Five Reasons Why You Should Thank Customers That Complain

I had the opportunity to deal with a customer complaint today. I know that is nothing new for those in leadership and management. We can almost become desensitized to it, but these customer concerns are great opportunities to improve. Without going into detail, this customer came to me with an issue that was honestly a mistake o the part of one of my associates. I listened to this customer, accepted responsibility for the mistake, took ownership of having it fixed and thanked him for bringing it to my attention. He looked at me for a minute as if I was an alien, then he shook my hand, thanked me for my time and left with a smile on his face.


While I think all managers will agree that listening, accepting responsibility and fixing the problem are all steps right out of "Conflict Resolution 101" the last step, or being thankful for the complaint, is foreign to most of us. I know it was to me when I first stepped into leadership, and some days I still have to remind myself of the beauty of a customer complaint. Here are five reasons to be thankful for that unpleasant interaction:

1. Complaints often point out processes that we can improve
This is especially true in a larger company where a manager or executive team is often not in day-to-day contact with customers. We often do not know there is a better way to do something, because we do not do it every day, and our associates just follow standard procedure. Often times we are so caught up in our policy that a simple complaint from a customer, and an honest conversation will bring to light a better way to solve the issue next time it arises.
2. Complaints give you a chance to find out what matters to your customer
Customers will not complain about things that do not matter to them. A complaint is an amazing way to gauge what matters to a customer. I encourage you to implement a tracking system and use it to identify any recurring sources of customer dissatisfaction. The results will probably surprise you. Focus your efforts on improving that which your customers are telling you is the most important.
3. Customers who complain are invested enough in you, your team, your company or your product to want it fixed
This may be my favorite thing about a complaint. People who do not care about your business do not complain. They just discontinue service, close accounts or do not come back. When people complain, it shows that you are doing a lot of things right. Don't let that go to your head, but use it as a source of comfort while you rectify your mistakes.
4. Complaints are easy coaching opportunities for underachieving team members
 Not only is a verified customer complaint a piece of ready-made HR documentation, it also allows you a very specific example to use with an associate during a one-on-one or coaching session. If you have an associate that is properly trained to build a relationship with a customer, nothing will be more effective at illustrating a lack of performance than a complaint from the person who you are trying to gain trust from.
5. When employees see you deal with difficult customers, it shows that you care about the customer and about your employee -  When you accept responsibility for a mistake, it increases trust and loyalty by making you a human being in the eyes of followers. Watching you do so will let your team know that you are serious about being honest, open, responsible and accountable. Your team will be more loyal when they know that you  care about the customer, and about them, to take on the situation and solve it personally.

We all make mistakes. We should be thankful for the opportunity to learn from these mistakes. Not only should managers learn from mistakes, we should empower our team to do so. Might I suggest giving your employees authority to purchase flowers, baked goods or some other token of appreciation to share with a customer who points out a mistake. Not only will this improve your team morale, it might just delight a customer that could easily have become disgruntled.