* "I don’t know why you are so upset." * "That’s first complaint we ever got on that." * "I know how you feel." (Because you don’t) * "Boy, you’re sure mad."

In above story, students told manager that they weren’t happy with service because they didn’t have time to eat their meals. The manager, not listening, said, "Would you like dessert?" The solution was not more food. Listen for solution!

4. Be Sorry for Right Reasons Be sincere in your concern for customer and say sorry correct way. Many time in heat of customer service situation we what to show some sign of concern so we do following:

* The first words of interaction with words, "I’m sorry." First, you didn’t find out any information from customer to be sorry.

* Say sorry throughout conversation with saying what you are sorry for. When saying you are sorry, say exactly what you are sorry for.

The students, even though manager kept repeating she was sorry, didn’t think manager was sincere in her apology. The correct say to say you are sorry is:

* "I’m sorry you had to wait so long for your food." * "I’m sorry that you were treated that way." * "I’m sorry that our employee said that to you." * "I’m sorry this situation happened to you."

Let customer know exactly why you are sorry. The students thought manager’s "sorrys" were insincere because she never mentioned why she was sorry.

5. Give Your Personal Assurance. Let customer know you will personally create a solution for them. It could be as simple as saying, "I’m taking personal responsibility for this."

6. Ask Them What They Want One of fears that we have when trying to satisfy customer is that we think they want something out of our reach. Ask customer, "What would you like you to do?" or "What would make this situation right for you?" You will be surprised that in most cases customer will ask for less you were willing to give.

7. Use Statements of Conviction Sure following to gain confidence of customer:

* "We’re going to do something about that!" * "We will make a change right now!"

8. Present a Clear Plan of Action Make sure customer knows what you are going to do to correct situation for them. 95% of making things right for customer is making them aware that you are taking action to make a difference for them. Explain to them actions and timelines you need to take to make things right for them. If you need to leave or make a telephone call to obtain additional information, say:

* "Please excuse me while I make a telephone call obtain best solution for you. This will take five minutes, can you please wait?" * "Excuse me, I need to ask person with missing piece of information so that we can quick resolve this for you. Do you mind waiting five minutes?"

Note: Make sure you get back to time customer before time you specified. If you promised ten minutes, get back to customer before ten minutes. Rule of thumb, double time it would normally that to get information. If you know it will take ten minutes to get answer for customer then tell customer you will get back to them within twenty minutes.

9. Move Quickly to Solution If you applied steps 1-8 you are ready to give customer solution they wanted for a win-win situation. You can confirm this by saying following:

* "Would this be agreeable for you?" * "Is this solution you were looking for?" * "Will this make things right for you?"

10. Ask for Business If you did everything right this is perfect time to ask customer to come back and do business with your organization. You showed that you were professional, caring, sincerely, positive, and proactive. Why wouldn’t they do business with you again?

Some of way you can say this is:

* "We would appreciate opportunity to serve you in future."

* "Please come back and I will personally guarantee you receive outstanding service."

* "Here is a 20% coupon. Please use it on your next visit to our establishment."

It’s important that you let customer know that you appreciate their business and want them to come back. Remember, if you did everything right, not only will them come back but they will other people to do business with you. Use challenging customer service situations to build your business.

This shopping excursion caused me to pause and think all service provider must always exhibit certain basic behaviors - customer service basics. Here are a few:

Basic Rule #1 – Acknowledge Customer’s How many times have you walked in a store and you weren’t acknowledged? How did you feel? I can’t tell you how many times I’ve witnessed service providers who take personal phone calls (or worse answer their cell), speak to other co-workers regarding non-urgent matters, or who simply walk away without explanation. Basic customer service requires an acknowledgement as soon a customer enters your establishment – whether you will be ready to provide service in one minute or twenty. An acknowledgement says “I’m glad to see you and value your business. We will help you as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience.” A little appreciation goes a long way, especially if at time you find yourself short handed. As soon as you see customers…acknowledge them. Although this sounds obvious, it simply just isn’t practiced as it should.

Basic Rule #2 – Be Present and Listen When assisting customers, it is important to always be “present.” Being present required you to be in moment ready to provide your customer with your full, undivided attention from start to finish. It is imperative customer’s always feel important and center of attention. To accomplish this you must remain fully focused.

Active listening is a critical component of any customer interaction. This is a big difference between hearing and listening. Hearing is perception of sound. Active listening requires us to hear, interpret, and then take action. Active listening empowers us to consistently provide our customers exactly what they need.

Basic Rule #3 – Explain Your Plan Customers need to know and want to understand reason for your plan of action. Many times I have returned an item only to have clerk shove a form and pen in front of me without so much as a please or explanation. As if I should be know what they want from me. Always clearly explain each step and reason for your request.