How to handle upset guest
We can all agree that no one likes dealing with an upset guest. Unfortunately, the reality is every business man or woman is bound to face this issue eventually in their career.
Today I am going to give you four things that will give you a structure and a plan the next time you are dealing with an upset guest. Additionally, I am going to give you some communication do’s and don'ts.
My wife and I own and operate a hair salon. The day after Thanksgiving, I received a call from a guest at our salon. He told me that he drove 45 minutes only to find out that our salon was closed for the holiday. I knew right away there had to be a misunderstanding because this man was scheduled for the following week. After speaking with this guest, I realized that I wrote the wrong appointment date on a business card for him. Immediately after recognizing this mistake, my wife went over to the salon to give him a haircut. I called this guest after his appointment was over to once again apologize for the confusion and his response amazed me. He said, “you took a terrible experience and made it magical. Thank you so much for doing that.”
Listen and shut up.
We hold the power to take upset guests and make their experience incredible. Which leads me to my first point: listen and shut up.
Whenever we are hearing from an upset guest we must listen and shut up. This is not always easy because our natural response is to defend ourselves or our staff. However we must understand the power of truly listening and remaining silent.
Thank them.
After the guest has expressed the issue, you want to thank them for making you aware of the issue at hand. Tell them you cannot get better as a company without honest feedback and that you will do your best to make their experience exceptional moving forward.
Repeat what you have heard.
Next, repeat back to them what you thought you heard them say. When a lot of emotions are being expressed it is sometimes easy to lose sight of the core issue at hand. The best way to target the issue being expressed is to repeat what the guest has just told you. This will help remove any miscommunication.
Come to a solution.
Ask the guest, “what would be a great solution to make sure your experience is exceptional?” This helps us know what to do to make the guest feel valued and excited to come back.
Lastly, I want to discuss a few things to keep in mind when communicating to an upset guest.
Stay away from email or texting. You cannot put tone into words. We always want to communicate over the phone or in person so the guest does not misread our tone. I always want our guests to hear my tone and emotions to help them fully understand my desire to give them the best experience possible.
Remember these four things when dealing with an upset guest:
Listen and shut up
Thank them
Repeat what you have heard
Come to a solution
Be sure to handle these conversations either face-to-face or over the phone. By following this structure you will have a great strategy to face your next upset guest and build lifelong guests.
I hope this information is as helpful as it has been for me and our business! If you have any questions or concerns, I would love to connect with you! You can reach out to me on Facebook or Instagram @evansilver.co