Originally published at Karasingroup.com
I analyze complaints first because I want to see why people don’t like certain things before I make my buying decision.
I have established that we are influenced by what other people say and how they rate products and services.
Specifically, in my last post we discussed the ratings of movies.
Now, I want to tell you my process of how I identify what’s good and worthy.
You will have your own opinion, both on my process and on by what you are influenced.
Mine is as follows; I judge both product and service based on the opinionated facts. I ask myself who is the person who is making the claim on a product I am looking to purchase. What is their claim? Their articulation and their complaint.
For some reason, I find it matters how well articulated the person is, because it displays subtleties of the way a person thinks, observes, and interacts with a product or service.
This does not mean that a person who cannot articulate a good complaint doesn’t hold a merit. It just means that the less thought a person puts into something, the less the person possibly gave the product or service a chance.
The truth is people are much louder who have something bad to say versus those who either like or are indifferent with the product or service.
Those people who I will call hate mongers are the loudest because they feel that they don’t want others to fall prey or be deceived by the company that has put out the product/service. The hate mongers feel they are doing a disservice if they do not speak up.
Next, I look to see if it is a reasonable and consistent complaint with other hate monger’s complaints.
Are they saying the same thing or is it something that is completely opposite of what other hate mongers have said?
Lastly, I look for validation in the complaint. What is their circumstance? Who are they? Why do they feel this way?
I put myself in their shoes and try to imagine the scenario they have gone through. To put it another way, I stereotype.
Doing my best to relate their circumstance to mine.
Neither you or I am in the same position in this world. You and I have different personalities, we like different things, we work and think differently, so my point here is that I look for relatedness in the hate monger.
How do we relate?
Coming from a business standpoint (before I delve into what a company should do when they hear complaints I want to say that the top part was from a consumer’s point of view) there are two ways you can look at complaints.
One, from a damaging position, the market is reacting to the product or service negatively. In other words, there is something that is functionally wrong.
Two, the market is interacting with the company.
No one likes complainers, but complainers aren’t all that bad. In fact, complainers or let’s stick to hate mongers since I like that term, are good.
They are engaging, they are starting conversations, they want to be heard.
Remember behind every hate monger is a person. The person wants to talk and be heard.
The companies job is to listen, respond appropriately, and resolve immediately.
Following this set of rules will not only turn a hate monger into leaving a positive review about the company, but it might also turn the hate monger into one of the company’s ambassadors.
What is an ambassador? Someone who advocates the company to their friends, acquaintances and family.
Remember hate mongers are the loudest and the most important source for communication for a company. Treat them with care and compassion.
This doesn’t mean that you should ignore the positive things people say about your company either. Everyone is equally important in the communication lines. Responsiveness is a must.
When people have something to say about you or your company, listen and respond, like you would if you were having a conversation with someone face to face or via telephone.
What do you do when someone is obscene with their comment?
You ignore it. Don’t add fuel to the fire. The hate monger is clearly not in the right state of mind if they post belligerent content.
Thank you for reading this post. The key takeaway is to always listen.
To be continued….
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