Foreword by Carol Roth
Introduction
PART I WHY WORST-CASE SCENARIOS MATTER
Chapter 1 Understanding the “Uh-Oh” Moment
Why Worst-Case Scenarios Are Important
Good Intentions Are Not Enough
PART II TOOLS FOR DEFUSING A CUSTOMER CRISIS
Chapter 2 Leaning Into Criticism
Step 1: Hand Their Complaint Back to Them
Step 2: Use “Wow” Words
Step 3: Steal All Their Good Lines
Step 4: Never Defend Yourself
Why “Leaning In” is So Hard – And Why You Must Fight Back
Putting Learning into Practice
Chapter 3 Achieving Deep Acknowledgment
Why We Don’t Acknowledge Demanding Customers
The Four Powerful Levels of Response: Paraphrasing, Observation, Validation, Identification
Acknowledgment: Your Key to Handling Any Situation
Putting Learning into Practice
Chapter 4 Avoiding Trigger Phrases
The Other Golden Rule
Trigger Phrases and How You Can Avoid Them: Giving Orders, Catch Phrases, Setup Phrases, One-Sided Explanations
Less is Often More
Putting Learning into Practice
Chapter 5 Divide and Conquer: The Safe Way to Deliver Bad News
Step 1: A Good Introduction that Prepares the Customer
Step 2: A Proactive Summary that Moves the Customer toward a Solution
Step 3: An Empathetic Response to the Customer’s Reactions
Putting Learning into Practice
Chapter 6 Powerful Problem-Solving: Beyond “Yes We Can” and “No We Can’t”
Step 1: Clarifying the Other Person’s Needs
Step 2: Framing Your Response
Step 3: Creating Incentives
Step 4: Responding to Objections
A New Way to Solve Problems
Putting Learning into Practice
Chapter 7 Reframing Your Message
How Reframing Works
When Reframing is a Bad Idea
A New Perspective
Putting Learning into Practice
Chapter 8 Grounding an Angry Outburst
Understanding Customer Anger
Step 1: Use the Highest Acknowledgement Level Possible
Step 2: Ask Assessment Questions
Step 3: Shift the Discussion
Working in the Red Zone
Putting Learning into Practice
Chapter 9 Becoming Immune to Intimidation
Angry Customers versus Toxic Entitlement
The Basics of Non-Reactivity
Putting Non-Reactivity to Work
Can Entitled Customers Change?
Putting Learning into Practice
Chapter 10 The Wrap-Up
Understanding Good Closings
The Right Ending: A Good Beginning
Putting Learning into Practice
PART III YOUR WORST CUSTOMER SITUATIONS – SOLVED!
Chapter 11 You’re the Boss
Chapter 12 Don’t You Know Who I Am?
Chapter 13 The Concert that Never Was
Chapter 14 I’ll Be Suing You
Chapter 15 Quelling a Social Media Firestorm
Chapter 16 Just Plane Terrible
Chapter 17 Anger Management
Chapter 17 Not So Smart
PART IV BEYOND THE WORST CASE
Chapter 19 When Talking Isn’t Enough: Keeping Yourself and Your Customer Safe
Chapter 20 From Customer Crisis to Excellent Service: Lessons for the Whole Organization