you have proposed or carried out a solution. It’s best to send this promptly so the details are still fresh in the customer or client’s mind.
Seeing customer complaints as opportunities for growth
It can be frustrating when things go wrong, particularly for neurodiverse individuals who can find these experiences especially challenging and distressing. It may be helpful to try to see every complaint or issue as an opportunity to improve and grow your business. You may notice that complaints are similar, indicating a specific problem area that can be addressed.
It’s also worth taking on any feedback that your customer provides, both about the issue itself and your complaints-handling process.
Get small business support from a UK virtual assistant
With a VA acting as an extension of your team, you can benefit from an extra pair of eyes and hands to spot potential problem areas and stay on top of customer communications.
Bizzybee is here to help you create the best customer experience possible. We can create and update response templates to make sure replies are speedy, consistent, and friendly. We can also be there to flag any tasks that need your attention with handovers and daily summaries to highlight customer communications that require a response.
Find out more about our virtual assistant services for small businesses and get in touch to have a chat.
