Handling a complaint

Most customers who complain end up unhappy with how the complaint was handled. They gave the business a second chance, and most of the time it went badly. The research on complaints shows what customers judge it on, and the part that weighs most is the plainest one: putting the actual problem right.

What the research found

Researchers in the United States asked customers about a recent complaint they had made about a service. A majority were dissatisfied with how it had been handled. They judged it on three things: whether the problem was fixed, how the process went, and how they were treated.

Two later meta-analyses, by separate research groups, pooled many studies of complaints about services. For how satisfied people were with the handling of the complaint itself, the fix weighed most. For their overall view of the company, and whether they stayed with it, how they were treated counted about as much as the fix.

A survey of mobile phone customers in Egypt who had complained adds some detail. Putting the problem right did much more to make the outcome feel fair than compensation did. And calling back once the problem was solved made the process feel fair.

What it means for you

Say a customer writes: "The invoice is wrong, again." It is tempting to reach for a discount. But a discount is not what they asked for. They asked for a correct invoice, and that is what will weigh most when they judge how you handled it.

The other two matter for what comes after. How you explain the mistake, and whether you call back when it is done, shape how they feel about you once the complaint is closed. That call is also the easiest step to skip, because by then the problem feels solved.

When a complaint comes in

• The fix. Correct the invoice and send it. Do this first.
• The process. Say what happens and when: "The corrected invoice will be with you on Thursday." Then follow up once it is done, so they never have to chase you.
• The treatment. Explain honestly what went wrong, politely and without excuses. "Our system copied last month's rate" is an explanation. "We have been very busy this month" is an excuse.

How Bamya CRM helps

Bamya CRM is a free AI-assisted CRM. It reminds you when to follow up, so the call to check that the fix worked is on your list for the day you promised it.

Research: Tax, Brown & Chandrashekaran (1998), Journal of Marketing; Orsingher, Valentini & de Angelis (2010), Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science; Gelbrich & Roschk (2011), Journal of Service Research; Mostafa, Lages, Shabbir & Thwaites (2015), Journal of Service Research. Nearly all of this comes from surveys and scenarios with consumers of services; studies with business customers are few, and while they point the same way, they do not say which of the three weighs most.