How to effectively handle a verbally aggressive customer during a support conversation?

When Hubspot surveyed customer service agents for their biggest day-to-day challenge, over 55% said it was to deal with upset customers. While an angry customer could be handled

verbally aggressive customer

When Hubspot surveyed customer service agents for their biggest day-to-day challenge, over 55% said it was to deal with upset customers. While an angry customer could be handled with some practices, aggressive customers can become a nightmare for many support agents. The experience is unpleasant and can hurt their professional reputation.

Handling such situations depends on the company policy. To create this policy, a business needs to consider a lot from brand image to service declining laws in their country.

In this blog, we will discuss the ideal course of action and practical tips to handle an aggressive customer.

How do you deal with verbally aggressive customers?

The best way is to put your customer policy into action. Here is what you need to do if a customer is verbally aggressive towards you:

1. Three strike rule

The rule simply goes like this, if a customer is hurling abuses at you, try to calm them down by explaining that their behavior is unacceptable and requesting them to stop.

If they don’t stop, the agent should reiterate the message and warn them that the support interaction may be terminated. This message serves as both a warning and a notification of the resultant actions by the company.

The third strike is where you draw the line and can hang up or exit the chat. Your next step could be to report the incident to your superiors.

2. Report to Superiors

The agent should immediately report the incident with all the details of the pertaining conversation to his superiors.

Your manager could visit the CRM or the ticket system to revise the case- initial query, provided solutions (if any), and the whole support interaction history.

One prominent thing here is to verify that aggressive behavior was present as reported.

3. Schedule a follow-up interaction

Organize a follow-up interaction with the concerned customer later that day or the next day. This way you give the customer some time to cool off, and maybe they will realize their mistake.

So when such things do occur, your manager or supervisor, or a colleague can contact the customer to offer a chance to apologize.

If the customer is a repeat offender, the best communication medium to interact with them is email, which can protect your agents from first-hand abuse.

4. Deny service

After taking all the above steps, if the customer is still repeating the aggressive behavior, then your last resort is to refuse service to them.

As mentioned earlier, check your country’s service declining law and proceed accordingly.

While you may be legally entitled to do so, think long and hard before taking any decision.

Practical Tips to handle aggressive customers

Always maintain your calm during the aggressive encounter. Don’t take it personally.
Don’t interrupt them, this may raise their anger. Refrain from any argument.
In a respectful manner, ask them to calm down.
If they have a valid issue, empathize with them and apologize.
Be honest with what is within your scope to help them. In order to get away with the situation, don’t make false promises.
Seek help from others if the situation is getting out of hand.
Documenting the encounter is highly recommended.

Final Words

It is important to remember that while you cannot control the behavior of others, you can control how you respond to it. By following the practices outlined in this blog, you can ensure that you maintain professionalism, diffuse tension, and protect your mental well-being. Remember to stay calm, actively listen, empathize, set boundaries, and offer solutions within your authority.