A Guide to Saying NO to Your Customer

Try not to compensate

Don’t try to balance the bad news by apologizing and trying to hand out free goodies. It sets a bad example for your business. It is not the end of the world if you say no to something that just can’t be done.

Say no as quickly as possible

Say it as soon as you can before you complicate things for yourself and the customer.

It is common to avoid the big “No” and try all possible solutions before disappointing the customer. When you’re aware that there is no value in what you can offer, prolonging the inevitable no is no different from giving your customer false hope. Being honest and transparent shows the customer that you value their time.

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Send them to the right place

If you can’t give what the customer wants, send them to the next best thing,

even if it means you have to send them to your competitors. In case you are missing an important feature that the customer wants, guide them to the right resource or alternative as this will help build a future relationship with them. They will get back to you when there is a scope for future projects or collaborations.

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Save, repeat and reuse your “NOs.”

It can be exhausting to say no to multiple customers in one day. There will be a few days

when you have to say no to many people because of your company’s offers or other deals. Remember that every individual you’re saying no to is hearing it for the first time. If you see a pattern in a few customers, note down your answer and reuse it for the next time the same problem arises.

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Sympathize and empathize

Even if it is not in your scope of service to help with any particular request,express and

sympathize with your customer and let them know gently and politely that you can’t help them. In the end, all your customers need to know is that you understand their problem. This gives them a sigh of relief, which will help remove any bitterness towards you.

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Learning to say no without hurting your customer or yourself takes effort and practice but can be accomplished. What are some ways of how you say no to customers? Let us know in the comments section.