Will an Apology Help Your Internet Business Reputation?
In his bestseller, What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, Marshall Goldsmith talks about the difficulty we all have in saying we’re sorry. He points out that we often find it painful to admit being wrong and perhaps that by apologizing, we’re ceding power to another person.
Certainly, this is an uncomfortable situation that we all try to avoid. Often we are emotional and defensive when someone says something unfair or unkind about us or our business. However, we need to stop and take a look at the situation from the customer’s perspective. Is our customer being unreasonable in complaining? If another reasonable person might also complain in the customer’s situation, then we need to apologize.
Mr. Goldsmith says that “apologizing is one of the most powerful and resonant gestures in the human arsenal — almost as powerful as a declaration of love.” An apology conveys the feeling that you care about the other person and that you’re sorry about it. The best thing about an apology to your customer is that it moves your relationship past the cause and into a new, better phase.
Most customers find it very difficult to resist a sincere apology, and the fact that you’ve made the effort will usually more than repair any damage in your relationship. Instead of complaining about your business to friends, your customer will be telling friends of your gesture and a problem solved. What do you think will be better for your business?
We have years of experience in helping businesses deal effectively with unhappy customers and disgruntled employees. If you’re facing this situation, please call at 713-234-6346 or use the Contact form to send an email. The best insurance against an unhappy customer is a regular process of obtaining customer feedback. We can help you get that started too!
Related articles
- Apologizing in a Way That Promotes Customer Loyalty (customerthink.com)
- How to make a bad situation worse (nitpickersnook.com)
- Managing Complaints = Retaining Customers Part 2 (management2012.wordpress.com)
