Growing From Mistakes

Sandy Paluzzi
The Bead Peddler

We all hate to make mistakes.  I cringe and dread picking up that phone to tell my customer.  Even worse, I silently die on the phone when the customer discovers the mistake.

But contrary to my fears, you do not necessarily lose a customer if you make a mistake.  In fact, studies have shown that if you handle the mistake properly, you could win yourself a very loyal customer. 

As I said, the key is in how you handle the mistake.  The first thing to do is to apologize to the customer.  Then immediately let your customer know that you will do everything in your power to make things right.  Ask them what they would like.  You will be surprised to see how reasonable most of your customers will be.  They usually ask for less than I was willing to do.  Once you agree on a course of action, rectify the situation immediately.  I usually throw in something small for the confusion, but this is definitely NOT necessary.    The important steps are to apologize, to make the situation right and to do so in a timely manner.  Treat this mistake with the urgency it deserves - after all, your company's reputation depends on it.  Mishandle the mistake or try to make light of it and you have one very dissatisfied customer grousing about you to everyone they know.  But apologize and rectify the situation and your new loyal customer will rave about your customer service.

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