The Tribune

By Deidre Bastian

Difficult clients come in all shapes and sizes, and it is important to learn how to deal with them.

They are pretty easy to identify, since they are relentless in making sure you know they are in charge, and pop up periodically regardless of how even-tempered you may be. In addition, they seek to blame you for a dilemma, whether you have caused it or not.

Consequently, dealing with difficult clients who have multiple egos is not easy. They are ‘clients from hell’ who rarely see the positive, and are simply tornados of negativity.

They will occasionally launch into a diatribe, and are anxious to inform you about how terribly you are performing, how poor your service is, how they can get better prices and service elsewhere, or even how awful your company is, even if this is not warranted.

Ask anyone who operates a business or works in the customer service sector what is the one thing that makes their life complicated, and almost immediately they will roll their eyes and say: “Miserable clients.”

This situation is not only frustrating to graphic/web designers, but entrepreneurs as well. Some clients are bad tempered; make excessive, unreasonable demands; reject drafts repeatedly; and demand awkward time commitments.

Yet, sadly, businesses often don’t have much choice other than to deal with these ‘tyrants’, since they tell more people when they have experienced an “unhappy” occurrence versus a “happy” one.

But you must remain strong, as the manner in which you deal with the oppressor impacts your professionalism. These hassles can be understood and managed with the right skills. You must disarm deliberately rude customers, even when you really want to kick them to the curb.

Useful techniques include:

Listen: The solution is to earn their trust, which involves engaging the client, listening and demonstrating your commitment to the project by building a shared agenda.

Whenever I am confronted with a difficult client, which is rare, my sole priority is to listen and allow them to talk. Many times the concerns have no basis, but I offer them a place to express themselves, and then move on.

Remain calm: Immediately shift into the ‘stay calm’ mindset. Remember, an angry customer needs to vent, and unfortunately you are their number one target, even if the problem originated elsewhere.

So in the heat of the moment, it is important to keep your cool. Rather than react poorly, try to look at the situation from the perspective of the client.

Transfer of emotions: Your calm demeanour will help them to settle down. This shift in perspective can provide an emotional psychological buffer called a ‘transfer of emotion’. This takes time but it works.

Lower your voice: If the customer becomes loud, using obscene language, start speaking slower and softer, which will cause anger to dissipate.

Empathy: Once you learn verbal cushions, you will agree that they can mitigate a customer’s anger. Use phrases such as: “I’m sorry that this occurred”, and “I don’t blame you for being upset”. Also: “I appreciate your patience James, please accept my apology”. Note: The use of the client’s name makes them feel special.

Explain: When listening to their remarks, if you do not agree, explain and state why each of your design decisions are deliberate. But admit it if you are wrong, and compensate rather than lose a customer when the situation calls for it.

Be proactive: The very best way to prevent problems from occurring is to simply do your absolute best to prevent them from happening in the first place. Never make a promise you can’t keep.

Staff: Don’t assume your staff know how to handle difficult customers. Train them. Bear in mind theat sometimes you can do everything well and still not satisfy a customer, so don’t take it out on your team.

Don’t take it personally: Most of us are basically nice people, but sometimes our good human nature fails when we are confronted with rude people. We’ve all been there, to some degree. But always speak to the issue at hand by gently guiding the conversation back to the issue for resolution.

Know when to give in: If satisfying the customer is going to take four hours and a bottle of aspirin, surrender, especially if this is the nature of the customer. There are some clients that enjoy constant complaining, asking for freebies or discounts and being unreasonable.

Simply take a step back, take a deep breath and realise that you hold the key. Remember, you cannot control the behaviour of others, but you can control your own.

And if the matter seems more stressful than enjoyable, perhaps it may be time to cut your losses, which may not seem like an easy decision.

Finally, the bulk of your time should be spent happily producing quality work and enjoying the interaction with happier clients. So when challenging and deliberate issue arise, attempt to fix the problem, but always maintain your happy place. Until we meet again, fill your life with memories rather than regrets. Enjoy life and stay on top of your game!

NB: Columnist welcomes feedback at deedee21bastian@gmail.com

Ms Bastian is a trained graphic designer who has qualifications of M.Sc., B.Sc., A.Sc. She has trained at institutions such as: Miami Lakes Technical Centre, Success Training College, College of the Bahamas, Nova Southeastern University, Learning Tree International, Langevine International and Synergy Bahamas