How To Cope with a Furious Customer

SCENARIO: You've just landed a new sales job and are calling on an existing customer. When you walk into the customer's office, he stands up and starts screaming at you, accusing your firm of "screwing him over." You're taken aback but don't want your first status report to be that you lost a big customer.

Here are your choices. vote in the poll below, then click on the link below to get my opinion:

• Tactic #1: Apologize Profusely. Make it clear that you're sorry that the problem happened and promise to do what you can to make the situation better.
• Tactic #2: Leave Immediately. There no reason why you should be subjected to this. You didn't cause the problem, so you should have to take the heat.,
• Tactic #3: Listen Carefully. Just listen to the guy rant for a while. Eventually he'll tire out and you can find out whether it's possible to keep doing business.
• Tactic #4: Demand Respect. Insist that the customer stop acting in such a childish manner. You're a professional and deserve professional courtesy.

If you're in sales, you're a professional. Which means that you have the RIGHT to civility and respect. No exceptions. The behavior that this customer is exhibiting is classic bullying, and the only way to deal with a bully is to stand up to him.

The truth is that if somebody is being intense with you, then a failure to get intense in return only makes them more intense. If you want to defuse the situation, you need to get in rapport with the customer, which you can't do if you've got "welcome" tattooed on your chest.

When a customer (or a boss, for that matter) gets rude or loses his temper, the correct response is not to placate or withdraw, but to increase your own intensity and then demand civility. Here's how:

• STEP #1. Raise your own intensity level. Don't become as intense as the customer, but let your voice become firm and authoritative. If you're face-to-face, put on a serious expression, one that expresses clearly that you don't appreciate being yelled at. You're a professional, not a doormat. Act like one.
• STEP #2. Call the customer's bluff. State clearly that you're willing to help resolve the problem, but you're not going to be yelled at. Don't mince words. Make it clear that your help is dependent upon the customer's ability to behave in a civil manner. In most cases, the customer will BREATH A SIGH OF RELIEF. It's quite noticeable.
• STEP #3. If the customer doesn't comply, end the conversation. Do this politely but firmly. State that you'll be glad to help once the customer is willing to treat you with the respect that you deserve. You will almost never need to do this, but it sometimes happens.
• STEP #4: Apologize for the problem. Once you've demanded, and gotten, civil behavior -- then and only then -- you should apologize for the inconvenience that the problem has caused the customer. Explain that you are just as committed as the customer is to resolving the problem.
• STEP #5: Work on the problem. Now that you've established rapport and the fact that you're a professional, you can go ahead and work the customer's issue.

There are three advantages to demanding respect, before you work a customer problem:

1. It's easier on your nerves. No job is worth being abused. If you're a sales professional, you can always get a job elsewhere, anyway, so there's no excuse for putting yourself through this kind of emotional wear and tear.
2. It establishes your credibility. When you placate, you're just proving to the rude customer that you're not a professional and therefore not reliable as an individual. The customer figures that, if you had something valuable to offer, you wouldn't take the guff.
3. It prevents future flareups. Once you've laid down the ground rules for interaction, you'll get the respect you deserve. I saw this happen with a boss who yelled at employees until they mustered the courage to yell back. At that point, he was satisfied and never yelled at that person again.