Training Course: Complaint management by letter and email

Seminar: Professional complaint management – customer service by letter and email

Responding to complaints in a clear, customer-oriented style, and formulating refusals/rejections in a respectful tone.

Every complaint is an opportunity to generate positive customer loyalty. Polite answers to both simple and complex complaints have a crucial role to play in the business process. Seminar participants find out how to deal with complaints with peace of mind and write respectful, clearly structured replies. This enables you to project a professional image as well as saving both time and costs.

Responding to both simple and complex complaints repeatedly poses a particular challenge in the area of customer contact. Contemporary replies are friendly, frank, clearly structured and reflect an emotional tone as appropriate.

Seminar objectives: Participants review their strategies in responding to letters and emails and learn how to handle even complex complaints in a way which effectively strengthens customer loyalty.

Duration: 1 day, e.g. 9:00am – 5:00pm

Preparation

Participants submit customer letters/emails and the relevant replies for prior analysis and formulate their questions and expectations of the seminar.

Content

The eight basic principles to follow for a contemporary letter and email style
What no longer works: obsolete (e.g. „zur Verfügung stehen“), wrong (e.g. „beiliegend finden Sie“), superfluous („wir beziehen uns auf“) or clumsy expressions are replaced with flawless, contemporary ones
Clear, targeted and precise formulations: drafting letters that are correctly and comprehensibly structured
Sensible structuring and the best possible line of argument
Primary and secondary purpose of the customer letter: choose positive, respectful wording which is not patronising[
Complaint handling: Wording replies to criticism, cancellations and rejections in a respectful manner, especially in customer service
If necessary: create sample templates for commonly used texts
Write with formal precision: be familiar with and apply the guidelines and norms for letter and email writing
Optimise letters and emails written by participants

Handbook, quick reference cards and seminar service

Detailed seminar handbook and handouts with exercises
A5 quick reference cards as a brief summary
Supplementary material and photographic minutes by email
Support after the seminar: simply by email or using the Knowledge Blog – participants are welcome to ask questions and request tips after the seminar

Your communication skills trainers:

Cameron Paul. Communication Skills Trainer and Coach. Cameron Paul studied German, French and Japanese in New Zealand, during his Master’s degree he specialised in translation into his native language, English. After completing his certification in the training of English as a foreign language, he worked in New Zealand, Japan, France and England as a trainer, finally settling to work for companies in Munich as an English trainer and translator.

For more than twenty years Cameron has worked freelance in and around Munich both as a trainer of individuals and groups and as a translator of training materials, manuals and various published books. His fields of experience include the automotive industry (technical and managerial development), the chemistry industry (diagnostics, biochemistry and silicone technologies), lighting and electronic technologies, software development for security systems, psychiatry and psychotherapy, white water training, guiding and safety.

Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in German, French and Japanese, Master’s degree French Literature and Translation, Various further qualifications in the field of training, group dynamics and personal development
Training languages: English, German, French