Client Happiness & Resolutions
As a leader, you’ll be handling the service calls for the clients in your area regarding client happiness and client relations! You should have a basic grasp of conflict resolution and handling client concerns and getting to a solution. If the concern is too bad (like a dog getting killed, crazy example but that wouldn’t be handled by you, that would be passed up the chain of command) then that’ll get passed up the chain of command.
Client Relations & Happiness
Click here to see the Cert 1.2 training on client happiness. There is a lot of great training in here about how to make clients happy in various positions as well as what to do when clients are upset.
The Main Reason Clients Will Be Upset:
Not liking the collars
Not getting the results fast enough
Saying they didn't have an appt scheduled when they did OR a DP calling in
Their dog listens during training but not when the DP isn't there
Someones dog regresses and needs some follow up training
Procedure When A Complaint Has Come To Your Attention:
1) Get the side of the story from the DP, EP, GK, whoever is involved and has something to say
2) Game plan what you’re going to try to do when you call them
What you’re going to say, what the resolution is and what you’re willing to offer
3) Record the call
4) Call & follow the outline in the Client Happiness Training
Basic outline of how to handle a client service call:
Before doing this outline and making this call, it is very important to…
Get all the sides of the story on out end before calling. It is VERY important.
Have a plan going into the call on what you’re going to say, the ideal resolution and what you’re willing to offer to them
Set up a recorder before calling so we have a record of it and we can use the situation for training purposes
Outline:
1) Intro yourself and ask if this is a good time
2) State what the issue is from their POV and say you’re calling to say sorry and want get to the bottom of it so we can find a solution that makes every one happy
3) Ask if they would explain to you what the concern is from their point of view
LISTEN TO LISTEN HERE. Do not interrupt them.
4) Explain you understand, you’re sorry and if there is a reason to educate them on anything, educate them on the concern.
Example: if the issue is with the remote collar, explain why it’s important
5) Propose a solution to the concern from the list of solutions we have drawn out
During this time explain to them you’ll us this as an example to use to train the team and make sure this doesn’t happen for anyone else in the future
6) End the call and document everything in AC and pass off the info to the relevant parties
Example:
In this example, I will use a client not liking the remote collar during training and claims she wasn’t told during the evaluation they would be using a remote collar for training.
1) Intro yourself and ask if this is a good time
LT: “Hey Mrs. Jones, this is Corey the Lead Trainer here at Wonder Dog in Nashville. Gabi told me some of your concerns and I wanted to give you a call personally. Is now a good time? Do you have 5-10 minutes?”
Client: “Hey Corey, now is a good time. Thanks for calling.
2) State what the issue is from their POV and say you’re calling to say sorry and want get to the bottom of it so we can find a solution that makes every one happy
LT: “Okay. And my pleasure. So let me explain the situation how I understand it currently, then I will hear you out and we’ll see if we can come up with a solution for you! Sound good?”
Client: Yes, that sounds good.”
LT: “Great. So Gabi informed me that you’re not a big fan of the remote collar and didn’t want to use it for training and that you weren’t informed that we’d be using the remote collar for training. Does that sound right?”
3) Ask if they would explain to you what the concern is from their point of view
Client: “Yes. I love Gabi, she is great and so sweet. I can tell she loves her job and is a great trainer. I just don’t really like the remote collar and my husband isn’t great with technology and isn’t super comfortable using it with our dog. And I didn’t know that we would be using it or I would have done on-leash training. It all just seems a little fast for me.”
LT: “Oh man. Well, I am sorry to hear that and can definitely understand where you’re coming from. It’s definitely an adjustment to go from not using a remote collar to using one. And I’m sorry that you weren’t informed about the use of them during the evaluation either.”
4) Explain you understand, you’re sorry and if there is a reason to educate them on anything, educate them on the concern.
LT: “I took a peak at the notes and it looks like your dog has trouble with not coming when called off-leash. So I wanted to explain the collar a bit better and why we use it. We have to use it to get the dog off-leash and be able to communicate with the dog at a distance. So that way if you’re at the dog park and want him to come when he’s far away you can vibrate or tingle the collar if he doesn’t come the first or second time. And you just can’t do that without the remote collar.”
Client: “I understand that and ultimately that is what I want from the training. I just want to slow the process down a bit more rather than just using it right out of the gate. I do want to have him off-leash eventually.”
5) Propose a solution to the concern from the list of solutions we have drawn out
LT: “Okay. Well let’s do this then if you’re okay with it. I’ll get with Gabi on all this an explain this to her and make sure we get her on the same page as you. In the meantime, let’s focus more on on-leash training for now and then once you have that down, we can move to more off-leash stuff. And if you decide you don’t end up wanting to do off-leash then we can downgrade your program and refund the difference. But since you’re wanting to do off-leash still, we will just slow the process down a bit and keep you on the off-leash program. Does that sound good?”
Client: “Yes. That sounds good and I just want to reiterate I do love Gabi and think she’s great. I have no issues with her. I just wanna slow down a bit.”
LT: “Yes ma’am. That makes sense to me. Well I’ll get with Gabi on all that and let her know what we talked about today. I will also pass this off to the Eval Pro to make sure he’s a bit more clear in evaluations so that in the future people aren’t caught off guard.”
Client: “Oh, Corey thank you so much. I’m excited for our next lesson with Gabi.”
LT: “I’m excited for you too! Like I said, I’ll make notes on all this, pass it off to the right people and make sure we’re on the right page. In the meantime, if you need anything, this is my personal number and you can reach me here anytime. I’ll follow up with you after your next lesson with Gabi.”
Client: “Thanks so much Corey.”
LT: “My pleasure, I am happy to help and serve. Let me know if you need anything in the meantime. Chat soon! Bye bye.”
6) End the call and document everything in AC and pass off the info to the relevant parties
Inform the DP and the EP about the conversation.
Put the notes and synopsis of the call in AC.
This is the a conversation Corey really had with a client in a paraphrased manner. He ran through all the steps and came to a solution with her. He also didn’t downgrade her program either because she wanted off-leash eventually, she just wanted to slow down. This is helpful because it kept the revenue generated by her sale in the business.
Notes When Dealing With Client Calls:
1) Sometimes people just want to be heard. Sometimes people just want to talk to the manager and have their concerns listened to and addressed. They don’t want a refund, a new program, new trainer, etc. They just want to talk to someone in leadership and be listened to. If that is the case, there is no need to give money back, etc.
What to watch out for:
1) There is this rare type of person out there who just likes to complain to get free stuff and special attention. In pop culture, these people are known as Karens. You’ll know this person by…
They complain more than once — Calling multiple times about insignificant things
Normal clients, if they have a concern, generally have one concern and once it’s addressed, they are good to go.
Additional note: Some great clients may have a few concerns during their program and you have a Dog Pro issue, not a client issue. You should be able to tell who is who. If you don’t know, ask.
Example of a bad client: We did a program once and it started out as a DWY program. The woman complained she couldn’t do the 20 minutes a day even though the Eval Pro (Corey at the time) told her multiple times she would need to practice. We upgrade her to bootcamp after a few lessons. Next she doesn’t like the collars and is having trouble walking her dog without them. We convince her and she uses the collars. Next she complains about the trainer training her dog off-leash even though she wanted off-leash and bought off-leash. Then complains after the Bootcamp portion that the dog isn’t trained. We sent a Lead Trainer out to see and then she wanted the LT to be her DP not the DP she was assigned. Still wasn’t happy. Ultimately we did a partial refund to appease her and not get a bad review but she complained about everything and milked the system. She was a bad client.
Example of a Dog Pro problem: We had a client signup for a DWY program and she ended up being too busy between work and being a single mom to do the homework so we upgrade her to bootcamp for free. Not bad right? Then on her indoor camera she sees the Dog Pro sitting down on the couch playing on her phone while training the dog to stay. This is a Dog Pro problem and the client wasn’t the issue here. She had a valid concern about homework, we fix it and then she gets a refund because she isn’t happy with her Dog Pro.
They lie and make stuff up
You may have a client who exaggerates a bit about things, but this type of person lies and makes stuff up.
Example: We had a guy one time accuse us of dog abuse. Corey went out to his home to do an eval during the early part of the pandemic. He was hiring us because his dog, a small Maltese, barked at people walking by the house and when off-leash would run up to them. During the eval, the dog is in Corey’s lap and some kids walk by and the dog starts to bark. Corey tells the dog to stop, the dog doesn’t stop and Corey flicks the dog (it was NOT a hard flick) to get the dog to stop barking. The dog stops barking and the guy snatches the dog from Corey and accuses him of hitting his dog and says he won’t stand for dog abuse. He then calls in to the office to complain about Corey “hitting” his dog. He then demands training for free from us even though we “abuse” dogs. This is a drastic example, but it does highlight someone lying and making things up to get free stuff from the company.
Example: We did a sales appointment one time with a woman. The woman had a boyfriend she lived with. Corey sat in the chair in the living room, she sat on the couch. The boyfriend kept popping his head around the corner to look in (he was apparently insane). They didn’t buy right then and after Corey leaves the boyfriend calls another Eval Pro we had at the time and accused Corey of touching the girlfriend and trying to sleep with her. Note: Nothing of the like happened and it was a complete lie.
They make a huge deal out of NOTHING or a company policy
Example: We had a DP show up to a clients house one time in a gated community. She gets let in the gate and parks in his driveway. Client says they are on the way and will be there in a bit. The client is 30 minutes late and at the 30 minute mark, based on company policy the Dog Pro decides to leave. The client throws a huge fit about this even though its company policy. He tries to block the Dog Pro in and then calls Corey to complain and threatens to sue us for the incident.
Problem clients that blame us when THEY are the problem
Normal clients will have concerns from time to time about their Dog Pro for whatever reason and these concerns are valid and real. This type of client blames us for stuff when they are in fact the problem.
Example: A client cancels thee appointments in a row and the forth week the Dog Pro’s kid is sick and the Dog Pro has to call out of work. The client calls to complain and says that we are cancelling on them all the time when they are the ones cancelling all the time.
Example: We have clients who aren’t seeing results from time to time. The LT hops on a call with them and gets with a DP to get a game plan in place, the client applies it and it’s good to go. Then there are the folks who NEVER practice, have been told by the Dog Pro to practice, they have replied to all the HW texts and still never practice. Then they get mad when they aren’t seeing results.