You can't please everyone all the time. Try as you might to please the masses, there will inevitably be a few negative comments or bad reviews that pop up on media outlets. But how you choose to respond can make or break the situation - and your reputation. If you handle it with a cool head, it's a chance to address a concern, win back a customer, and possibly gain some market insight you can use to strengthen your business.
Recently, a local business received a few negative comments and criticism on social media. They are a contract company hired by large vendors to manage traffic flow and parking on premises for large venues and events. A huge and very famous band recently came into town, and nearly 45,000 people clogged the highways and surface roads around the venue, trying to get in; many more cars than the infrastructure could normally - and reasonably - accommodate. To make matters worse, on a main interstate artery through the city, there was both summer construction AND a chemical spill from an 18-wheeler, narrowing the road to one lane and further binding traffic.
In spite of a number of factors working against them, the parking company really did a great job of getting people parked and into the concert. Most people took the traffic snarls and longer waits in stride, but a few concert goers took to social media to blast the company for long lines and high wait times. And they pulled no punches, using strong language, calling them disorganized, and saying the wait times for parking were unbearable and unacceptable.
The company could have completely ignored them and hoped the backlash would quietly disappear. Or, they could have fired back, citing that other drivers stopped to ask a lot of questions or tried to park illegally once inside the property, blocking lanes and causing problems. They could have given flippant excuses, like it wasn't their fault the roads weren't designed to handle the volume of cars, or that the chemical spill was someone else's problem, so stop blaming them. Instead, though, they played it smart.
1. Apologize.
Even if the customer was less than pleasant in the way they expressed their problem, the fact is, they still had a problem. And ultimately, it was with a facet of your business. Offer a simple, sincere apology that the experience wasn't at the level of quality you'd hope they would experience. In this instance, the company addressed people by name and apologized that their experience wasn't ideal.
2. Ask questions.
Many times, negative complaints are very general and it's hard to know how to address an issue properly if you don't exactly know what went wrong. So, ask. The parking company asked for more information on things like the time of arrival at the venue, which entrance was used, and how long the waits were in line. Then, they also asked to know what, specifically, went awry; was it the approach to the lots, the payment process, finding a spot, etc. Allowing someone to provide the details helps put the situation into perspective, and problems can be more easily, more quickly, and more constructively addressed.
This approach also shows that the company heard the initial complaint and wanted to know more about it; they were not simply out to placate and move on. When people are upset and express it to you, they want to feel like you, as a business, actually care. Asking for more details shows them you're interested in doing what you can to address it. And you always have to remember: social media is a very public forum. Others watching the situation unfold will form opinions on how you handle things. What you show the spectators is just as important to your image as what you show to the upset customer.
3. Make them a partner.
Finally, ask for help. Make the customer a partner in solving the problem by asking for their input. In this case, the company said their goal was to provide the best possible parking experience for their patrons, and that they'd love to partner with the customer to develop new ideas on how to improve the flow of parking at future events. They made the customer part of the team and made them feel like their feedback was valuable. It gave credit to their complaint and offered them a platform to suggest improvements.
And think about this: what if they actually do have some great ideas you can implement for future endeavors? What if they have that golden nugget of information you can use to avoid future negative feedback, improve service and ultimately increase the bottom line? Just because you ask for suggestions doesn't mean you have to take them, but if you never ask, you might never hear that winning idea that makes a big difference down the road.
If the complaint was long lines and wait times, then was it really the fault of the parking company that the roads around the venue weren't built for that many cars at once? Or that a chemical spill took traffic down to one lane on the interstate? No, of course not. But until customers express specific concerns, get your honest feedback, and feel validated, it's difficult to put themselves on the other side of the situation. Finding common ground and understanding can be paramount to resolving the situation positively. And sometimes, that's all it takes. In this case, almost everyone dropped their complaints after the first response from the company because they felt like they were heard, they felt engaged in finding the solution, and they had a little more perspective into specific outside factors that might have come into play.
The old adage that "the customer is always right" isn't always true - sometimes they are totally wrong. But that's certainly not the best way to approach negative feedback. Every customer is a person with feelings and opinions, and they will express them. It's up to us, as a business owners, to address their comments, make them feel connected and appreciated, engage them in a positive way, and turn a negative review into a satisfied customer.