Poor customer service; some sentences to avoid in Customer Service

Be very careful with your words! Words are like weapons and sometimes, people can utter words that they don’t mean.

And when it comes to customer service, letting your language get out of hand can have serious consequences. When a person contacts the customer service department, there are certain unwritten rules that must be followed, including respectful behavior and the absence of certain expressions. Therefore, it is important to keep in mind some inappropriate phrases that we should avoid because these may give the impression of offering poor customer service, these might convey a bad image of the company or these might be offensive.

In this article we’re going to look at some sentences you shouldn’t say to your customers. Open up your eyes!

– “That’s not my responsibility.”

That’s a fine way to get away with it. Whether it is your responsibility or not, that is not the problem of the person who has contacted you, so if what you say is true, it will be much more helpful to refer them to the person who can help them than to waste their time with excuses.

– “Don’t tell anyone I told you this.”

It’s a very inappropriate way to gain the customer’s trust. Talking about the small secrets of the service or product is a bad trick that some people use to build trust, but the destructive effect will be even worse: you will betray your company, you will damage your business image and you will feel unprofessional. A terrible idea.

– “Excuse me, but I know what I’m talking about.”

It is not a good idea to start by apologizing and then drop the bomb. Being a smart-ass and disregarding the user’s knowledge is no good, either.

You may have more knowledge about the problem than the client, but it can be an open door to conflict if you say it so inappropriately in his or her face. Don’t go around saying things like this.

– “No-one has complained about that so far.”

That may be true, but the client doesn’t care about that. If a person contacts a customer service department, it is because they have a problem and want it solved. The previous experiences of other clients are not their business, these will not solve anything and it will sound like an excuse. Besides, there’s always a first time.

– “Can you tell me what your problem is?”

Get this straight. It’s not the phrase itself, it’s the moment you say it.

If it’s the first contact, that’s fine. It is a correct sentence that invites the client to explain his or her needs.

The problem arises when you are the second, third or fourth person who has spoken to the client. Having to explain the situation over and over again destroys anyone’s patience. It is better not to make your clients despair and if it is necessary to move the consultation to other hands, the new person who will take care of this should know the situation beforehand.

– “You misunderstood me.”

Do you want your client to think that you’re telling him he’s stupid? Okay, that probably wasn’t your idea, but there are some very sensitive people and this kind of phrase can lead to misunderstandings, so don’t use it.

– “Call back tomorrow.”

This is a classic one, mentioned almost two centuries ago by the writer Mariano José de Larra. This conveys so much unwillingness, so much contempt for the client’s time and a lack of professionalism.

– “It’s no big deal.”

It may not really be that big a deal, or it may be. In any case, what you can’t do is assume the privilege of telling the client how he or she should feel. If he feels that his problem is important, who are you to deny him that feeling, and in such a disrespectful way?”.

– “I’m sorry, I’ve done a terrible job.”

Phrases like this, or “I’m too clumsy, I don’t know how to explain myself”, even if these seek the effect of showing modesty or of recognizing a failure, can generate discomfort in the client. Making mistakes is human and it is possible to apologize without hurting oneself. Respect yourself a little more and don’t put your customers in that position. You’ll both appreciate it.

– “I can’t help you.”

All right, it may be true that you can’t solve the customer’s problem, but is it really so overwhelming that there’s no one to help him? If you are not able to respond to a situation, there must be someone else to solve this problem.

And so far we’ve seen 10 sentences you shouldn’t say to your clients. Of course, there are many others and you should never become involved in bad practices like getting nervous or losing your temper, so remember that education and common sense will be valuable tools when choosing the right words. And never forget the importance of the language you use, because it can mean the difference between poor customer service and successful service.

How about taking a few minutes to get to know something else? This is Pandora ITSM, an IT tool that can help you with customer service.

Pandora ITSM is a software that has, among other features, an issue management system (help desk software) based on tickets (ticketing) that can help with the management of customer service in companies and organizations in order to avoid poor customer service. Let us know your opinion on poor customer service down below, in the comment section.

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