Our stellar customer service maven at MarketingProfs, Shelley Ryan, received a letter from a participant in a recent company event complaining about a typo in our collateral materials....


Shelley responded by saying, "Yes, this bugs me too. Have you ever read Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation?"
A brilliant response, this accomplishes three things in addition to responding to the customer's query:
1. it defuses the complaint;
2. it accepts responsibility for the error; and
3. it admits the obvious fact that nothing can be done at this juncture.

Her response shows deep insight into the customer's mindset by recognizing that this complaint was not so much a complaint as a cry to be heard, demonstrating despair over the current state of our mother tongue. Shelley humanized our company and put us on the same side of the grammatical divide as our fastidious customer, turning complaint into comradeship.
Would that my bank, phone company, cable provider and credit card issuer possessed this kind of intelligence!


Enter your email address to continue reading

Complaint...or Cry to Be Heard?

Don't worry...it's free!

Already a member? Sign in now.

Sign in with your preferred account, below.

Did you like this article?
Know someone who would enjoy it too? Share with your friends, free of charge, no sign up required! Simply share this link, and they will get instant access…
  • Copy Link

  • Email

  • Twitter

  • Facebook

  • Pinterest

  • Linkedin


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I claim no discernible credentials other than my friendship with the right people and a mind of my own. Oh, and I sell ads for MarketingProfs.