Dealing With Angry Customers
Angry customers are a fact of life in the restaurant business. Don't take it personally, it happens to the best of us. Many times it's not your fault, sometimes it is, but it always has to be dealt with. Following the HEAT method will get you out of most situations, and turn angry customers into regular customers. HEAT is an acronym for-
- Hear them out.
- Empathize.
- Action.
- Take care of them.
During a very busy lunch service at a quick-casual restaurant I was managing, a lady brought her food to the cashier and demanded her money back. The cashier did the right thing and went to grab me. I greeted the lady and asked her what was going on, this is where H comes in. I listened to her (actually listened, this is key) explain to me that there was a ant crawling on her table and got near her food. This same thing happened at another location of the same restaurant and she felt that this was a sign of what the kitchens were like. I moved to E and apologized (actually apologized) for what had happened and assured her that our kitchens were extraordinarily clean. To back up my E and move to A, I opened up our kitchen and gave her a tour. She was impressed at the level of cleanliness in the back, and I explained to her that the ant probably came in from the front (it was a nice day and the doors were open). For T, I refunded her money and gave her a coupon for next time.
This may be too much for the average angry customer, but she ended up becoming a super-regular and hosting her own birthday party at my location.
Angry customers are an unavoidable part of the restaurant business, but following this simple acronym will help you turn it into a great sales building opportunity.
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Of course, there are many kinds of angry customers out there. There are also many methods of dealing with them, but it all starts with listening to them. Be both professional and courteous, and while you can't satisfy them all, you can be happy at your skills at handling difficult situations.
-Ruby Chelmsford