I used to handle angry customers face to face, now I do it over email and it sucks way worse

Back when I worked retail in Phoenix, I could calm down a yelling customer in 2 minutes just by being there and nodding. Now I'm dealing with complaints through email at my work-from-home job and it takes 3 days of back and forth to resolve one simple issue. The worst part is they type things they'd never say to your face, like blaming you personally for a shipping delay that was clearly the carrier's fault. Has anyone else found that remote customer service makes people way more bold and rude?

3 comments

3 Comments

williamhill11d agoMost Upvoted

lol I'm the opposite actually. Email gives me time to think through my response instead of getting flustered in person. People are definitely more aggressive through text but I'd rather read some rude paragraph than have someone screaming at me across a counter.

wadecooper5d ago

@williamhill how do you handle it when the email chain gets passed up to their manager though? feels like that paper trail works both ways. three days of passive aggressive paragraphs sounds rough, but one angry email from a boss has gotta sting worse.

margaret_jackson7311d ago

See, @williamhill I get what you're saying about having time to think, but I've gotta disagree. People absolutely type things they'd never dare say to your face, and that makes the whole thing way worse. At least in person you can read body language and defuse it. Email just gives them a screen to hide behind and they get meaner. Plus you're stuck with a paper trail of their nonsense. I'd take the 2-minute screaming match over 3 days of passive aggressive paragraphs any time.