After an article appeared in the Metro newspaper about a car salesman abusing a customer after a complaint cost him commission, we decided to address this and write a blog post on how to handle complaints to improve sales success.
Empathise
You might have heard 20 complaints that day but it’s more than likely that customer’s first. How you handle this complaint could determine the customer’s future sales conversations and relationship with your company. Remember - word of mouth is invaluable for referrals and sales success, however, it can also destroy reputations.
Find out if there’s a way to resolve the issue
If you say you’re going to resolve the issue then ensure you do so for your customer. First call resolution is key; the customer should never have to chase you for an end result. Compromises are possible but usually only in the early stages of a complaint, it is in your best interests to find a solution to the problem as quickly as possible.
Hold your hands up if you’re wrong
If you’re genuinely in the wrong, offer to settle the matter in private. An email or private message is a good place to start, try to keep the complaint out of view of other potential prospects, especially if you know you're at fault. This simple complaint/sales blueprint will help keep an issue out of the public domain, keeping the sales complaint as low profile as possible.
Don’t ignore the complaint
Whatever you do, don’t brush the complaint under the carpet. You can’t press delete and hope the issue goes away, the likelihood will be that this will only escalate the issue, potentially past the point of salvaging a relationship.
It's important to listen, not just hear
This is an opportunity to learn, the chances are if a customer has a particular issue, then another customer is likely to have the same one in the future. The quicker you iron out this complaint the better for your future sales success, this will minimise the impact of the problem. Think of it as damage limitation.
Finally, a point our Director Richard Lane always expresses during his sales training master classes is - "Put your feet in your customer's shoes for increased sales success", Put these points and quote into action whenever a customer is unhappy, and we garuntee it'll improve your sales performance, and sales retention rates.
For more information about our Sales Process reviews visit us online or call us on 0191 481 3800.
Or why not take a look at our upcoming 'Selling at a Higher Level' sales training masterclasses.
