Write the perfect reply.
A real complaint has landed. Your job: write the reply that turns this unhappy customer back into a happy one. Anyone can be nice to an easy customer — the skill is in the hard ones.
“This is the third time I’ve had to chase.”
“I booked an engineer for Monday, took the morning off work, and nobody turned up. No call, nothing. I’ve now rung twice and been promised a callback both times that never came. I’ve been a customer for years and I’m really disappointed. Can someone actually sort this out?” — Mrs Doyle
01 Your reply should
- Acknowledge how frustrating this has been
- Give a genuine apology — no “but”
- Own it — don’t blame the engineer or the system
- Say exactly what you’ll do next, and by when
- Give her a name and a direct way to reach you
- Leave her feeling looked after, not managed
02 Watch out for
- Sounding like a robot or a script
- Excuses dressed up as apologies (“sorry you feel…”)
- Promising something you can’t deliver
- Jargon — write like a human
- Being so short it feels like you don’t care
A great reply wins them back.
Handled badly, Mrs Doyle leaves and tells everyone. Handled well, a complaint can make a customer more loyal than if nothing had gone wrong — because they’ve seen you put it right. Read your reply aloud: would it calm you down?
Written your reply?
Once you’ve written it and read it through with your buddy, mark this complete to add the stamp to your punchcard. Bonus points if your buddy would happily send it as-is.