Sometimes a customer or supplier may write a complaint letter to you (or your company).
This can be due to error on the part of your company, i.e. mistakes in making an order, or regular late payments to suppliers. Sometimes the fault may rest with the customer or supplier, in your opinion.
Whatever the case, remember the golden rule of the business: the customer is always right, and use the complaint letter as a vehicle to improve customer relations of your company, and improve your quality of goods.
Some tips for responding to a complaint letter:
- Apology: Even if you really think the customer is wrong, remember the golden rule: customer is always right, and, be humble and polite! There is still something to learn from her/his letter. In your response, start from this understanding. Making an apology to customers after things go wrong is positively related to satisfaction with the recovery.
- Say Thank You: Start the letter by thanking the customer for putting his/her concerns in writing.
- Try to Empathize: It’s important for you to acknowledge the customer’s situation and express empathy.
- Address the concerns directly, and indicate the steps you are taking to resolve them. Provide an explanation of how/why the problem happened and how will you resolve the situation.
- Compensate: Consider offering the customer some compensation for his troubles, i.e. 10% discount of her/his next order.
- Say Thank You Again: Always thank the customer for her/his time.
- Write a professional looking letter: Spelling errors and grammar mistakes are unacceptable. Read your response letter twice and remove even minor spelling and grammar errors. Use professional fonts. You can read how to write a formal business letter (or email) here.
Response to a Complaint Letter Template is below:
Dear ……………………….,
Thank you for taking time to contact us or Company Name and explain the problems that have occurred recently.
We regret any inconvenience you have experienced, and we assure you that we are anxious to retain a satisfied customer.
Our team is reviewing the information you sent us and carry out a thorough investigation to resolve this matter fairly.
If you need further information or assistance, please contact us at [……………… phone, email address].
At the conclusion of our investigation, we will contact you about our results. Thank you for the opportunity to help.
Sincerely,
____________
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