At first glance, handling a difficult customer may seem like a thankless job. Fortunately, you can develop skills to adapt to the challenges difficult customers pose and extend these skills to handling difficult people and situations throughout your daily life. By improving the focus of your thoughts and feelings, how you manage stress, and how well you listen to and empathize with others, you will be better able to meet the challenges other people pose in both your professional and personal life. Implementing the guidelines in this workshop is the first step in a process towards forever changing how you interact with others.

INTRODUCTION

Course Objectives

MODULE 1
The Right Attitude Starts with You
Be Grateful
Make Gratitude a Habit
Keep Your Body Healthy
Invoke Inner Peace
Knowledge Check

MODULE 2
Stress Management (Internal Stressors)
Irritability
Unhappiness With Your Job
Feeling Underappreciated
Not Well Rested
Knowledge Check

MODULE 3
Stress Management (External Stressors)
Manage Your Work Space
Loud Work Environment
Co-Worker Relations
Demanding Supervisor
Knowledge Check

MODULE 4
Transactional Analysis
What is Transactional Analysis
Parent
Child
Adult
Knowledge Check

MODULE 5
Why Are Some Customers Difficult
They Have Truly Had a Bad Experience and Want to Vent
Want Someone to be Held Accountable
They Have Truly Had a Bad Experience and Want Resolution
They are Generally Unhappy
Knowledge Check

MODULE 6
Dealing With the Customer Over the Phone
Listen to the Customer’s Complaint
Build Rapport
Do Not Respond with Negative Words or Emotion
Offer a Verbal Solution to Your Customer
Knowledge Check

MODULE 7
Dealing With the Customer In Person
Listen to the Customer’s Concerns
Build Rapport
Respond with Positive Words and Body Language
Aside From Words
Knowledge Check

MODULE 8
Sensitivity in Dealing with Customers
Customers Who are Angry
Customers Who are Rude
Customers with Different Cultural Values
Customers Who Cannot be Satisfied
Knowledge Check

MODULE 9
Scenarios of Dealing with a Difficult Customer
Angry Customer
Rude Customer
A Customer From Another Culture
An Impossible to Please Customer
Knowledge Check

MODULE 10
Following up With a Customer Once You Have Addressed Their Issue
Call the Customer
Send the Customer an Email
Mail the Customer a Small Token
Snail-Mail a Handwritten or Typed Letter
Knowledge Check

ASSESSMENT
Post Test

WRAPPING UP
Course Summary