They may be customers, colleagues or even your superiors. Whoever they are, they have something in common: they are such a pain to deal with even if your desire is to provide them service that they would need. It is a necessary challenge, however, to be able to connect with these internal or external customers and, in the end, to win them over.

Translating Resolve into Action

It may be our objective to provide our customer the best service available. It may be our goal to perform in a manner that would make our customers happy. However, in our pursuit of such deeds, we come across instances that leave us quite short of that resolve.

Our response to these moments defines what level of service we are capable of providing. We are judged by our actions and it would be best to try to resolve the situation in the best manner possible. Assume the responsibility and apologize for the error and our customer might overlook the mistake and may even applaud you for your efforts to correct it.

Soothe Then Act

The most important thing to keep in mind when dealing with irate internal or external customers is that we should always put their feelings first before we can start working on and fixing their problems. We should recognize that these strong emotions they are feeling are a result of our service that has not come up to expectations. The customers' first impulse, unreasonable though it may be, is to unleash their negative feelings on you.

Good customer service takes more than just fixing the situation that has gone wrong. Here are some action plans on how you can soothe your incensed customers' negative feelings and thereby enable you to deal with the customers needs:

1. Do not let your emotions get the better of you. Listen objectively and detach your emotional responses from whatever caustic remarks you might hear. You will be baited constantly, so be prepared for the onslaught, let it pass, and move on.

2. Listen attentively. Your body language should also suggest that you are absorbing what the customer is saying. A nod here and there, indicating understanding and commiseration will be a lot of help. If you are on the phone with the customer, give out verbal nods (uh-huh, oh, really, that's too bad!) to show that you're listening to their litany of concerns. The customer would want to feel that you are truly interested.

3. Enough sorry already. Saying sorry all the time gives the impression that it's more of an automatic response than a sincere apology. It would be better to say your apologies with an acknowledgement of the mistake and an appropriate plan to correct it. Also find other ways of expressing your heartfelt apologies without groveling and continually saying this meaningless term.

4. You have to empathize. Understanding your customers' feelings is not just an agreement but an acknowledgment of the consequences. It is also important that customers not feel patronized because that would only aggravate the situation. Saying you understand why they feel the way they do will have to be said in as genuine a manner as possible.

5. Establish a Connection or Rapport. You may try to add to your response that their reaction is perfectly understandable by saying that given the same set of circumstances, you will also feel the same way. Before the conversation ensues, you can engage in small talk that could inject some levity or lightness to the actual conversation. Once you have successfully built rapport between yourself and your customer, it is time to inform him of the steps that you intend to take in correcting the situation and prevent this from happening to him again.

Giving your infuriated customers the idea that you truly care about their situation will soften their stance and prevent them from being too difficult. If you are able to defuse your customers' tendency to be difficult, you will be able to give your suggestions and have these suggestions accepted, followed and appreciated.