Dissatisfied Customers and the Patron Services Escalation Protocol

Occasionally, in customer service, we will encounter patrons who are not satisfied, or who have complaints of one type or another.

When dealing with such customers, give the customer your undivided attention and attempt to answer these three questions:

What happened to make them upset?
What do they want?
What can we do to help?

Repeat the customer’s concerns back to them. This will show that you were listening, and also confirm that you understand the problem that they would like to have corrected. Try to empathize.

Through it all:

Remain calm and collected.
Simply listen to the customer’s complaint and try to understand it.
Do not give in to the impulse to defend yourself.
Do not take their frustration personally
Never argue back at a patron.
Be patient, try to understand the core issue.

If you feel yourself becoming upset, or you feel you cannot continue without taking a break, let the patron know that you are going to get in touch with your manager for guidance on how to resolve the situation.

If the situation gets heated, or you ever feel personally at risk, pause immediately and tell them that you are going to get your manager.

The escalation chain is:
- Rich and Yuhua
- Tom
- Bill

If necessary, call Security – 5-2408 or HUPD 5-1212. Use this as a last resort, but know that you can if you feel truly threatened.

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