Have you ever been in a situation where you didn’t get paid? How do you handle that? While some unruly customers intended not to pay, the majority of unpaid bills are due to dissatisfaction or misleading offers. Here are a few things you can do to protect yourself from not getting paid.
Itemized estimates and a work progress checklist will help all parties stay on the same page.
Signed contracts, Work Authorization Agreements, Release of Responsibility forms, and Payment/Work Compilation forms helps immensely in case releasing payment becomes an issue.
Happy customers are less likely to refuse payment or become problematic buyers. Fixing the source and addressing any issues is often the best way to complete the transaction.
This is all good stuff. But how would you handle customer complaints?
First of all, apologize immediately, say something like: “We offer 100% satisfaction guarantee and will make our best attempt to resolve the issue” Take action by documenting or reporting to your manager.
All unruly customers, refunds requests, and challenging situations should be handled as the following:
Step 1 – Strategize – Your strategy should be to arrive at a solution that will be a win for both your company and the customer. If you are successful, you will retain the customer, exceed the customer’s expectations, and bring home a check. Develop your goal for the interaction. What do you want as the end result?
Step 2 – Prepare by identifying common problems
Step 3 – Propose a win-win solution.
