I don’t care if they’re angry and I don’t care if their anger is legitimate. It should be a CRIME to be angry with a customer service rep. It’s not their fault your crap is broken/got lost/whatever. I shouldn’t have to sacrifice my mental health for a bunch of stupid angry Karens who can’t keep themselves under control.

Thanks for adding that Ralph.

Recognizing the signs ahead of time is the key in so many areas of business (hiring, customer service, and so on). If we could just learn to get that right every time… well, people can dream, can’t they? 🙂

Thanks Adam, in these types of contracts there is an out for the client via a non-performance clause. A consultant can get out as well but try and get work in the same industry again after that. Unfortunately you have to tough it out.

Simply learning how to manage that type of relationship helps and recognizing the signs before you engage in the first place is a hugely valuable lesson learned. It has certainly helped me in my current gig.

Hey, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. I appreciate the response and opportunity to share this story.

Hey Ralph,

Thanks for the excellent comment! One thing that stands out about your story is that there are situations when you can’t fire the customer — such as a service contract. I’m curious — was one of the lessons learned to leave yourself some outs contractually for situations like this?

Some people are just bullies, abusive by nature. To your point, they are thankfully a small minority. There is also another sliver who are abusive out of calculation, which seems like your situation. In some ways, they are worse because they can help themselves.

I always like to think I can turn it around with a customer, but when you can’t, fulfill your basic obligations and focus on those who treat you and your team with respect.

The question for me is how did it get there in the first place? Some people are just abusive by nature but not many. To get to a point of frustration that a threat is the only course of action is astounding and giving in at that point is near impossible.

I have had a client that was abusive unilaterally. Their attitude was to keep their consultant’s on edge at all times. It was a performance tactic (carrots and sticks) that didn’t work well. I had to endure it for 3 years (service contract) and it got progressively worse over time. I admit that I didn’t handle the abusive attitudes well and simply stuck to the contractual obligation and nothing more. There was not much we could do beyond that. We would have loved to fire them but alas could not. I personally learned a lot about customer service from that experience and can now be much more proactive when I see the tables start to turn.

I guess what I am saying is that as consultants we need to recognize the signs and address the issues early. I know in certain business situations (i.e. retail) that may not always be possible.

Thanks for the great post.

Hi Tim,

I think I know that guy. 🙂 There is a line that some customers cross not just with you or your organization but within themselves. Resolution and reconciliation are no longer possible — they want the company to pay, to be humbled but only in the way that satisfies them. You can try every customer service technique in the book — some people are just beyond recovery.

Like you said “ride the waves” and move on. Sometimes it is the only solution.

I’ve dealt with a few abusive customer service complaints in my time and they’re certainly not pleasant!

The last one I dealt with before I left employment stands out in my mind as he just couldn’t be reasoned with.

Even when the pension scheme were going to cover any financial loss to him plus expenses, he was determined he was going to carry on the complaint and take it to the financial ombudsman. It wasn’t even the pension scheme’s fault but another provider that the person held a separate investment with.

With these kind of customers I think you just have to mark it down as experience, try and ride the waves, minimise any fall out and move on. No point in taking things personally.

Thanks Barrett. The profile was quite a nice Friday surprise!

Sorry to hear about your wife’s experience. It’s really tough when a culture like that is allowed to take hold. Retail is as challenging as it gets in customer service, but most of the time abusive customers are a tiny fraction of what you have to deal with. When they are allowed to run roughshod over the team and the business, it tends to never end. That is why even the best customer service organizations draw lines and set limits.

The customers were unreasonable and abusive. They were literally stealing by buying $400 shoes, wearing them for a year, then returning them to get the refund, and new shoes.

So the sales people were losing their commissions and the store wasn’t meeting its goals. Everyone was pressured to sell harder. Stress all around. If corporate and stor management had stood behind the employees, it would have served everyone better.

Hey, nice profile on Spin Sucks! 🙂