The unfortunate reality of customer service is that you will encounter unhappy customers who are irritated and pose a serious challenge when you are trying to help them. 

Troublesome customers can put a damper on an agent’s day and make it a difficult task to provide them with the best answer possible. Assessing the issue in its complexity and finding the root of the problem is a market of great customer service. 

Here are four tools to provide your team with to deal with difficult customers. 

1. Recognize their feelings and stay level headed 

When disgruntled customers call, their feelings are usually anger and frustration amongst other things. As the agent is the first point of contact they tend to take the front of their anger. 

In order for the conversation not to escalate in a negative way, the agent needs to remember that this is what they are feeling at the moment. You need to fully hear the customer out and let them get everything off their chest. Being an active listener and recognizing the true problems while still empathizing with how they feel will help you find the best solution possible. 

2. Focus on tangible solutions

After listening to everything they have to say and having pinpointed the problem make sure they know this so they feel like progress is being made. Once you find the ideal solution let them know and that is how the call will proceed going forward. 

3. Be genuine in your interactions

When a customer comes to you frustrated and you do not take it seriously it creates a poor image in that customer's mind. Instead, try empathizing with the customer and seeing how this issue really affected them. By saying “I understand here is how we can fix that '' or “I apologize that what happened here is a solution” are ways to show the customer you understand how they are feeling while simultaneously providing them with a solution. 

4. Rely on your colleagues 

Remember you are not in this alone. Every team member in your call center will eventually encounter a disgruntled customer. Taking pointers from colleagues who have dealt with unhappy customers before can help you in your future interactions and figure out the best way to handle the situation. Creating a supportive environment within your workplace will allow for success.