How to Creatively Confront Criticism

Being self-employed means wearing many hats, one of which is “Head of Customer Service.”

But when you’re trying to attract clients, it’s not always easy to know how to handle criticism. Just because one person doesn’t like your service doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with it. So how do you know how to respond to feedback?

Here’s a story to help you contemplate the various ways you might respond to a situation:The women in my family have a common problem: we can never find pants that fit right. Our waists are considerably smaller than our hips, which often creates a giant gap between the small of our backs and the pants’ waistline. Belts don’t help. They just make things bulky.

So imagine my delight when I stumbled upon Talbots. I tried on a pair of their pants and they fit perfectly. No gap. No bulk. Just clean lines and a sleek look.

That was in 2008. A few weeks ago, though, I ventured into Talbots and tried on several new styles. This time the hips were snug but the waists were about 3 or 4 inches too big (and I’m the same exact size I was in 2008).

What happened?

Apparently, Talbots got some complaints saying their pant waistlines were too narrow so they decided to make them bigger.

Bummer.

I wonder how many customers Talbots alienated with this decision.

How to successfully address customer (client) complaints

Whether you sell clothing like Talbots, or consulting services like I do, you’re bound to get criticism and feedback from your clients. What you do about it can make or break your business.

Last week I talked about the importance of addressing criticism quickly and gracefully. The trick, however, is to know what action to take to remedy the situation.

Dissatisfied customers (especially women) complain. Some become very vocal, writing letters or emails to let service providers know exactly how they feel and what they need to make things better.

Satisfied customers, on the other hand, send general compliments that aren’t as specific.

The result is that service providers can receive lopsided feedback.

For instance, if you have 100 customers and 10 don’t like your product but 90 do, you have a successful service or product.

However, if all 10 unsatisfied customers complain, but only 3 satisfied customers give thanks, you get an unclear picture of what’s really going on.

So imagine you’re Talbots with 90 satisfied customers and 10 who think your pant waistlines are too small. If you change your pant design to appease these 10 women you suddenly have 90 unsatisfied customers. (Just to be clear, I have no idea what the actual situation was with Talbots.)

What to do?

Don’t react. Respond.

All complaints and feedback need to be acknowledged. Sometimes a simple, “we hear you” will suffice.

But if you constantly react to complaints, changing your service or product to appease vocal people’s opinion, you may end up with more dissatisfied customers than satisfied ones.

In other words, if one person says, “I don’t like how you do this” that doesn’t mean it isn’t working for everyone else. You need more information to determine the bigger picture.  But how do you find the information you need?

You can conduct a survey and ask for feedback

Ask your former and current clients whether or not your services are helping them fulfill their needs.

Send a survey using Survey Monkey.

Look at the numbers

How many clients do you have? Do you have more or fewer clients than you did a year ago?

How much income are you generating? More or less than last year?

How much traffic does your website generate? Does it convert readers to clients?

Each piece of information informs the big picture. Get clear about what’s working and what isn’t, then create a plan of action to respond thoughtfully.

Weigh criticism carefully

Feedback can be invaluable, offering information you can use to create new services or product.

If you receive the same feedback from three different people chances are good people feel similarly. If the feedback is congruent with your goals, consider creating a new product or service that addresses their concerns.

Note: you may not need to change your current offer, especially if it’s successful. Adding a new one may solve the problem.

For instance, Nordstrom’s offers in-house tailoring. If your pants don’t fit off the shelf Nordstrom’s will alter them to fit your body-type. Problem solved.

Don’t try to appeal to everyone

Talbots can’t be all things to all people. Neither can you. If you try to be all things to all people you’ll quickly burn out. Instead, know who you want to serve and do everything you can to be a great service provider for those people.

It’s helpful to have a thorough understanding of what you offer and why. Then if someone has a complaint or criticism that doesn’t fit your goals you can gently let your critic know that your offer won’t meet their needs. In situations like this it’s useful to have a referral on hand. If you can point them in the direction of someone who can help them, your critic is likely to respect you and be grateful for your honesty and help. They may even refer other people to you in the future.

For example, Talbots might find it useful to send small-waisted customers to Nordstroms. It’s better to help people find satisfaction than to have dissatisfied customers who constantly complain about your work.

Summary

If people complain about your service or product:

1)      Respond quickly and thoughtfully.

2)      Determine if your current service or product is working for other people. If it is, leave it as is. If it isn’t, change it.

3)      Consider creating a new product or service to help the unsatisfied clients.

4)      Don’t try to appeal to everyone.

If you follow these simple steps when dealing with criticism your current customers will feel heard and respected and they’re likely to appreciate what you have to offer, even if it doesn’t fulfill their needs.