How To Handle Those Not-so-easy Situations and Still Provide a Good Customer Experience
As a service provider, you’ve probably heard the phrase “customer is king” or “the customer is always right”, but in reality, some clients can be difficult to handle.
The truth is, business can sometimes (almost always) feel personal, especially as creatives, and when clients push our buttons, it’s easy to react on an emotional level. However, it is important to remember that you are a professional, and you have to learn how to handle difficult clients without taking them personally.
In this blog post, we will discuss some tips on how to deal with challenging clients while maintaining a professional attitude and providing a good customer experience.
1. Learn to separate emotions from business
As mentioned earlier, business can sometimes feel personal, but as professionals, we need to stick to the facts and separate our emotions from our business when customer service issues pop up. Whenever a difficult situation arises, it is important to take a step back, breathe, and look at the situation objectively. This way you can make informed decisions based on reason and logic, rather than letting your emotions take control.
2. Insert empathy
While it may be hard to empathize with a difficult client, it’s important to walk a mile in their shoes. Try to understand their frustration, and acknowledge that their concerns are valid. Acknowledging their issues can often provide a sense of validation, which can potentially take care of the situation. Try to ask yourself ‘if I were in their shoes and unhappy about XYZ, what would make me feel better?’ Sometimes offering a free mini because they did not like their photos, or providing a partial refund because you shot part of the wedding in jpeg, or tweaking your edits – and that’s just part of business.
3. Come with kindness
Regardless of how frustrated a challenging client may be, it’s important to approach the situation with kindness. Now my scorpio self is not telling you to let yourself get walked all over, but a little kindness can go a long way when your client is upset. Remember that the client is not attacking you personally; they’re just upset with the situation at hand.
4. Focus on the good
Even during challenging situations, it is important to stay focused on the end goal, which is completing the work to the best of your ability. Try to focus on the positives of the situation, even if the shoot or wedding did not go as planned, it is a learning lesson and a part of owning a business. Do not let an unfavorable client experience stop you from creating or believing in yourself.
5. Outsource what you can
Sometimes it’s best to get help with the clients that are stressing you out and outsource the work to someone else. This gives you time to work on tasks you enjoy or handle other clients that are more manageable. Also, it is okay to let go of clients who consistently create challenging or toxic environments. It is better to end the client relationship rather than allow it to impact your creativity and well-being.
Dealing with difficult clients can be an overwhelming experience. However, as entrepreneurs, it is important to separate emotions from business and handle difficult situations with empathy and kindness. By handling them professionally, we also learn valuable lessons and improve our business, ultimately helping us to grow as entrepreneurs.
