By Jesi Tassava, Executive Assistant

When it comes to answering the phones at a veterinary hospital, you never know who is calling or why. It could be a phone shopper, one of your friendly regulars, or it could be someone having a bad day. Sometimes you may receive a call from a client who is unhappy about the service they received from you. Whatever the case may be, you want to be prepared for anything and always want to remember to provide the caller with a good experience. In order to successfully handle unhappy clients who call your clinic, remember the acronym, L.E.A.P.

L is for Listen

First and foremost, if you are speaking to an upset or angry client on the phone, you need to make sure you give them your undivided attention. Allow them to vent their frustrations and make sure you are truly listening to everything they are saying. If you need to, jot down notes as you are listening to them. This will help you remember their concerns as you are responding to them and coming up with a solution. It is also a good idea to step away from the front desk and speak to them in an exam room or another available quiet area, so you can limit any possible distractions while they explain the situation. Listening to their concerns is crucial, as you cannot successfully empathize, apologize or placate without truly knowing why they are upset or angry.

E is for Empathy

Once you have listened to clients concern, it is important to empathize with the client and put yourself in his/her shoes. Remain objective in the situation and really think about how they are feeling. Don’t become defensive because this will come across to the client in a negative way and will only perpetuate the issue at hand. Remember to not take anything personally, and understand that things happen and that you are taking the time and effort to find a solution.

A is for Apologize

In any situation where a client is upset or angry, you should always acknowledge the client’s feeling, in the form of an apology. This is what an apology is meant for, and you can’t think of it as an admission of guilt or feel defeated when expressing an apology. Several ways in which you can phrase your apology include:

• “I apologize for any misunderstandings.”
• “I apologize on behalf of the entire practice for not living up to your expectations.”

P is for Placate

The final step to turn a negative conversation into a more positive one is to placate, or make peace with the client by offering a resolution. Your first instinct may be to offer a monetary resolution in the form of a refund or a credit. However, oftentimes, this is not what the client wants. They usually just simply want to make sure the issue never occurs again. In order to find the proper solution, take the time to ask, “What can I do to make this right?” Listen to what they have to say, and you will find that they will often express the fact that they don’t want it to happen again. You should agree with them on this and express the fact that you don’t want it to happen again either! Let them know that you will bring this issue to the attention of your manager, and discuss it at your next staff meeting in order to take the steps necessary to ensure a similar situation does not happen again.

Once you have listened, empathized, apologized and placated, let the client know that you will follow up with them personally by a certain date. You can reach out to them after the next staff meeting and communicate what your team has discussed as far as making changes to ensure that what they experienced doesn’t happen again to them, or anyone else. And lastly, make sure you thank them for bringing the issue to your attention!