Save the Sale! A look at Customer Satisfaction

There are many reasons that customers can be disatisfied. You may be surprised to know that most often customers are not satisfied because they never received their product. If you do not open a dialogue and find out what is wrong, you will never be able to fix the problem.

It is always good to know why a customer isn't satisfied because you may see a pattern in customer dissatifaction. If you do notice an unusually large amount of customers having the same complaint then you will be able to address the problem for future customers.

Don't be distressed about customer complaints. Most of the time when an unhappy customer contacts you initially, it is because they still have faith and trust in your company and want you to remedy their issue. As long as you maintain contact with your customers and show that you care about their experience with your company the customer will remain satisfied once the issue has been resolved.

When polled, customers that had their issues resolved in a timely manner said they would still purchase from that company and/or recommend that company to their friends.

At times you may receive a nasty email from an unsatisfied customer, these are never pleasant, however remember that the customer most likely wrote their complaint at the height of their frustration. Reply in positive tones and reassure this digruntled customer that you are there for them and will do whatever possible to remedy their problem, this will help calm them down so you can move forward with solving their complaint.

It is vital to your businesses success that when a customer has a complaint YOU LISTEN!

Have you ever heard to put an unhappy customer LAST? Well I'm telling you right now, that's what you need to do!

That is you need to:
L isten to their complaint
A pologize for their dissatisfaction
S olve the reason they are dissatisfied and finally
T hank them for their continued business

This is your chance to turn an unhappy customer into a repeat one. We are all aware that unhappy customers complain more often than happy ones compliment, so make sure you are doing everything you can to avoid unhappy customers.

Solving customer complaints will not be a cookie cutter routine; as no two customers are the same. It is good to have some sort of customer service policy in place but sometimes you will need to come up with a non-standard solution their problem. If you are unsure how to please the customer it is best to just ask. Asking will give you a chance to hear what they think a valid solution to the problem would be. If they come up with an off the wall demand you can always counter with a more reasonable remedy.

Lets face it, some customers just can't be pleased. However if you don't try to please them all you will never know which sales you may have saved. Complaints are not always deal breakers, if you respond quickly and honestly then most likely they customer will remain satisfied. If you choose to ignore complaints you are admitting to the customer that your product does not or cannot satisfy their need in which case you may as well stop trying to sell it.

Remember this: There is absolutely no point in selling large quantities of products or services if they do not satisfy a need; in the end they will all be returned.