It may be hard for people to believe this, but sometimes, on occasion, we’re not perfect.
Maybe it took us longer to develop a site than we thought it would. Maybe there was a typo that we didn’t catch. Maybe we misunderstood what our clients were asking for.
The bottom line is that after eight years in business, I’ve occasionally pissed off a client.
When one of these clients call, one’s natural reaction is to run, say you’re in a meeting, or to stick your fingers in your ears and scream, "na-na-na-na, I can’t hear you!"
Good options, all.
However, this is exactly not the behavior your clients want from you. I’ve discovered that if you pick up that angry call, listen to a client vent, don’t get defensive, and ask what you can do to improve the situation, you generally end up with a client who’s happier than if nothing bad had happened at all.
I’m thinking about this today because we have a new cleaning service for our home (Please note: we’re not rich, just lazy.) As a first clean, they gave our house a full-day, 4 person cleaning from top to bottom. The house was very clean, but there were a few odd things that didn’t get done.
Someone had cleaned the bathroom walls by standing in the tub. No problem, but they left muddy foot prints all over the tub floor.
The tile floors were mopped, but there were milk stains still visible on the wood floors in the living room and hallway. (Our eldest daughter walks around with her sippy cup, and she’s not always spill-proof.)
They lifted a throw rug to clean under it, but then left it in a crumpled pile by the door.
All minor stuff, really. However, my wife called to let them know. Using what we’ve learned from Dale Carnegie, she told them that they did a great job, but they left a few things undone.
The cleaning person wasn’t happy. She got very defensive, basically said that the house was clean, and was about to break-off our brand new relationship.
My wife explained that what she was trying to do was to provide feedback, not to complain about the service. The woman calmed down and is going to swing by the house to see what’s what. Whether or not we’ll continue to use this service depends on how this all shakes out.
The bottom line is that you don’t argue that the house isn’t clean, you listen to the homeowner, then ask how you can make it right. Nine times out of ten, this will get you to a situation where you’re both satisfied. (The tenth time, the person’s just being a jerk and trying to take advantage of you.)
In general, people just want to be heard. As service providers, we often take complaints as attacks on ourselves. We need to separate who we are from what we do, so that we can help our clients achieve their goals.
I know, easier said than done.
Rich Brooks
"Na-na-na-na, I can’t hear you!"
