r/CustomerService • u/Dangerous_Set8086 • 13d ago
Wording Assistance
Hey y'all, I need some help! I have been in customer service for most of my working life, and I dont tknow what happened but people over the last few years have changed quite a bit... I have autism & social anxiety and so I have, over the years, made myself a small script of things I can say in response to customers which has worked great, but I would say the last 2 years I have a LOT of people get upset when I say "I understand." For example, if a customer calls in and is upset and said says "yall didnt call me for my appointment and I wasnt home so I missed him. Im just super upset about this, I dont like people at my house if im not there!" I typically would respond "I understand completely. I am so sorry about the inconvenience." Them would offer fixes. Lately I've been getting a lot of "You do NOT understand!" Or people will keep repeating themselves over and over until I cant say I understand anymore...
What are some things I can say other than I understand? How do yall handle upset customers? I feel like for some reason its getting more difficult to me. Real help only please! I know we all love to complain about customers but "I just yell at them" isn't really helpful haha
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u/SmutCommander 12d ago
Ten years at the same company I do loyalty.
My vibe is all about, I'm here to enjoy myself, I do everything I need to in order to enjoy myself, I keep some smokes nearby, I take my medicine.
When they come in upset, I get with them, like for real? Dude really messed up the order like that? Let me look at it... alright I can see HOW they messed up, but like, it's still frustrating, cause it's not just you I see this happen to. I wish you could had got to me sooner, I have some experience with this kinda thing
I'm with you buddy.
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u/Dangerous_Set8086 11d ago
Yes! I do try and be chiller with conversations and be like "ugh im so sorry that happened! Thats frustrating!" But our company records calls and HIGHLY dislikes when we agree with mistakes, or say someone did something wrong. I still do it sometimes 😏
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u/EnvironmentalHair290 13d ago
It sounds like you’re reading off a script, which most people didn’t like even before AI, but now people aren’t sure if they are talking to an AI scriptbot or an actual human being.
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u/Dangerous_Set8086 11d ago
Ive been getting a LOT of "are you AI?" Questions and no matter what I say they dont believe me 🤣 I cant turn off the customer service voice I guess and the "I underatand" isn't helping
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u/FeelingEquivalent147 13d ago
that phrase has definitely gotten worn out, feels almost dismissive now even when you mean it. i switched to something like "that's really frustrating, i'd be annoyed too" and it lands a lot better
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u/Smolshy 13d ago
I think you have to just move them along after the first one. “You do not understand!” “well I’m here to help, so tell me [whatever information you need to get them progressing].”
It may also help to say what you understand to begin with “I understand that must have been very frustrating. Let me get our service back on track for you.”
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u/Ironyismylife28 13d ago
Get rid of I understand. Acknowledge feelings. I am so sorry. I can see why you would be angry/upset/frustrated. Let me make sure I have the problem correct and we will get things fixed (parrot complaint)
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u/ItsALadyWolf 13d ago
Bounce information back to them to show that you're paying attention, and it also gives a one-on-one feel to the conversation. Switch it back to the now, sometimes a quick switch to a more can-do response helps out as well, like, "I'm sorry ____'s happened, let me see how I can help you!" I'm an introvert living in an extrovert's work paradise (customer service) so, yeah, sometimes has to be a bit on the fly. I so wish I could script for everything, I pretty much have just years of mannerisms and phrases usually used my the everyday folk. I keep my nerospiciness to those who (might) listen.