Recognise that upset customers want to:

• Be listened to and taken seriously
• Have their problems understood and their distress relieved
• Be compensated for their losses
• Be reassured that you will handle their problems quickly
• Avoid further inconvenience
• Be treated with respect
• Know that the person responsible understands that a problem happened
• Be assured that the problem/s won’t happen again

You may not, of course, be able to give all that is wanted. 

Sometimes we need to draw the line between the upset customer with a legitimate problem and the chronic complainer who consumes our time with unreasonable demands.stop complaining.
First, make sure you’ve got a chronic complainer.  Here’s how you can tell:

• They whinge about the way others speak and act toward them, and anything else they happen to think of.
• They blame everything on someone else and don’t think about what they do to correct the situation.
• They often fail to discuss their problems with the right people.  Instead, they moan to those who can’t do much to help them with their complaints.
• You’ve tried the usual approaches and nothing seems to work.

Either this fellow is dead or my watch has stopped...Groucho Marx

Walk down your street or through your local shopping centre and look for enthusiastic retailers.  You'll have to check your watch.  It's as though the majority of them have been hit by a time delay spray.
Ardour; Fanaticism; Ebullience; Devotion; Eagerness; Excitement; Verve; Willingness; Eccentricity; Help; Devotion; Co-operation; Intensity; Obsessiveness; Vitality.
Do you think that's a tad over the top?  Perhaps you're scared of having this effect on people.

Customers wake up to yourselves!   We are constantly hearing about the less than average service you experience in shops.  Clever shop owners are doing their utmost to make your shopping experience an enjoyable one - they're picking the right location for you; decorating the shop to delight you; have the music you like playing whilst you browse; stocking just the right products for you; pricing products at a pricepoint that appeals to you; employing and training staff on how to best take care of you.   And what are you doing?  You're talking, talking, talking on your ROTTEN MOBILE PHONES - expecting to get A1 service!
Are you mad?  Ever heard of the word discourteous?   Actually, let me be blunt ... it's just BLOODY RUDE!!
IF you want service, do you think there is a slight possibility that you could exist for a wee while without the phone glued to your ear?  Makes it rather difficult for staff to assist you. 

Retailers live or die based on one thing and one thing only - customer loyalty. While location, location, location is the mantra, and great margins help a lot, it is the repeat customer and word of mouth generated by loyal customers that drives true retail success.

It seems as though we are constantly faced with the issue of trying to find new customers. Most of us are obsessed with making sure our advertising, displays, and pricing all “scream out” to attract new customers. This focus on pursuing new customers is necessary, but, at the same time, it can wind up hurting us. Perhaps our focus really should be on the 20% of our clients who currently are our best customers.
This idea of focusing on the best current customers should be seen as an on-going opportunity.