101 Habits of an Effective Complainer E-Book

Helen Dewdney

• Herausgeber: M-Y Books Publishing
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Seitenzahl: 82

Beschreibung

Sometimes complaining can be hard. You may need some confidence, it can take time or you just don't know where to start. Although written in a light-hearted style this book packs a punch and will help get you in the perfect frame of mind for complaining effectively. "101 Habits of an Effective Complainer" has been designed to improve the way you look at and make complaints. Each page gives you a complaining habit to consider and an example of how and why it empowers you to become more effective in getting the results you want. The foreword from the financial journalist, Paul Lewis, shows how anyone can benefit from this book! Read it cover to cover or dip into it when you need to find some inspiration from its clear examples and entertaining images.

Leseprobe

First Edition 2019 published by The Complaining Cow

The right of Helen Dewdney to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at going to press, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

ISBN 978-0-9930704-5-7

Copyright © Helen Dewdney The Complaining Cow Trademark of Helen Dewdney

www.thecomplainingcow.co.uk

Dedicated to my son Ollie, The Complaining Calf who really likes complaining!

Foreword

Paul Lewis, Financial Journalist

Let me be clear. I don’t do endorsements and I don’t do forewords. So don’t ask. But I did recommend Helen Dewdney’s first book How to Complain (now in its third edition) and am delighted to do the foreword for this new book. I am also breaking another rule – never write for nothing. How does she do it? Perhaps using tip (3) and tip (25)!

Helen Dewdney is a one woman consumer revolution. Accurate, clear, straightforward. This new how-to book should have firms that give poor service quaking in their boots.

101 Habits of the Effective Complainer is the perfect companion to How to Complain. The first gave us the clearest explanation of our rights and the essence of what we could – and could not – expect to get when a firm treated us badly. I used to joke ‘take it with you when you go shopping’. By now, I suspect, just waving it at somebody – in a tip (47) kind of way – would lead to instant redress!

Rights are one thing, asserting them is quite another. Like Helen’s first book this sequel does, of course, do exactly what it says on the tin. It helps with that next step – this is my right, I know it is my right, now pay up.

Consumers who do complain face many barriers. Our own inertia is one. Many people find writing letters and emails difficult and making phone calls challenging. ‘I’ll do it tomorrow’ is the bad firm’s biggest friend. This book helps overcome that. It is a friendly and clear guide to what to put in that email – and what to avoid. And when you have read it your brain should be buzzing with ideas and leave you itching to write that complaint – or response to a refusal.

Of course, once we send that email, we meet the sheer intransigence and obduracy of the firms we complain about. They have devised a whole panoply of ways to frustrate our legitimate complaints.

I used a few slightly obscure words there because I thought this book was disappointingly free of them. Helen writes clearly and easily, never using words that people might have to look up in a dictionary. I thought I would put that right!

Seriously, I looked through her 101 ways and found a dozen or more lessons for me. Not least Don’t be sarcastic (78). Don’t keep on endlessly on twitter (54) – probably put in especially for me! Put in the effort (51). Act quickly (17). Give compliments (3).

Others, like Rehearse (39) and Take names (26), are of course my bread and butter as a journalist and broadcaster. Always good to write down the date and time too and keep notes in an orderly fashion. Good, but not always easy. I know Helen does that very well having interviewed her many times!

If How to Complain is the essential companion to your shopping then 101 Habits should be by your laptop whenever you think you have been treated badly by a retailer or a business you have dealt with. Breathe deeply. Flex your fingers. And get complaining! You can’t lose anything. You should get your money back. And you may get compensation as well.

Paul (fully in compliance with tip 48) Lewis

Introduction

There are many kinds of complainers.

Ineffective complainers. These people moan but don’t do anything about it. Often this is because they don’t know how, don’t know their legal rights or can’t be bothered and are frequently left out of pocket because of it.

Creative, funny and innovative complainers are great. Think of Joe Lycett and his ideas, such as setting up food deliveries in a skip to make a company change its policies, wasting spammers’ time and his infamous parking ticket appeal. However, these complainers are few and far between and sometimes the methods don’t work. Think of the farmer spraying the council building with manure but having to pay for the damage. It’s also incredibly hard to think of something different every time you need to complain!

Serial complainers. These people complain about anything and everything, often rudely and often to the same company. They may have received redress but they just carry on. This kind of complainer is often met with derision and can risk getting blacklisted by the company for vexatious or constant trivial complaints. These complainers are often wasting their time and are not being productive.

Shouty complainers. You’ll have seen these complainers, in store or even on the telly. These people like their voices to be heard. They’ll shout, often swear and try and throw their weight around. This achieves little. Often the mentality of these complainers is that if they keep shouting they may get what they want because the company will want them out of the store. However, this rarely works. The complainer often gets less than if they had been reasonable and polite, the store may just escort them out of the building and most often people stare not because they are impressed but because they are just watching the spectacle. Nowadays with the widespread use of social media these complainers also risk looking foolish to a bigger audience.

Rude complainers. Similar to shouty complainers, these people shout and swear, can’t use manners and can be abusive. This can be in person, on the phone or in written correspondence. It is inappropriate and does not elicit favourable outcomes.

Extreme complainers. These people complain about anything and everything, often without merit and where the time spent is not comparable with the likely outcome. These complainers are rarely genuinely aggrieved.

Dishonest complainers. These are the lowest of all complainers. People who actually make up complaints. Complaining about acceptable food just to get free meals for example. Or deliberately break an item they no longer want and say it was like it when they opened the box. Worth saying this is fraud.

Opportunist complainers. Similar to dishonest complainers but without the fraud. Always on the lookout for something to complain about to try and obtain monies to be paid to “go away”.

Last but not least... the EFFECTIVE COMPLAINER.

Effective complainers know their legal rights and can assert them to ensure that their complaints always gain refunds, redress and the required results. Ineffective complainers can learn how to become effective. Even some of the other types of complainer can learn too. Unless you are already effectively complaining and always getting what you want when you complain, it can take time and practice. But this book will help guide you. Take a few steps at a time and practice. Adopt the habits and you’ll soon be complaining effectively in no time!

1 Keeping calm

This is probably the hardest habit of all! You want, wherever possible, to write, not do things in person or on the phone, so you have the evidence and it’s easier to keep calm. However, sometimes you need to phone or complain in person. When this is the case, keep your voice level consistent. Concentrate on this and you won’t accidentally go up a level and it will focus your mind, giving you time to think and be assertive.

EXAMPLE

Yup! I don’t have patience and I can lose my cool very quickly! On every occasion where I have had to phone someone and they start to annoy me, I get louder! And the trouble is, I have a loud voice anyway, so I just get louder! I walk away wishing I had said something differently or added something. Isn’t it always the way?

2 Practice

Take on a few simple complaints to get you started. Do this for friends and family, as well as for yourself.

Easy wins on these will give you the confidence to take on more complex cases.

EXAMPLE

Consumers have often said to me that they have never complained and just don’t know where to start. This means that when a big problem comes they really struggle. Had they practiced and complained about the poor service in the restaurant or the kettle that didn’t last a reasonable length of time, they would have a better idea and feel more confident too.

3 Give compliments too

When a staff member has given over and above what could be considered acceptable good service, write to the company to recognise the person for their good work.