What's the 'done thing'?

[Hayles]

Hi all

We've received a rude letter, with incorrect information in it, from a customer who has copied in two other people. The letter's general feel is sarcastic and condescending (something which the writer is known for).

I've compiled a response which I'll send to the writer of the letter. My question is would it be acceptable to send a copy of my letter to the two other people? One of the people who received a copy is high ranking in our area and I don't want to appear petty but the remarks made in the letter are downright wrong.

If it isn't the done thing to send a copy of the letter to the other two, I was thinking of sending a short email to them just saying that we don't agree with Mr X's comments and have contacted him to discuss them further.

What would you do - bearing in mind we have to be seen to be very, very professional in this instance...

Thanks in advance for your constructive advice - Nigel, that means you don't have to offer to nail him to your next 8 foot fence panel :-)

Cheers
H

[SillyJokes]

I look forward to hearing what others have said.

The customer has chosen to include people who probably don't want to be involved and are not even remotely interested in this issue.

Presumably you will need to copy to them, however, you may find they bin both the first letter and your response.

[DuaneJackson]

Bit of a dilema.

I think I would post a copy to the sender, and email a copy to the CC's with a short note.

[Catalyst Business Dynamic]

Hi Hayles,

An interesting situation you have going on. I know I'm only young however customer service is a massive part of my day to day jobs as an account manager. Therefore I hope my comments assist in some way.

I would say that an ideal out come would be to win over Mr X after his rude letter. No matter how much you have disagreed with what he said if you are tackling this from a sales point of view it is often the case that people will buy even more after the situation is rectified.

Thus my suggestion would be to say something along the lines of

"I understand completely how you feel Mr X therefore I am just writing this letter to start the process of rectifying this situation. So I can do this as thoroughly as possible I have sent this letter to mr y and mrs z as they may help us shed some light on the situation."

This way the client has been informed of who you have sent it to, the reason why and he also feels that you are on his side,(even if you aren't).

I hope this helps, if not I hope you get it sorted soon.

Kind Regards
Kristian Wilkins

[am:pm graphics]

Some good points made already but this is what I think I would do.

I would send the letter and send just an email to the other two briefly explaining the situation and let them know that you can send them a copy of the letter, if they would like. This way you are including them but not too heavily at first and if they are bothered then they can still have a copy but if they are not, it wont turn it into a bigger issue for them than need be.

Hope you things get sorted out for you.

Pauline
ampm graphics

[Cornish Steve]

Since the original letter was copied to two people, you are entitled to copy your response to them also. Be very careful, however, what you write. While it's important to correct the errors, you should do so in a pleasant and professional manner. Be positive and treat the writer as a friend who maybe misinterpreted something inadvertently. You might even want to apologise for any confusion.

I would not write separate letters to the other two people. You want to keep everything transparent.

[DuaneJackson]

Some very good advice there from Kristian I think.

[Cornish Steve]

I disagree with one thing, though: It's not a good idea to involve the other two people. They should be passive observers to the conversation. Don't embroil them in the problem; it might cause them considerable embarrassment. Just let them see your demeanour as you resolve it.

[Hayles]

Many thanks for all these replies.

My first response was to phone him and tell him I didn't think he was a very intelligent person and that I'd like him to leave the area... but I've taken your comments on board and will in fact be writing to him asking for a meeting to discuss his 'concerns'.

I'll then send a brief email to the other people explaining that his concerns have now been fully discussed/resolved blah blah.

Can't go into too much detail but I'm very glad to have waited before replying to him as I have just found out he will soon be a very influencual person in our area and it is certainly in our interest to resolve this professionally.

Good lesson to learn... calm down and get some advice on tricky situations! If this now gets sorted in the right way, we've avoided losing a lot of money in the future.

Thanks again everyone.
H

[DuaneJackson]

Good lesson to learn... calm down and get some advice on tricky situations! If this now gets sorted in the right way, we've avoided losing a lot of money in the future.

Very much so (because I can never remember how to spell 'definetly')

I was very close to telling a new client where to stick it, but Jacqui at Creacom calmed me down. They turned out to be a good earner and referred other business to us too.

[Catalyst Business Dynamic]

Good call hayles,

At the end of the day we can go home and say what we like about the people we deal with on a day to day basis but there is only one chance to save a client from going else where.

Kind regards
Kristian