Apologize for Your Mistake
The customer is angry as they have received a product which is not working as they expected or they have received a service which was subpar of their expectation. They are therefore complaining to you, in their own fashion, and expect you to take action to resolve the issue.
First and foremost, apologize to the customer. It is a simple act and will go a long way in repairing your relationship with the customer.
Somehow apologizing has fallen out of fashion. Companies and individuals take every effort to avoid apologizing. It has many reasons behind it which includes the loads of liabilities that come associated with taking the blame for something.
Apologizing should be a simple act. The customer is unhappy about what they received. You need to fix the issue in order to correct for the experience the customer has had as well as to establish a connection with the customer for future interactions. Remember that a repeat customer is more valuable than a one-time customer and therefore you need to nurture your relationship with the customer.
Apologizing establishes that you recognize the problem the customer is having. It establishes with the customer that you are taking responsibility for the problem and are not fighting them on it. It establishes that you are ready to take corrective actions on the issue. It is the first step in the process which moves you towards improving the product, the process and ensuring that the issue will not happen again.
Apologizing is simple. You are sorry the customer had a bad experience, you will try to find out how the customer experience can be improved, you will take corrective action to ensure it does not happen again.
Apologizing establishes that you value the relationship with the customer and would like to continue the relationship for the future. You are willing to work on it to improve the relationship and are taking steps to do so.
Such a small thing can have such positive and long-term impacts on your relationship with the customer. If you’re not used to it, it will not come easy. It is therefore imperative that this be trained for so you are ready to improve.