Distract Complainants from Feeling Ostracized

We’d like to promptly and carefully respond to every complaint from customers. Constraints in time and money often prevent us from doing so. Researchers at University of Surrey and University of Southampton identify problems caused by this shortfall and then indicate two low-cost methods for easing those problems.
     The innovative approach of the researchers was based on recognizing that a customer might have their complaint resolved in the physical or online presence of other customers with complaints. What are the reactions of observers whose complaints are not resolved?
     The researchers’ answer is that these observers generally perceive they’ve been socially excluded. Social exclusion produces the painful feeling of ostracism. A common reaction of an ostracized individual is striving to restore control of the situation. In the case of an observer who sees another’s complaint being resolved, the effort to restore control can consist of escalating the extent or the intensity of their own complaints.
     The problems are aggravated if someone who registers a complaint later has their complaint addressed prior to that of the observer who complained earlier. This could easily happen with a situation such as a cancelled airflight. For one thing, many complainants will descend on the limited number of staff simultaneously. For another thing, some of the remedies, such as rebooking on a frequently flown route, are quicker to arrange. Still, one takeaway from the research study is to, insofar as possible, adhere to first-in-first-out addressing of complaints.
     The other low-cost method for easing the problems consists of distraction. In the study, participants were asked to imagine a situation in which they returned to a gym to complain about being overcharged for enrollment and while waiting for a resolution, observed another customer registering the same complaint. Those study participants assigned to complete a distracting activity during the wait reported less upset when served out of turn compared to reports from those participants not assigned to complete the activity. The activity consisted of slowly paging through a slide presentation which showed what to eat before workouts. The researchers say this helped because the activity distracted from preoccupation with perceptions of exclusion.
     Resolving a complaint is an opportunity for the organization to build good will. Don’t allow perceptions of exclusion to spoil the gains.

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Image at top of post based on photo by Jalil Saeidi from Unsplash