How do you deal with customers?

Question

As a manager of a photo lab i get a lot of rude customers. how do you keep them happy and force yourself to smile when they yell at you and tell you that you are miserable and pathetic? is there a secret to dealing with them? and how can i avoid people like that?

they make the mistakes and refuse to pay. i explain calmly and nicely but it seems they are taking chances.

Answer 1

Your boss is the ideal person to train you to handle these types of situations.  Ask for their help.  They may even have a manual for you to read to practice dealing with bad situations ahead of time, like role-playing.

Answer 2

i work in a place where i deal with drunks.

they get annoyed ALL the time, saying i've done this and that wrong, i've charged them too much... blah blah blah.

if they're ignorant to you, just be ignorant back.

depending on your boss of course.

my boss is worse than me at being rude   ^_^

if being ignorant gets you in trouble, just say "sir/miss, can you lower your voice please."

they might retort, but then just threaten that you'll ban them.

haha, thats what i would do.  (:

i still get customers, it's all good.

Answer 3

First of all you know you're not miserable and pathetic, so when people say that to you don't take it. Just let it bounce off you because you KNOW you're not like that. Of course always greet them smiling, if something went wrong in the development process then just take a deep breath before you explain to them what happened. You can offer them a discount on the photos that didn't come out, but if they refuse to pay then don't give them their photos that did come out.

If someone starts going off and getting irate with you, you don't have to stand there and take it, kindly walk away or call for security to remove the customer.

One of my closest friends was a manager of the photo lab for 7 years, she says that you just have to walk away from people when they get like that. My boyfriend is a artist and photographer who has also worked in a photo lab and both my friend & boyfriend said that in most cases people don't know how to take a picture or work their camera. Believe it or not most of the time when pictures don't come out its not your fault as the lab tech, but the fault of the photographer.

Answer 4

Tell them you've seen their dodgy pictures with the goat and if they don't back off you'll post them on the net....that should shut them up

Answer 5

you can't avoid people like that and unfortunately, there isn't a magic phrase that will make all these demanding customers shut up. all you can really do is take it with a smile. the key is to not take things personally. they don't really mean it when they insult you, they're just letting off steam - bad day at work, a recent fight with the husband, annoying kids crying for ice cream - and you're best bet is to just listen and apologize for the delay or whatever. it takes time to 'tune out the insults' but it'll get easier in time. keep doing your job for those very rare moments when a customer actually thanks you coz its worth it. trust me, i've been there.

Answer 6

Sorry love, you can't avoid customers like that. It's best to take a few tips from resort representatives/managers. Be friendly, but don't let them take the p*ss. Never shout and don't give them the satisfaction of letting them see they've hurt you. Stay stoney faced, and concentrate at the problem at hand. Block out the hurtful words and aggressive tone to the point of stubborn. Then come up with a solution that keeps them happy... and do it with a smile, just to let them know they didn't get to you.

Answer 7

kill em with kindness

Answer 8

Theres a couple of rules i abide by in my job as a receptionist at a hotel.

1. The customer is never right but you have to give them what they want.

2. Always reply "yes sir, no sir, three bags full sir"

3. When in doubt tell them to make a complaint to the company.

4. Always remember LAMA!!

Listen

Ask

Make a statment

Ask

(Then smile sweetly and imagine your stabbing them in the face)

NEVER TELL A CUSTOMER TO CALM DOWN IT WILL ONLY MAKE THEM WORSE

Answer 9

let's see

people go on holiday with their camera and click away happily.  They come back to the traffic and bad weather and have to go to work, their only hope for happy memories is when you take their film to develop.  Whoops.  All you can do is point out the one or two half-decent photos and ask how the hotel was, if the beach was nice etc.

I suppose when they bring the film in you can ask them what camera they used, point out that most people find that their holiday snaps are at best blurred images of their memories. (I mean, if they got a single-use camera what do they expect?)

Answer 10

Hi there,

I myself have been working with customers for years and successfully run my own Beauty business and so fully understand your frustration when it comes to dealing with customers that are unfair and over the top and some times, out right rude.

I use to take these things personally when being spoken to in that manner, but then realised, not everything is always to do with me.  Maybe they are having a bad day, getting divorced, the kids have been playing up or they aren't getting enough sleep...who knows what's going on their lives?  And so thinking this didn't changed the situation I would sometimes find myself in, but helped me take an 'emotional' step back and stay completely, verbally, emotionally, physically on the professional level.

By staying on the professional level in all areas, I felt a sense of control, and the odd thing was, they would back off more.  I did and do however, not tolerate being shouted at, called pathetic or any other uncalled for names full stop!  Just because they are a paying customer doesn't mean they have the right to abuse us service providers in that way and I would/will ask them to either kindly refrain from it, pay and leave or in one extreme case, I mentioned the police would be called.

If you know you are in the right and they generally should pay for the pictures since they made the mistake and are just 'trying it on', remain firm and explain that you did your job to the best of your ability, that a service was provided and that it should be paid for.  In the end, if that customer stays away - really what have you lost?  Though from my experience, they come crawling back in the end having had time to think about it.

Also, apply for some communication courses - they are fantastic and I have never looked back since - great tips to be learnt for when in those situations.

Hope this helped a little :)

Debbie

Answer 11

Tell them you will speak to them when they calm down.