Be prompt - Concerns must be responded to as quickly as possible. The majority of customers will expect a response within 24 hrs. Very fast responses elicit the “wow” response from customers that helps them overlook the issue in the first place. 90% of customers who receive a prompt and personal response will be satisfied with the resolution even if their concern itself was not resolved. 

Be personal - Your response cannot seem automated. The best responses will parrot back the concern that the customer had and then address it. Over 82% of people who receive a generic, automated response feel that their concern was never addressed and are dissatisfied with the support given. Use your name and theirs, if available. 

Open the conversation - The best responses are those that facilitate an actual conversation with the guest. If you can get them talking to you, you’re starting to build that one-on-one relationship that guests crave for with a business. You’ll make them feel like a VIP every time they come back because they know you. Avoid messages that shut down the conversation like “Thanks.” or “We’ll try and do better”. These are one-sided and don’t encourage a response from the guest. 

Admit mistakes and avoid combativeness - You won’t agree with every guest every time. The best thing to do is take out your personal bias as someone deeply involved with the business and admit that you’re human. Guests love to hear businesses admit that they don’t always get things right because it validates their feedback and makes them feel valued for giving it in the first place. Make sure that you keep your cool when responding because an overly-emotional response can make a bad situation worse. Respond as if everyone in the world is going to see your response and judge your business based solely on that response (in today’s world of viral social media, that is more of a possibility than ever).

Explain next steps - Once you’ve clearly identified and apologized for the error, let the customer know what you’re going to do about it. Are you going to change something about your operations? Are you going to speak to the staff about it? Are you going to meet with the chef to see how you could improve the menu? This is what seals the deal for the customer. When they know that you have plans to actually do something about fixing the problem, they are much more likely to return because they know their next visit will be different! Plus, they feel much more connected to the brand because when they are a small part of making it better.

Make it up to them - If the customer has had to pay a price because of the service error (lost time because of a long wait, money spent for bad food, etc), try and make it up to them by compensating them with something that makes sense for the circumstance.