The 20/80 Rule

There is an old saying that no one likes to complain, to be complained to, or to be complained about. If done correctly, however, a complaint can be a positive experience for the company or person receiving the complaint and can resolve the problem for the one doing the complaining.

The first thing to ask yourself is, “Should I be complaining?” Keep in mind that the world is changing and the norm for service is changing. As a complainer, be sure your expectations are appropriate. Match your expectations to the service or product you are buying. For example, your expectations of food quality are much different at Denny’s than they would be at Ruth Chris.

Once you have decided that you have a legitimate complaint, present your case in a positive, friendly manner. You want to appear rational, fair, and understanding. Portray yourself as a valuable customer who can be saved by being compensated appropriately. Most of all make it easy for the customer service person to understand and respond to your request.

Most complainers feel entitled to some compensation. The reality is that there are several different kinds of problems that might lead to your interaction with a company and not all of them are clear cut.

A claim, for example, is when something has gone wrong, and there is a clear system in place with predefined solutions. In this case, both you and the other party involved understand what happened, and what the responsibilities and entitlements of each side are. You generally fill out a “Claim Form” and know exactly what you will get. This is not a complaint.

A contested claim is similar to the above, but there is a dispute about the facts relating to the matter that would normally entitle you to some stated compensation. Again, this is not a complaint.

In a complaint, the root-cause of the problem is not agreed upon and neither is any form of satisfactory resolution. A complaint is generally required when there is no clear automatic problem-solution in place. For example, the service was exceptionally slow at a high-priced restaurant, or your fries were served cold at McDonald’s.

The key difference is that in a complaint situation there is no automatic and mutually understood entitlement. Most complainers fail to recognize this. No matter how angry you might be, or how unfairly you think you were treated, there is no promise of recompense. A complainer is negotiating from a position of weakness. In that case, it pays to be nice.

Two more reasons to be reasonable, and nice: First, many people abuse the system. As a result, whoever is handling your complaint is expecting that. By being fair and reasonable, you will establish credibility right away and be much more likely to be satisfied in the end. Second, Customer Service people tend to be overworked, and often under trained. They are looking for easily understood situations with easy, clear action items that they can resolve on the spot. With this in mind, write short, straight-forward complaint letters.

A fair, reasonable complaint will let the receiver know that they have an issue that needs to be dealt with. The problem may go beyond one person’s experience and in fact, statistics indicate that only 4% of unsatisfied customers actually complain. In that case, the complainer is doing a favor to the ones they are complaining about. In addition, if you complain in a fair and reasonable way and ask for appropriate compensation, you are likely to get it.