Handling Customer Complaints
Building a Process for Handling Complaints About Unresolved Issues
This prompt helps customer support teams develop a structured process for managing complaints about unresolved issues. It focuses on re-engaging the customer, investigating the problem thoroughly, and ensuring a resolution while rebuilding trust.
Responsible:
Customer Support
Accountable, Informed or Consulted:
Customer Success
THE PREP
Creating effective prompts involves tailoring them with detailed, relevant information and uploading documents that provide the best context. Prompts act as a framework to guide the response, but specificity and customization ensure the most accurate and helpful results. Use these prep tips to get the most out of this prompt:
Review cases of unresolved complaints to identify patterns or recurring challenges.
Prepare escalation protocols for complex or high-priority issues.
Equip the team with scripts for handling frustration and setting expectations.
THE PROMPT
Help create a process for addressing customer complaints about unresolved issues in [specific software product or service]. Focus on:
Acknowledging Frustration: Recommending empathetic language, such as, ‘I understand how frustrating this has been for you, and I’m committed to getting it resolved this time.’
Investigating the Problem: Including steps to gather details, like, ‘Can you share any updates or steps previously taken so I can ensure no information is missed?’
Escalating When Necessary: Proposing criteria for involving senior team members, such as, ‘If I can’t resolve this immediately, I’ll escalate it to our [specific team, like technical experts or management].’
Offering Solutions: Suggesting ways to provide actionable remedies, such as, ‘We can offer [specific option, like an expedited fix, alternative feature, or compensation] to ensure this doesn’t disrupt your workflow further.’
Closing the Loop: Recommending methods for confirming resolution, like, ‘I’ll follow up within [specific timeframe] to ensure everything is working as expected.’
Provide a process outline with scripts and escalation pathways to resolve unresolved complaints effectively and rebuild trust. If additional context about the unresolved issue or prior steps is needed, ask clarifying questions to refine the process.
Bonus Add-On Prompts
Propose strategies for using escalation matrices to ensure unresolved issues are prioritized appropriately.
Suggest techniques for offering goodwill gestures, like discounts or free upgrades, when issues persist.
Highlight methods for improving resolution tracking and ensuring follow-ups are completed.
Use AI responsibly by verifying its outputs, as it may occasionally generate inaccurate or incomplete information. Treat AI as a tool to support your decision-making, ensuring human oversight and professional judgment for critical or sensitive use cases.
SUGGESTIONS TO IMPROVE
Focus on specific unresolved issues, such as technical bugs or missing features.
Include tips for involving leadership in addressing high-profile unresolved cases.
Propose ways to automate follow-ups using CRM tools to ensure issues are tracked to completion.
Highlight tools for visualizing unresolved cases, such as dashboards or heatmaps.
Add suggestions for creating a feedback loop with engineering or product teams to address root causes.
WHEN TO USE
When customers raise concerns about issues that remain unresolved after multiple attempts.
To rebuild trust with customers experiencing prolonged dissatisfaction.
During team training sessions to improve issue resolution processes.
WHEN NOT TO USE
If the issue is being actively resolved without customer dissatisfaction.
For complaints unrelated to unresolved cases, such as service speed or communication errors.