Given the predominance of social media these days, many business owners will at some stage find they have to respond to an unhappy customer ‘going public’. When this happens it’s usually a last resort after they have been ignored on other channels (such as an unanswered email or a phone call not returned). There are usually two kinds: those who have a genuine complaint that can be addressed and resolved (because yes, small business owners are human and we all make mistakes sometimes) and then there are those who just come across as bullies who won’t ever be happy and don’t want to engage in any reasonable conversation. Complaints, whilst they can seem quite personal, are an opportunity for improvement. I believe ALL customer feedback is valid. If you have good processes in place so that your customers feel they can come to you directly to resolve any issues, it’s likely you won’t be in the situation of dealing with negative public feedback too often and your social accounts will instead be full of praise. If that’s not the case then it’s time for you to look at those processes for feedback which is critical to good business.

Jay Baer has some great advice that applies to all customer service situations not just complaints handling in the video linked below.