photo credit: Rich Anderson

Have you ever had a sale that just went bad? These are usually horrendous moments that leave you in a state of shock. You really do always try your best for each customer. Sometimes, though, you just mess up, or some part of your process is off. In some cases, its not your fault at all, but it is always your problem.

There are any number of things that can go wrong with a sale. Perhaps the customer expectations were out of whack. Product quality could be the cause. Sometimes, you just screw up and don’t deliver on all of your promises. And yes, once in awhile, you get “THAT customer.”

Misplaced Expectations

Expectations between customer and vendor are very often out of whack. Usually, there is enough grace to compensate for this. Once in awhile, though, things get so off center that it becomes a very real problem.

When the customer expects one thing, but gets something else entirely, he can become very unhappy with you. The first thing you need to do, in any situation where the customer is unhappy, is to appease. See if you can’t make it right. Hopefully you can.

Whether or not you can make it right, you need to evaluate what went wrong in the first place. If expectations where not in line, then it is usually a communication error. Look through your marketing material, talk to your sales person, and look at your notes. Are you bringing a consistent message to each customer? Sometimes the customer mishears things or misinterprets. But the blame for misplaced expectations can usually be placed squarely on your shoulders.

Going forward, you should have a clearer message and consistent training on that message. You should also have standards and procedures for everyone in your business to follow. One of these procedures should be to have a comprehensive and clear contract that lays out all of the expectations for the customer. This will not solve all problems, but it will sure help in lining up your customers expectations with what you actually plan to deliver.

Oh, and if the expectation was not met simply because you failed to deliver on your promises, you need to fix that pronto!

Product Quality

What happens when you deliver a sub-par product? Well, if you do it consistently, you will soon be out of business. But it can happen to anyone, especially if you source your product from a vendor. Lets say that you wholesale colorful socks to small retail stores. You get a bad shipment, but don’t notice. When you sell those socks to your customer, you can be sure that they notice. They call and tell you that your socks have holes in them.

Your response on bad product is very telling. First of all, it doesn’t matter if you think it was your fault, because it is your fault. You are the one who needs to fix it right away with your customers. Don’t wait for your vendor to do something, you can worry about that later. Never pass the blame.

Once you fix the immediate problem, you need to figure out why it occurred and what to do to make sure it never occurs again. Perhaps you need to start checking the product you buy. Maybe you need to have a long talk with your vendor about their quality control. Switching vendors is an option too. Of course, if you make the product yourself, you must go over every part of the process with a fine tooth comb and put procedures and controls in place so that it never happens again.

Forgotten Promises

When you make a promise but don’t keep it, you can expect your customer to get mad. The best way to avoid forgetting anything on a sale is to write it all down in one place, such as a contract. The second thing you can do is to create policies and procedures that have you giving the same service over and over again. They say practice makes perfect.

Take some time to evaluate why you are making extra promises to a customer. Do you feel you need to in order to get the sale? Are you letting the customer bully you around into a half-hearted promise? You need to be the one to decide what you will and will not do. Promises made on the fly are the hardest to keep.

THAT Customer

Okay, so once in awhile you just get stuck with “THAT customer.” These are the complainers, the nit-pickers, the life-suckers. Before we get too excited bashing this type of customer, let me tell you a couple of things. First of all, they are rare. Not every customer complaint you get is from this type of customer. You can’t write off complaints, either, even if they come from a known complainer. Second, you still need to deal with this customer and try to make them happy, at least through the end of the sale. Sometimes, you will actually succeed and turn one of these tough customers into a really good customer. Not usually, but it has been known to happen.

What do you do with the complaints from “THAT customer?” Well, you need to take them with a grain of salt, but still investigate. If they say that someone was rude to them on the phone, talk to that someone. Maybe the person was egged into being rude, but from a business standpoint, there is never any reason to be rude to any customer. This wouldn’t be the time for a reprimand, however. Rather, it will be a good training experience for your employee.

Having a nit-picky customer who is very vocal about all of your faults can be a pain. However, they can be a blessing in disguise, as well. They force you to get all of your ducks in a row and run a professional operation. Unless they just have a grudge against you, you can usually shut these customers up by becoming more professional and handling all of their concerns.

Bad Sales Can Make You Better

Every bad sale is an opportunity to become a better business. When you make a mistake with a customer, you get a black eye in their mind. If you fix the mistake and go out of your way to make it right, that black eye turns into a white hat. Most customers will realize that you are human. If you fix it fast and personally, they will realize that you care.

You need to treat every bad sale as a learning opportunity for you and your employees. Become better. Put things in place to make sure the same mistakes are not repeated over and over again.

It is also very important to accept the blame for the problem. It is never the vendor’s fault or the employee’s fault. It always comes back to you.

With a little effort, you can turn one bad experience into an opportunity to improve. The more you improve, the better you will be!

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Bradford Shimp is the publisher of All Biz Answers. He is also the co-creator of Idea Anglers, a place to see your ideas come to life through collaboration. Follow Bradford on Twitter @bradfordshimp.