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Why are some people so angry?

We receive calls from many really nice people.  There are, however, some callers who are just not ready to receive kindness or to respond to us with anything but nearly blind rage.  Maybe it is not as beautiful and pleasant where they are, as it is here, or perhaps they are living a life of not so “quiet desperation”.  We have the advantage of distance and of the wonderful training program in the call center.

Our training allows us to give accurate information on each storage facility and equips us to serve by reserving units.  We are proficient in helping a caller determine a size that will  be adequate for their storage needs and guide them to a decision.  We also have the benefit of training and support from trainers and supervisors when dealing with a testy or difficult caller.

Many times the caller is in a stressful situation and resistant to the kindness and professionalism we offer to them.  It often feels like a personal attack and we must overcome the impulse to go into defensive mode.  We must try to stay in control of the call even if that means just remaining silent until the caller has run though the litany of complaints and anger.  If you try to interrupt or even to answer it only fuels the fire.  It may take what seems like a long time for them to get it all out, but when they have exhausted themselves then you can come back in and restate what you heard to be the primary reason for the unhappiness.  Then you can offer solutions.

It has always been hard for me to understand why people get so upset about self storage.  Our Director of operations, Tron Jordheim, told me “they want what they want when they want it.”  I suppose that is the absolute truth.  I try my best to be patient and offer kindness in the face of the anger but sometimes I have to get up and walk it off.  It does however seem like a bit of a victory when they do not know that they have upset me. 

Killing angry people with kindness is a wonderful sales technique.  Today, I managed to get a credit card reservation from a woman who called in and was so angry she was nearly incoherent.  I counted it as a victory.

Written by Kay Johnson, PhoneSmart Call Center old timer.

Thank you for visiting our business blog, an insider view of the self storage industry.

We are PhoneSmart your off site sales force call center in Columbia, Missouri.

Find the best storage unit to meet your needs at 184-02 Jamaica Ave, Hollis, NY 11423

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When taking reservations for storage units, different companies have different approaches.  Whether they charge $10 or $25 or $100, the purpose of the “reservation fee” is to create a sense of commitment.  Some storage facilities, however, do not actually charge anything for the reservation but still require a credit card in order to guarantee a storage unit.  To get the reservation, it may be easy to tell the customer that they can just cancel the reservation if it doesn’t work out for them. However, that is defeating the purpose of the reservation at all. 

Reservations are meant to create a sense of commitment as I mentioned, and along with commitment comes a sense of ownership.  By putting the reservation through, the customer in a sense feels a sense of ownership for the space and that brings them in to the office to finalize everything.  The word “cancel” disassociates ownership and hinders the sales process.  There is no ownership and the customer may still continue to inquire about storage with different facilities.  In essence they are looking for a reason to cancel that reservation by finding something better, closer, even cheaper.  So with a non-prepay situation then, we should put the emphasis on not charging the card and not at how easy it is to cancel the reservation.  It’s a win/win situation: the customer doesn’t feel like they had to pay extra and you get commitment without having to charge the card.  This is an excellent sales technique and can help create a sales increase for our client store.

Written by Julio Montes, evening supervisor.

Thank you for visiting the PhoneSmart call center blog.  We offer an insider view of the self storage industry

We are PhoneSmart your off site sales force call center in Columbia, Missouri

Self Storage is just around the corner at 10401 Rhode Isle. Ave, Beltsville College Pk, MD 20705

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