Customer Service Skills Knowledge Base and Frequently Asked Questions
What is "removing the audience" and why is it important with angry or manipulative customers?
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Some customers have a tendency to play to an audience. For example, in a bank, an irate customer may be talking to the teller, but clearly be performing for the other customers, presumably to incite them, or enlist their support. It's clearly a manipulative tactic, but it does result in longer, more frustrating interactions as the customer spends time in his theatre. The solution is to remove the audience. Here's a quick explanation taken from Perfect Phrases For Customer Service, by Robert Bacal:
Some angry customers will play to the audience in public situations where others are present. You can tell whether this is happening by observing whether the customer seems to be looking to other customers or bystanders for approval or to be addressing them. Removing the audience involves arranging for the customer to be served away from the audience, usually in an office space or somewhere away from the audience. Here's an example of how to do it:
"Mr. Jones, I'm sure you prefer that your privacy is protected, so let's go to the office and we can continue there".
Robert Bacal is the author of two books on customer service: Perfect Phrases for Customer Service: Hundreds of Tools, Techniques, and Scripts for Handling Any Situation, and Defusing Hostile Customers Workbook. Most of the questions and answers in the Customer Service Knowledgebase (which you are reading now) is based on the material in these books.