📘 Part 3: Complaints and Customer Service

This episode's vocabulary

Frontline (adj.) - used to describe an employee who deals directly with customers, or who is directly involved in making a product.

In-person (phrase) - if you do something or go somewhere in person, you do it or go there yourself.

To get ahold of someone - to find or communicate with someone.

To resolve (verb) - to solve or end a problem or difficulty.

Chilled-out (adj.) - relaxed.

Inconsolable (adj.) - so sad or disappointed that it is impossible for anyone to make you feel better.

Matter (noun) - a situation or subject that is being dealt with or considered.

Maître d' (noun) - the person in charge of a restaurant or of the people who bring food to your table in a restaurant.

To put something down to something (phrasal verb) - to think that a problem or situation is caused by a particular thing.

All manner of something (idiom) - a lot of different types.

Neurotic (adj.) - behaving strangely or in an anxious (= worried and nervous) way, often because you have a mental illness.

Questions and Answers

M: How do companies train their staff to deal with complaints?

R: I suppose that depends on the department. Some corporations have huge complaints departments which just deal with complaints all day long, so they are trained to have that as part of their entire job. Other, perhaps, smaller businesses might have basic training, or they might give basic training to frontline workers to refer complaints to particular places since it saves time and money if they're busy trying to restock shelves.

M: What do people usually complain about?

R: Well, all kinds of things. Usually, it's connected to the poor quality of something, like a product or a product not working as it should. It could also be about a service if someone hasn't done their job properly, or doesn't appear to have done their job properly.

M: How do most people complain, in writing or by other methods?

R: Oh, God, I have no idea. I mean, letters take a lot of time and effort. So I imagine most people usually do it in person or over the phone since that's the easiest way to get ahold of someone or get something resolved.

M: Who are more likely to make complaints, older people or younger people?

R: Well, surely this is a personality thing more than an age thing. No? You get extremely chilled-out people of all ages who are fine with everything, and others who are absolutely inconsolable if something goes wrong, if I have to choose, though, I say older people, but only because they have more free time with which they can complain.

M: When are people more likely to make complaints?

R: Well, when something goes wrong seems to be the obvious answer, but in more detail, probably after it has gone wrong, and they have been unable to resolve the matter themselves. So a complaint is actually a search for a solution when you think about it that way.

M: How do people usually react if they receive poor service at a restaurant?

R: Most just don't pay the service charge and make a point of not doing it or bringing the matter to the attention of the staff. Others complain about it directly to the manager. I think it's the maître d'.

M: How do people often respond to poor customer service?

R: I mean, that could be in any number of ways, really. Some people just ignore it and put it down to a bad day. Others are less forgiving and raise all manner of complaints against people and establishments. It just depends on how neurotic you are, probably.