Have you any tips for when talking with companies about problems.

squeaky

As an opener for this one I've jotted down a few things. I'm sure there are more. Please add yours to the thread.



It's a good idea to talk with the company rather than rant and wave rules and regulations about the place. You may well be quite right in the regulations - but that's not necessarily the best way to start...

Imagine being sat in a cafe, boxed in a corner and someone comes up to you shouting and waving their fists. The "Fight or Flight" thing kicks in, and at the very least you are going to brace yourself for an unpleasant experience.

Now imagine the same person walking towards you smiling and asking for help to find the nearest loo.

It's basic human nature to "close off" and be defensive (or aggressive) to the first option, and you are much more likely to help the second if you can.

Despite any training that Customer Service types have, they will tend to feel some element of this... and if they are not well trained they might feel it all.

So to start with, just ask for help in sorting out the problem that you have. Keep it polite and pleasant yet firm (you can always let yourself sound more firm later if you get nowhere) and let them know that you are confident that the two of you can work things out.

Keep your sense of humour if you can, and yes the situation can be upsetting, but try. Crack a joke even, if one occurs to you, without belittling the situation. For example if your washing machine is leaking from a pipe and you've had a bowl or dish under it for ages while waiting for a repair, a comment such as "The cat is loving this endless supply of fresh cold water - but my partner is giving me serious grief about having to empty the darn thing every day for the last six weeks"... so can you help me out please?

If you feel that you aren't getting anywhere don't allow yourself to get angry. By all means sound angry... make your voice a bit louder, a bit more terse. Tell them you aren't happy and that you really want to find a solution. If you get angry you could lose control of the situation. If you only sound angry - you can keep control of the way the negotiation is going because you'll still be thinking straight instead of "going off on one" if you see what I mean?

If the CS bod starts to back off a bit - then you ease off too in step with them until things are back to normal... don't keep hammering just because you are winning. As has been said many times before - you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

In the vast majority of cases you'll never have to even quote the regs, much less threaten action.


So... what other tips on negotiations can you share...?

halibut2209

Another tip is to keep to the facts. Leave emotion out of it. Have a good idea beforehand of your actual rights, not what you think you are entitled to. Also know in advance what you actually want. If you want a refund when you are not LEGALLY entitled to one, appeal to their sense of customer service

Might be worth expanding to include tip on writing letters as well. Again, keep it short and sweet. Stick to the facts, not the emotions. And make it clear what resolution you are seeking.

Blackpool_Saver

They say you should smile whilst on the telephone, I always do and I find that helps too.
It is very hard to do these things when you are dealing with a person whose first language is not your own tho'.

squeaky

halibut2209 wrote: »

Another tip is to keep to the facts. Leave emotion out of it. Have a good idea beforehand of your actual rights, not what you think you are entitled to. Also know in advance what you actually want. If you want a refund when you are not LEGALLY entitled to one, appeal to their sense of customer service

If the circumstances or the history of events are likely to be a bit complicated I jot down a few bullet points so that I don't forget to mention anything. Got a memory like a... erm... wotsit, I have

So I cover:-

• List of what has broken, not delivered, relevant dates etc
• List of previous contacts and (non?) results where applicable
• What the best outcome I'm looking for is
• What's the least I'm prepared to accept

By all means be armed with:-

• Relevant section of their Terms and Conditions
• Relevant regulations or guidelines applicable

But as has been said in so many threads - getting out the "big stick" should be your last option, not your first.

The Trading Standards site also say that before starting any proceedings with a Letter Before Action you should be able to show that you have tried all other avenues to find a solution.

Trading_Standards wrote:

[FONT=Arial, Chicago][FONT=Arial, Chicago]This Support Pack is intended to provide assistance and guidance if you are intending to take formal action in the small claims track of the County Court. Such action should only be considered when you have tried and exhausted all other means of resolving your complaint.[/FONT][/FONT]

HTH

DD265

I work in customer services for a mail order company and I think my top few would be:

1. Arm yourself with as much information about the problem as you can. This includes things like any reference number, product name/code and dates if possible. This makes it a lot easier and quicker for me to deal with your complaint.

2. State the facts clearly. Use paragraphs and punctuation. Try and keep it short and to the point - a huge wall of text is going to put me off before I've even started.

3. Try to stay polite and civil. I know that it's frustrating when things go wrong, but try not to shoot the messenger. Remember that I'm human and that generally I don't like confrontation, so I'll do my best to fix it for you if you give me the chance rather than ranting at me for 5 minutes.

4. Keep your expectations realistic. Be aware that it can take time to solve some issues, and also be aware that I'm working within restraints placed on me by my employer. If you don't like my solution let me know, but sometimes, no matter how much I want to help, I just can't do what you are asking. I'll be honest about it, so this is the point where you ask to take it up a level.

5. You aren't my only customer and patience is a virtue. I'm sorry, but it's true. I do my best to deal with one customer from start to finish at a time but I do get interrupted. And don't get narky if you ring up to find out that I'm on my dinner; that happens a lot. Trust that when I say I'll do something - I will, but I might need to eat first.

DD265

As far as writing complaints goes, I prefer the emails like this:

Dear customer services

I am writing regarding my order ABC that I placed with you on 00/00/00.

Unfortunately, I have received a different item to the one I ordered. On my invoice it states that I ordered product code X, but I have received product code Y.

It really was product code X that I wanted and Y is not suitable for what I was after. Therefore, I would like to return product code Y to get the correct item that I ordered.

I understand from your terms and conditions that you will cover the return postage where an error is made. How do we go about this?

If you wish to contact me by telephone, the best number to reach me on is GHI.

I look forward to receiving your reply,

Kind regards

DEF

1. Identify the order/service/purchase. If you don't have the reference, give your full billing address including postcode, plus your email address/full name.

2. Outline the problem - just the facts, in as much detail as possible.

3. Outline what action you would like to be taken.

4. State the best way to contact you (if return email is not OK)

5. Sign off nicely

squeaky

Thank you for those last two posts

paddyrg

Customer Service departments exist because they want to remedy customer's problems - help them to want to remedy yours... The most powerful 'technique' I've found in many circumstances is to be humble and ask them for their help. Come alongside one another, (metaphorically) as if asking for directions on a map, and then encourage any positive sounding steps. Be disarming, and go in open and disarmed - you both want the same objective at the end of the day, so use terms like 'work together to find a solution', ally yourselves, do not be adversarial.

The CS rep wants to go home feeling good about themselves, and if you can help them to do this, they will want to help you, wins all round.

Hermia

I think the comment about leaving emotion out of it is good. My two tips are:

1) Don't lie or exaggerate. In my experience a lot of people do this to emphasise their point, but it will really undermine your argument if the person realises. Where I used to work if anyone had a complaint they got sent to me, but what they didn't realise is that I could hear everything that was said on the front desk thanks to the weird design of the building. It was amazing how the story got embroidered or how many lies crept in. Most of the people were not bad people, but I think they just wanted to convince me they were right.

2) NEVER make personal remarks about any member of staff you have encountered. It's an understandable thing to do if you are stressed, but making derogatory remarks about a person's appearance, age, gender, colour or class is not going to help your argument one bit.

juno

Make it clear you're not blaming the person. "I think your behaviour is unacceptable" is dodgy, as there isn't a distinction in English between a plural and singular "you".

Milex

squeaky wrote: »

If the circumstances or the history of events are likely to be a bit complicated I jot down a few bullet points...

So I cover:-

...

• List of previous contacts and (non?) results where applicable

...

Always make a note of phone call details such as:

• date
• time
• who called who
• their name (including surname if poss, or their Team/Section ref. or other unique identifier)
• their location (Liverpool, Sunderland, Vietnam, South Africa, Philippines etc)
• brief summary of who said what, and the outcome.

Also ask them to confirm that they've noted your call in their customer services system. I find it useful to jot these things down on the back of a relevant letter, email etc instead of searching around for that scrap of paper you know had the other day ...

This has several effects:

• The person you speak to knows they can be identified so they will be less likely to mislead you with incorrect information/advice
• If necessary you can send a confirmation email/letter/fax such as "I confirm my telephone conversation with Saleem Ahmed of Team 1234 in your Bangalore call centre at 2.30 pm on 19 Octember, when it was agreed that ..."
• You can quote exact details if told later "we have no record of your call".

All the above apply to any CS scenario, especially in the retail & financial services sectors.