.jpg){kind=logo}
Some customers are super abusive and entitled. How?
I own and manage 7 self storage facilities in upstate NY and PA. We pride ourselves on the best customer service around. Always smiling. Always very respectful. We go out of our way to make things right when we mess up. We also fight hard for rentals and new customers because we need them too survive. But a lot of customers are super entitled and down right mean.
Best Answer
Original question post:
I fired a customer today - don't be afraid to stand up to abusive customers in your business (no matter how bad you need their money)
I own and manage 7 self storage facilities in upstate NY and PA. We pride ourselves on the best customer service around. Always smiling. Always very respectful. We go out of our way to make things right when we mess up. We also fight hard for rentals and new customers because we need them too survive.
But a lot of customers are super entitled and down right mean. It sounds silly but some use controlling and emotionally abusive tactics to get refunds, take advantage or get their way.
We had a customer who fell behind on rent. When we reached out she was upset about the lack of a rope hanging down from her unit door. Claimed she couldn't use it properly. Claimed we were discriminating against her for this reason or that reason. She continued to harass our customer service rep with a lot of offensive language and threats on the phone. I had our maintenance guy stop by and install a rope (this was her first complaint on the matter) and then I called her personally.
She insulted me. She spoke to me like I was 5 years old. She used a lot of profanity. She threatened online reviews. She threatened lawsuites. It was a wild conversation.
At the end of her lecture she demanded 2 free months of storage and a reduced rate moving forward. If we didn't comply she would sue us.
So I told her the address of my attorney and asked her to send a formal letter to him with any grievances and told her she has 30 days to get her stuff off my property. I thanked her for her time and for giving us a shot but made it clear we were not willing to do business with her anymore.
Other points
Totally agree with this. Recently had a customer complain that we did the same service we had done for them for the last 4 years but this time they'd asked us to do a cheaper service. An honest mistake, we refunded the difference in price (about $30). That wasn't good enough. This customer wanted their entire bill ($150) refunded. So we said okay, we'll give you your refund. But it's clear we're not a good fit so we won't be doing business together any more.
Every business should do this. People like that should find they just can't live normal lives, because nobody will put up with their bullshit.
When I worked tech support, I always said customer-facing workers are on the front lines of our nation's war on mental illness. We must fulfill our duty in this vital role! Get people help if possible (preferably have them institutionalized until they learn to behave), but first and foremost refuse their business. No cable for them. No rentals. No hotel rooms. Fuck those people, they get nothing. They deserve nothing.
Question asked by
u/sweatystartup
Date
June 28, 2020 at 8:15:43 PM