What are the best practices for managing BBB complaints?

Contact both the customer and BBB to clarify the complaint and confirm it was intended for you.

You can delight both parties by accepting responsibility and expressing empathy, even if you are not at fault.

There is a long-told customer service story about Nordstrom accepting an faulty car tire because the customer claimed she bought it here. Turns out, the site used to house a tire shop prior to Nordstom moving in.

To your success,
-Shaun

Hope the BBB takes it off, if not you have a major fight on your hand. First he good news is no one values the BBB, but they will not delete anything. I had a difficult time with the Franchise owner, the legal department of the parent company. The BBB is a franchise. I filled suit in Louisville Ky Court against them and lost, ( I know I would), I followed this up with a written letter, telling the local owner, that I would file suit against him in Israel, I am Jewish and have dual citzenship, He removed the complaint. I spent several hours researched the BBB and they are a very dishonest business, that says they are honest, They stongarm small companies into belonging and use a very powerful website against small businesses.

Don't lose any sleep over it. I never use it. I know nobody who uses it, and I owned a large business for many years.

Bootstrap. Read "How To Get Rich" by Felix Dennis. Or better yet just remember the camel's nose in the tent story.

Listen, in any business you have to take some chances and some risks. Make sure you don't need a license and go for it. Remember, timid business people have skinny kids. Paraphrased from Zig Ziglar.

I am not trying to sell you on calling me. Really, I am pretty busy with my businesses and consulting. However, I need more info before I could have a greater impact in helping you.

Ask, Ask, Ask, then Ask again.

Bonus:
Here is $10,000 worth of information for free and in a nutshell.

Concentrate on the 3 M's. There are actually 7, but 3 will do for now. These are Market, Message, and Media. They come in that order.

Who is your target market (customer, clients, buyers, users, etc.)?
Tailor your laser focused message for this target market.
What is the best media mix to get your message to that market?

Here's what you do...first, make it an offer that is so incredible that they cannot resist. Secondly, do all the work for them. Make it so easy to make the purchase now that they can do it virtually without effort. Thirdly, give them an incentive to act right now. Fourthly, offer an almost unbelievable guarantee. Fifth, offer a bonus for acting now. There are many other incredible steps, but these steps should help the novice to the professional sell anything.

Whether you are selling B2B or B2C, you have to focus on selling to only one person. You can actually sell to one person at a time while selling to millions at a time. They are one and the same. Don't get off track, what we call digital marketing selling is just selling in print. And that has not changed since Cluade Hopkins wrote "Scientific Advertising." Really long before he wrote the book.

The secret to success: I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with some of the biggest names in business, celebrities, actors, entrepreneurs, business people, and companies from startup to billion dollar operations. The number one reason for their success is doing what they know and love while doing it in new, creative, and innovative ways.

Ask, Ask, Ask. Have thick skin and learn from each "mistake." In a short while, the market will tell you what you need to do and who and what you need to ask. But get started now even if that just means asking a contact on LinkedIn.

While you are thinking, think big and think of something at least 1% better, newer, or different. And being cheaper is not a winning strategy.

Make decisions quickly and change decisions slowly..unless you are actually going off a cliff.

Remember these two 11 letter words...persistence and consistency. They are two of the most important tools ever invented.

Treat everybody you talk to and everybody you meet (including yourself) like each is your number one million dollar customer.

Best of luck,
Take massive action and never give up.
Michael

Michael Irvin, MBA, RN