Dealing with Difficult Clients
Depending on which industry your organization occupies, tense customer interactions may seem commonplace—but they don’t have to be. Just ask Skye Michiels, a national real estate coach and motivational speaker and the founder of With Heart Coaching, a platform that supports entrepreneurs through incisive business guidance. Utilize his proven insights, and you’ll not only smooth over customer complaints more deftly but also boost your chances of attaining and preserving ongoing loyalty.
Defining the problem
What, exactly, makes a customer troublesome? Michiels’s explanation is much broader than you might expect. “They aren’t just someone who’s unpleasant—they’re someone who resists trust, struggles with decision-making, or constantly shifts expectations,” he says. “They might be overly skeptical, overly demanding, or even disengaged.” But as diverse as these characteristics may seem, Michiels states that every crank shares one of two common denominators: at their core, they either feel unheard or doubtful that what you’re offering is actually in their best interests.
Take, for example, a home-security company dealing with a tough client who makes recurring customer-service calls, claiming that they don’t understand how to utilize the system’s features. In this situation, they aren’t simply irritated but also fail to reap value from the security services, which puts them at risk of ceasing their business.
How the company handles this individual will dictate the future of the relationship. Address their demands—such as by sending a technician to demonstrate the system’s features—and it can potentially retain them. Fail to do so, and they may instead turn to a competitor. The same is true with prospects: be attentive to their needs, and you could very well add them to your client list. Otherwise, you may struggle to close the sale and eventually hear a definitive “no.”
Dealing with the problem
The next time you face a troublesome client, take the following steps to help build their trust and earn or retain their business.
Listen well
Michiels emphasizes that you should always seek what’s at the root of people’s struggles, which is essential for effectively meeting and exceeding their expectations. “Ask clients to tell you more about their issue, then actively listen to their questions, fears, and complaints,” he suggests. “When they feel heard, their resistance drops.” This goes beyond packaged statements like “I understand your concern.” Instead, you should communicate directly to the needs they express, such as by stating “I apologize that our price schedule was unclear. Can I walk you through how it works so you’ll know what to expect in the future?”
Speak calmly
“Don’t match resistance with more resistance,” Michiels warns. “That only fuels the fire. The keys are staying calm and unemotional, keeping your energy steady, and avoiding taking the bait.” After validating customers’ concerns, he recommends shifting the conversation from confrontation to collaboration. Posing open-ended questions like “What’s holding you back?” and “What would make you feel like buying today is the right decision?” could help lower their defenses.
From there, ask what you can do to resolve their issues, being willing to stretch beyond ordinary customer-service practices if necessary. When people associate your organization with solutions rather than problems, you’ll increase your chances of securing their future business.
Act on feedback
“Every complaint is a road map for improvement,” Michiels says. “Instead of getting defensive, treat feedback—no matter how it’s delivered—as free consulting. For example, if someone is frustrated about slow delivery times, ask yourself, Is this a pattern?”
Raise any repeated grievances with your team, and get to work brainstorming solutions for them. And once you roll out changes, announce them on your website, social media, and other marketing channels, spreading the word that you’ve listened to client reviews and are taking corrective steps. “Turning negatives into tangible action builds loyalty,” Michiels adds.
Practicing prevention
While it’s useful to practice good conflict resolution, Michiels insists that adopting certain tactics can help you circumvent such issues altogether. “Communicate clearly so customers have realistic expectations, be transparent about pricing and timelines, and overdeliver on service,” he says. Building a brand based on trust will make your client base naturally easier to work with.
Additionally, aim to answer people’s questions before they ask. “Doing this creates a feeling of security and confidence, which helps prevent difficult interactions,” Michiels states. This could mean having your sellers tell clients at the point of sale how the fee schedule works or where to go for troubleshooting questions—whatever may head off potential confusion and frustration.
Setting boundaries
While you may hope to smooth every client relationship, don’t do so at the expense of your team. For example, you should never tolerate outright verbal abuse, threats, or customers who simply resist the solutions you extend to them. “Remember, it’s not personal,” Michiels says. “People act out based on their own stressors, not because of you.”
And don’t forget the old adage of knowing when to walk away. “Not every customer is the right fit for your organization, and that’s OK,” Michiels says. In some cases, the time spent fostering an extremely problematic customer could be better directed toward converting more promising prospects or following up with existing ones to nurture their repeat business.
TAKE ACTION:
Consider how you can incorporate Michiels’s advice into your team’s future customer interactions.