AMACOM to Publish Customer Service Book by Psychotherapist Richard Gallagher

AMACOM is publishing a customer service book by former customer service rep and practicing psychotherapist Richard Gallagher: The Customer Service Survival Kit: What to Say to Defuse Even the Worst Customer Situations. The book explains how to use the right words to turn volatile situations in to calm and productive encounters. And it has the benefit that by learning how to handle worst case scenarios, frontline employees get the skills needed to deal effectively with any customer.

Nearly half of all people working today work with customers. At some point, just about every one of them will experience that dreaded "uh-oh!" moment when a customer crosses the line from dissatisfaction to fury. When a customer makes outrageous demands, hurls charges of incompetence, threatens lawsuits (or worse), smiling and apologizing doesn't help matters. And neither does freezing like a deer in headlights.

A communication expert and veteran of the customer support trenches, Richard S. Gallagher knows what does help: the techniques and phrases used by crisis counselors, hostage negotiators, and others who specialize in dealing with volatile people in extreme situations. In
his new book, THE CUSTOMER SERVICE SURVIVAL KIT: What to Say to Defuse Even the Worst Customer Situations (AMACOM; March 21, 2013; $17.95 Paperback), Gallagher arms customer care professionals with step-by-step communication tactics and specific words that truly work wonders, helping to make angry customers feel heard, understood, and taken seriously. By adopting and regularly applying them, service providers will gradually overcome their fear of conflict and develop a core of confidence that speaks volumes to customers.

A former customer support executive, Richard S. Gallagher, MA, MFT, is a practicing psychotherapist and a nationally recognized expert on workplace communication skills. He has taught over 20,000 people how to take control of difficult situations with customers and others. His nine books include What to Say to a Porcupine (AMACOM, 2008) and How to Tell Anyone Anything (AMACOM, 2009). He lives in Ithaca, New York.

The book can be purchased at http://www.amazon.com/The-Customer-Service-Survival-Kit/dp/0814431836