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This will resolve the conflict. How to resolve conflicts with clients using the Bower's method. Should conflicts always be avoided

A conflict with a customer can greatly affect a brand's reputation: an unhappy customer will leave a review on the site, complain in social networks, and tell friends. However, if the dispute is resolved correctly on the spot, then the amount of negativity is reduced by 25 times: of all bad reviews only 4% belong to the pen of those whose complaint was “processed” here and now. We propose to understand what types of clients exist, what approach is needed for each and what are the rules of this "game". And as a bonus, we publish a list of stop words that in no case should be said to the buyer.

7 golden rules of behavior in conflict

Sales theory teaches that there are two types of conflict situations: constructive and destructive. The first ones arise when there are specific claims: a defective product has been sold or the deadline has been delayed. Simply address the cause of the complaint and provide the customer with a bonus, such as a discount on next purchase... With destructive ones it is more difficult: the client is overwhelmed with emotions, is rude, no longer remembers the essence of the claims, and perhaps he just Bad mood... In this case, you need to set suggestive questions to get to the bottom of the irritation.

Everything looks simple, but in practice these rules are not enough to resolve conflicts with clients. Therefore, we offer 7 more rules, which were formulated by Timur Aslanov, a business coach, an experienced sales manager, author of the book "Alpha Sellers: Special Forces in the Sales Department".

  1. React immediately. The thought “If you wait a bit, the problem will resolve itself” is the worst thing that can come to your mind. Solve the problem immediately, and if time is needed, find out the client's contacts, and as soon as you find the answer, let him know about it.
  2. Keep calm. Displaying anger or raised tones does not work in your favor: your future relationship with the client will be at risk, as will your reputation.
  3. Listen carefully without excuses. Instead of defending yourself and looking for reasons that the client is not interested in, do everything so that he understands: you are on his side.
  4. Please apologize. Reach out for yourself and lay the foundation for constructive dialogue.
  5. Suggest solutions, even if objectively your fault is not. Any suggestion should be aimed at eliminating the cause of the dissatisfaction.
  6. Provide compensation... Now is the time to reward the client's patience with a compliment from the company. Give him a bonus with a wow effect that will cover the tested negativity.
  7. Treat the argument positively. Competent resolution of conflict situations with clients helps to better understand their needs. And besides, like any experience, it teaches us to act faultlessly in difficult situations.

Recognize and neutralize: what are the types of problem clients

But even if these rules bounce off your teeth, this does not guarantee "victory" in every dispute. The fact is that all clients are different, each has its own "kicks", and each needs its own approach. Stanislav Emelyanov, author of textbooks on conflict management and PR compiled a typology of conflicting personalities, and Elena Ivanova, businesswoman with twenty-five managerial experience, adapted it to business realities. We got recommendations on how to resolve conflicts with different types clients:

  1. Angry type. Hot-tempered and noisy, hears only himself, reacts to objections with even greater aggression. He should be confirmed as often as possible in anticipation of the cessation of the outburst of anger, and then the person will be ready for dialogue.
  2. Stubborn type. He insists on his opinion, is sure that he is right. It is useless to argue with him, it is better to ask what to do to change his mind.
  3. Ham. Asserts itself by humiliating sellers. Ignore the rudeness, compliment and thank you for your opinion.
  4. Impatient type. Constantly complains, rushes and urges. Find out exactly what he wants and quickly satisfy his need. Let him know that you are only doing this out of empathy for his situation.
  5. The incredulous type. Calls into question your words, information on labels, content of documents. Trust him, convince him that you are on his side, and work together to work out a solution to the problem.
  6. Indecisive type. He is poorly oriented in his desires, but he knows perfectly well what he does not want. Offer him 5-6 options for getting out of the situation so that he can choose.

Stop words when communicating with a client

When resolving conflicts with clients, regardless of their type, keep track of what and how you say: some phrases will have to be excluded from the lexicon forever, others should be paraphrased. Together with Leonid Klimenko, author of the program on telephone sales “This is Leonid Calling! "And an expert in the creation and development of sales departments, we have compiled a list of phrases that you better forget.

Prohibited phrases:

  • "You are confusing something"
  • "It's impossible"
  • "You are not right!" (even if the client is really wrong)
  • "You had to do it differently."
  • "I have nothing to do with it / It was not my shift / Our supplier is to blame"
  • "You are lying to me!"
  • "Can't help you at all"
  • "Read our site / catalog / price-list, everything is written there"
  • “If you don’t like it, don’t buy it. Nobody forces you "
  • "You can't please everyone!"
  • "Yes, our customer service is not up to the mark."
  • "I do not know"
  • "You do not understand me"
  • "I can't promise anything"
  • "You should"
  • "You are required"
  • "Are you sure, …?"
  • "You are asking too many questions."
  • "I'll take care of you as soon as I'm free."
  • "These are not my problems"
  • "It should have been earlier ..."
  • "What did you want for that kind of money?"

Use with care, depending on the context, phrases like:

  • "This happens a lot"
  • "You are the first to say things like this."
  • "In such cases, we always do this."

Leonid Klimenko, expert in building and developing sales departments:
- I would not add to this list frankly boorish phrases like “Don't shout at me”, “What right do you have to talk to me in such a tone?”, “There are many of you, but I am alone”, “Complain as much as you like! You won't scare me! " - this is too rare. But suddenly someone says so

It will be possible to translate the dialogue into a constructive channel by choosing more diplomatic expressions:

How to teach employees how to put out a fire

Sellers, managers, administrators - it is their lot to work with conflicting clients. Train them to behave in difficult situation, and then your intervention will be minimized.

In order for an employee to understand how to resolve a conflict with a client, he must understand:

a) in the law "On Protection of Consumer Rights" and know what the client has the right to demand;

b) in the range and features of the product / service in order to answer any question or fend off an unfounded claim;

c) in psychology, then he will not take the buyer's dissatisfaction at his own expense and will calmly follow the rules.

Draw up instructions with a clear algorithm: when you need to cope with the situation on your own, in which cases you should resort to the help of the management, and when you should call the guards.

You can endlessly improve the product and increase the level of service - all the same, negative situations will happen. However, now you know how to resolve conflict situations with clients in your favor. This means that the next debater will soon turn into a brand advocate.

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It is believed that any conflict situations unfold between the roles of the victim-persecutor-savior. At the same time, the parties to the conflict can change roles and "walk in a circle", and the way out of the conflict itself can strive for infinity.

To break this circle and get out of the conflict, one of the parties will need to accept or surrender responsibility.

Bower technique

The technique is simple, but no less effective. It consists in a strict sequence of steps:

  • Description

The main criteria for this step are to be objective and avoid the appearance of emotions. Forget about frustration, anger and nerves. Your task in this step is to describe the situation constructively.

  • Expression

We work with people. Not with posts and badges, but with people. And in many ways, the success of the project depends on human relations... Therefore, emotions are important and it's time to voice them at this stage.

  • Offer

This is your solution to the problem, an action plan. What do you suggest to settle the situation? Describe in detail and point by point.

  • Reward

Do you guarantee success if everything goes according to plan in point 3? What benefits will the client receive from this? This point is tricky, but with experience you will learn to apply it.

Examples of conflicts with clients

Situation one: the client is unhappy with the terms

Classics of the genre: after the signing of the contract, the technical specification changed, and then you did not calculate the resources - you had to redo too much. Bottom line: the deadline has passed, but things are still there. What to do and how to build communication with the client in this situation?

V in this case the client acts as a persecutor, because he is in a state of irritation, anger.

Manager's wrong reaction

Answer from the role of the persecutor:

Didn't you think that this would entail additional labor costs when you proposed to change the TOR? We did what we could.

The answer from the role of the victim:

We tried so hard to meet the deadline, but could not, because new critical tasks appeared, to which we had to transfer all resources.

Answer from the role of savior:

We transfer your project to the outsourcing company "N", we are sure they will be able to help you.

Of course, these sample answers are slightly exaggerated, but this is provided for a better understanding of the content of the roles.

Obviously, not one of these answers will suit the Client, after which even more formidable letters will follow and partnerships will be completely lost.

We resolve the conflict with the client

We go according to the scheme:

“During the signing of the contract, we were guided by a certain amount of tasks, which was changed after the start of work. We appreciated the improvements and fixes, but not as detailed as needed. Therefore, at the current stage, we are not ready to move on to demonstrating the project - some tasks are not completed. (description; the more objective the better).

In the description, there is a full recognition that the performer bears responsibility for what is happening, some tasks are not completed and the assessment of labor costs was of poor quality.

We understand that you wanted to launch the system this week. On behalf of our team, I apologize for not being able to implement the new requirements for the project within the stated deadline (expression; we are human, we are sorry, we are also worried).

Expression allows the Client to understand that we are taking his place and understand how he feels.

We will implement the remaining functionality by the middle of this month. Next time we will work out the tasks on the shore and the assessment will be more objective. (proposal; showing the current plan, suggesting how to adjust the work in the future).

The proposal confirms the willingness of the respondent to take responsibility for the second time and deliver new term- the middle of this month.

Thus, by the middle of the month, you will receive full version functional, despite the fact that it differs from the first version of the TK. And in the future, we will not allow such miscalculations in the assessment of the timing. (remuneration; what will happen if the client decides from the previous point)».

In remuneration, the defendant again assumes responsibility, promising that he will not allow such miscalculations.

As a result, the respondent assumes responsibility, and the exit from the Karpman triangle is accomplished. Consequently, there will be no continuation of the conflict situation and further standard business correspondence will follow.

Situation two: the client is dissatisfied with the service provided

Given: you support the corporate portal, but after today's update, some functionality has stopped working for many users.

Question: how to deal with an unhappy customer?

“We rolled out tonight Last update... After it, the functionality for working with the booking module stopped working for some users (description)... We are sorry that this happened and we are ready to make every effort to rectify the situation and prevent this from happening in the future. (expression).

In five minutes we will deploy backups and users will be able to work in the previous version. After that, we will promptly fix the problems in the new (offer)... Thus, users do not have to wait, and we, in turn, will fix the error within a few hours. And we will also eliminate the causes of the incident so that this does not happen again. (reward) ".

The second situation is similar to the first, in the role of the persecutor the Client acts, the defendant, in turn, takes responsibility for himself several times. The conflict has been successfully resolved.

Situation three: the client is dissatisfied with the result of the work

Given: you developed a turnkey mobile application, but the TOR was too blurry. The client is not satisfied with the interface, as well as the lack of some functionality.

Question: how to explain to the client that there are very time-consuming tasks in the list of improvements, but you are not working for free?

In fact, there will be a long correspondence here. The issue of additional payment is always slippery. But your task is to lay the right foundation for negotiations.

“Our team accepted the project on the basis of the terms of reference for the contract. The main modules were spelled out in it, and you entrusted the elaboration of the details to us in order to save time. (description).

We understand that during the development of the application, your working conditions changed, new ideas appeared and an understanding of how it should look for users was formed. We share your vision, but now we need to decide how to fit these improvements into the framework of our contract (expression).

We are ready to implement some of the tasks free of charge. For example, finalize the design, make some sections more detailed<и т.д. по списку менее трудоемких задач>... But there are also long-term tasks in the improvements -<которые нужно перечислить и обосновать трудоемкость>... We will calculate the cost of these works separately within a week. (offer).

Thus, design improvements will be free for you. So you can start on time and test the need to implement the rest of the tasks on real users. Better to launch MVP, and then evaluate full list improvements and prioritize (reward).

It is worth noting that the algorithm described above works in any communication channel, but dealing with dissatisfied customers on the phone requires a lot of skills in order to keep the negotiations in the right track... We recommend that you start implementing this practice of resolving conflicts with clients with letters, if this is acceptable in your situation.

I have been working as Piem for five years now. All this time, in any controversial situations, I use the method of Sharon and Gordon Bower. Conflicts have never developed, so as a mentor, I teach all junior managers this technique.

Masha Tretyakova,

In working conflict situations, there is no opportunity to act as during disagreements with friends or significant other. You will not be able to slap your interlocutor on the shoulder and say: “Come on, let's not quarrel!”; or hug, let alone kiss and show tenderness. Especially if a conflict arose with your boss or customer. What to do in such situations and how to get out of the situation without ruining the working relationship?

The first and the most main advice- do not neglect the charms that nature has endowed both sexes, especially if you belong to fair half population. Women have an innate special skill smooth corners and reduce conflicts. Turn off the image of "strong and independent" for the time of resolving a difficult situation and turn on true woman, not a bitch, but soft and soothing. Believe me, if you literally radiate feminine and light energy, then your opponent, whether he is a man or a woman, will feel this and his negative emotions will begin to subside.

It is more difficult for men in this regard. Of course, if your opponent is a woman, then you can use all your charm and soften the anger of the interlocutor. If you are unlucky, and the second side of the conflict is a man, then, of course, it will be very problematic for you to find his disposition. In such a situation, you need to know his nature and psychology, understand how he would like to see your behavior at this moment and try to behave exactly as your opponent would like it. Yes, it is not always necessary to bend your line and go ahead. Sometimes this tactic can lead to negative consequences... And although Andrei Vadimovich said that “you shouldn't bend under a changeable world,” at times it is still worth showing flexibility in order to resolve a difficult situation.

2. Don't lose face

Don't let the conflict piss you off. Remain calm and weigh your every word. If one side of a conflict situation behaves completely calmly and controls itself, the other side will certainly become at least uncomfortable. Your opponent will begin to think about the appropriateness of his anger and irritation and will notice how stupid and pathetic he looks against your background. Therefore, do your best to suppress your temper.

Perhaps you did not agree, or you really did something wrong and did your job poorly. Or maybe one of you got up on the wrong foot and just wants to take out his anger on someone. In the first situation, you should calm down yourself and calm the interlocutor, and then together find a compromise way out of the situation.

If you screwed up in your work, then obviously you should apologize for your puncture and promise to fix everything. Here you do not need to prove your case to the last and try to be a victim. Well, in case your opponent is simply in a bad mood, you should silently and calmly wait out the storm of his emotions and come to terms with your role of the scapegoat, because in such a situation it is not best tactic... If you are in a bad mood and you started the conflict, then, it seems to us, there is nothing to talk about. Stay in control and don't let negativity spoil your working relationship.

4. Cunning

Your goal should be to find a compromise that both you and your interlocutor will agree with. But no one said that you should definitely remain on an equal footing. There are several tricks you can use to get more than your opponent:

  • Make demands at the last minute. When the conflict seems to be resolved and both parties are satisfied, you can try to get more. Just say something like “It would be nice ...” and gently demand something more. Most likely, your interlocutor will agree to the new conditions, since he does not want to lose the result already obtained.
  • Overstate your requirements. Well, then, when you see the disagreement of the interlocutor, remove these requirements. It will seem to your interlocutor that you have made concessions, and this will have a positive effect on your future relationship.

5. Wait

Take your time to interrupt the other person and express your opinion as quickly as possible. Let him blow off some steam and say whatever he wants to say. Thus, you will not only be able to fully understand what your interlocutor wants, but also ponder your next words. And also, letting off steam, your opponent may even calm down and not want to continue the conflict.

6. Assess the situation

Have a clear understanding of the state of your interlocutor and act accordingly. If your opponent is controlled by anger, then giving him logical arguments and trying to convince him of something will be a waste of energy. Wait until the interlocutor throws out all the emotions, and then enter him into an adequate state in which he can think logically and rationally.

There is no need to keep silent and keep silent about what you do not like in the current situation. If you are unhappy with something, say so. Just don't be aggressive and indignantly speak out about your displeasure. Calmly and gently explain to the interlocutor what you are not happy with and how you would like to change it.

8. Find a way out of the situation

Remember that the goal of conflict resolution is to find a way out of the situation. Therefore, do not let the conflict hang at the moment when all the accusations are expressed and the emotions have faded away. Usually the parties disperse as soon as their indignation has subsided and do not bring the matter to the end. After you and your interlocutor have figured out what each of you wants, start thinking about how to solve this situation. Leaving everything as it is guarantees the same conflict to arise over and over again until you find a way out.

There is no need to take a passive role and shift the responsibility of the interlocutor to find a way out. You both need to think through the solution to the conflict. Especially if you are the culprit. Ask how you could help the interlocutor in solving the problem, suggest your options.

10. Do not try to get away from the conflict

Have the strength and courage to endure it and show yourself with better side... Attempting to escape conflict will in no way help you maintain your self-confident and self-confident image. worthy person... And even if you can evade an imminent difficult situation, it will repeat itself again in the future and will repeat itself until the conflict is resolved.

If we paraphrase the famous poems of Vadim Shefner, the following will come out: “You don’t choose a job, you live and die on it”. In the days of a society based on competition, you can move from one, but such a voyage is still not endless.

Since the work collective is selected spontaneously, people with personal taste preferences and value attitudes. The latter come into conflict with each other, which gives rise to conflicts at work. Whether an individual likes the state of war or not, it affects labor productivity in a negative way. The microclimate among employees is generally extremely important. Therefore, the leaders organize trainings for group rallying. But psychological techniques meaningless if there are conflicts at work that have not received a way out and resolution.

Conflict is a contradiction between the interests, beliefs, values ​​and needs of two parties.

Types of conflicts at work

  1. Person-to-person conflict is the most common type of conflict at work. It is difficult to find a monolithic team. Interpersonal collisions act as a filter for the selection of personnel. Two people may dislike each other because of conflicting worldviews, political predilections, but more often people disagree in their ideas about how to work. If a dispute arises between a boss and a subordinate, then the positions are clear. The first believes: and does not work hard enough, and the second believes: If we are talking about horizontal conflict (between colleagues), then the reason is competition or personal hostility. True, sometimes people argue also because they have different views about the cleanliness of the workplace, if they share it.
  2. Between an individual and a group. The newly arrived boss acts in the role of "personality", and the collective of the enterprise acts in the role of the group. The reasons in each case are different, but more often confrontation arises due to the fact that "a new broom sweeps in a new way." Another story is when a newly arrived employee manages not to win over his colleagues. In this case, if it is not possible to establish contact, then the newcomer quickly drops out of the game. Nobody can in hell. If a person is strong in spirit and needs work, then he is able to turn the tide and change the attitude of the team towards himself, however, this is a painstaking and stressful process.
  3. Between groups in a team. When the microclimate in the company is healthy, the team is relatively monolithic. There are no cracks in it. It is clear that there is a struggle and, but this does not affect work, and conflicts do not arise. Indicator painful condition the collective is fragmentation into separate warring (on professional or ideological grounds) groups.

These are the types of conflicts at work, and now let's pay attention to those that are more common than others.

If there is a conflict with a colleague at work, what to do?

First, a brief classification of "fellow pests" and methods of dealing with them. So:

  • “Lover of talk or brawler” is a boring type that distracts other people from professional duties. In each office people are "working" - "passengers". They are serving their number. They are not interested in work. Such subjects in their activities, first of all, love a salary. Such colleagues feel tolerable at work only two days a month - during the payment of an advance payment and salary. The rest of the time they suffer from and talk a lot to relieve their pain from. There is only one flaw that worries those around this type of worker: him.
  • - a harmful type. At work, as in the world, there are people who are very annoyed. And they try to knock the rider out of the saddle and plot. A person comes to a team, does not yet know the balance of power and asks such a person to help, and he takes and substitutes him.
  • “Oppositionist or sycophant of the leadership” is a dangerous type (“spy” or “informer”). Two facets of one phenomenon. Such an employee either loves or dislikes the bosses and informs each colleague about it.

Ways to Deal with Human Distractions:

  • Those who like to talk and throw out their own world culture on a person should be fenced off and obscured by an impenetrable screen. In an everyday sense, this is expressed by the phrase: "Sorry, the topics are interesting, but I have urgent tasks, we'll talk another time." The colleague will go in search of another interlocutor.
  • With the second type, you need to keep an eye out and avoid dependence on him in work. Be polite and do not quarrel, so as not to get spanked in the future.
  • Not discussing bosses at work is the main principle in the fight against spies and informers in the team.

So, the answer to the question, if there is a conflict with a colleague at work, what to do, is on a simple but effective basis: “ less words- more business. "

Non-regulation, personal relationships reduce labor productivity. At work, you need to work, not be friends. If a person piously believes in these simple rules, then no conflict with a colleague is afraid of him.

If the soul still requires understanding even in the place where you need to work, then you can switch to “you” with a colleague only after long reflections and weighing all the pros and cons.

Conflict at work with your boss what to do?

One should not argue with the leader, remembering one covenant:

  1. The boss is always right.
  2. If the boss is wrong, see point one.

But leaders aren't all that hopeless. Sane people, even if they are superior, make contact in difficult and significant disputes. First of all, you need to find out what is the reason for the misunderstanding? The fault lies with professional unsuitability, or did the conflict at work with the boss happen because of the personal qualities of the employee?

Personal animosity is a phenomenon that cannot be eradicated. The mass boils down to the fact that an ineffective staff becomes a successful and beloved leadership. In life, the boss is consistent in his decisions and dismisses the unwanted.

The employee's behavior strategy boils down to fighting for the right to work wherever he likes. This means:

  • It is worthy and polite to answer the boss for his reproaches.
  • Keep your distance (do not lose your temper, do not show irritation).
  • If another official rises above the boss, and the work has not eradicated everything human from him, turn to him, he will help. True, the employee must have in his hands iron proof of the guilt of his immediate supervisor.

If there are specific professional claims to the employee, the algorithm is as follows:

  • The person talks to the boss in detail about the problems.
  • A person identifies his weaknesses.
  • A person throws himself into the abyss of labor.

Conflict resolution at work. Methods of behavior in a conflict situation

  1. Rivalry. When one or both parties to the dispute perceive the dispute as a battle. Very tough demeanor. People prove they are right, even with another person - "the winners are not judged." If a person easily and quickly goes to confrontation, then in a team he will not stay. The state of war does not last long, it takes too much energy.
  2. A device. The manner of behavior of an altruist who forgets about his interests and defended positions, for the sake of a team. The strategy is suitable for resolving minor controversial issues... If a person fails during important negotiations, then people lose respect for him. Moreover, the behavior of the one who yields does not always come from the heart. In this case, the strategy is destructive for the person deliberately smoothing corners.
  3. Avoidance. A person goes into the shadows, allowing contradictions to exist, in the hope that the dispute will subside by itself. Again, minor disagreements can be resolved in this way, and serious problems need to be discussed.
  4. Compromise. A person practicing this demeanor sacrifices a pawn to get the king. He creates the illusion for the opponent that he has won, and bargains for himself bonuses and advantages.
  5. Cooperation. The behavior strategy assumes a win for both parties. A wise and difficult move, but not suitable for every person and situation.

As behavioral strategies show, conflict resolution at work exists, but it is different for each specific situation.

The most constructive way to resolve a conflict at work is to talk to a rival (disgruntled party).

Anthropologists-renegades believe: in ancient, prehistoric times, before the appearance of articulate speech in humans, people communicated among themselves telepathically. Then our ancestors switched to verbal communication. Since telepaths are rare these days, it is more productive to pronounce complaints out loud.

Methods for extinguishing emotions in a conflict are based on substantive conversation, discussion of problems, when the disputing parties analyze what they do not like in the interaction and eliminate flaws together. If all disagreements are resolved, life is more fun and freer, and labor productivity increases, the atmosphere in the team improves.

The main problem of people is that they do not know how to negotiate and openly discuss disagreements. Colleagues, subordinates and bosses, husbands and wives - in social and private life - people keep silent about pain points that worry them and in vain, this leads to increased pressure and emotional outbursts. To release the resulting tension, you need to enter into a dialogue with another person. Conversation is the most constructive at work and at home. A timely spoken word saves lives and careers of people. The opposite is also true: if a person is silent when it is necessary to say, a catastrophe is inevitable.

Conflicts in labor and personal life wear and tear.

If the situation is tense, but the matter did not come to an open conflict, then ignoring and silence (if possible) helps. When the opposition turns from dumb into screaming, then you need to talk and discuss everything to the smallest detail. Analyze objective, subjective barriers to a peace agreement between the parties. Understand another person, his

How to avoid conflicts at work? Carefully select the field of activity and analyze the team

Conflicts are part of life, and they accompany a person all the time. And reflections on work and professional interests will not interfere even in tender age... When a person is faced with a choice, whether or not to go to the team, then you need to ask yourself about three things:

  • Do you like work?
  • Do your colleagues leave a good impression?
  • The boss is harsh, but fair?

The main thing is that the answer to the first question is yes. In reality modern society it rarely happens that you can truly choose a job.

The cardinal answer to the question of how to avoid conflicts at work is this: do not work, do not merge with the team! But this is utopia. A person has to work in order to live. Otherwise, he will starve to death on the street.