When you are upset at a business there are many things you can do. There are also many emotions that come into play. One of the most popular ones is to voice your feedback in the form of a customer complaint.
It's a natural reaction to poor service. Having the desire to file a complaint against a business does not make you a bad person. It also does not make you a bad customer.
Ultimately, it means the company did not meet your expectations and you want to let them know. Many businesses each year receive complaints from their customers. So, they should know how to handle the by now.
If you have gotten to the point where you are upset at a business, the answer is quite simple. You start by contacting the company, then escalate to social media, and finally use a complaint website.
Here are 7 more ways you can create a complaint that matters quickly and easily.
Use a complaints website : We recommend using a customer complaints website to file your business complaint. This is the fastest and easiest way to file a complaint. It will take you less time and most complaint websites want you to complain. This is different than most companies which make it difficult to contact them let alone provide them constructive feedback. There are hundreds of these online to choose from, so do some searching to find the one that is right for you.
Call the company: You should always try to contact the business too. It's the right thing to do and morally you should at least give the company a chance to respond to your complaint. Although many companies make it very difficult to complain to them, most companies like Walmart have their contact info listed publicly. Other businesses like Burger King even have online feedback forms to make complaining easier.
Email customer service: Email is a great way to send a complaint, but the success rate is low. Most companies do not respond quickly and very few of them take customer feedback seriously. The other challenge with this method of filing is that almost every company tries to route your complaint through some kind of an automated system. Good luck finding a working complaints email address on a corporate website.
Get the government involved: Use a government complaints organization like the FTC is an easy way to file a complaint. The government, unfortunately, is even slower than other methods of complaining. Do not expect to hear back anytime soon. This is a last resort but one that you should follow if you feel like something illegal or dangerous has occurred. The government has many complaint resources to help you too.
Write a complaint letter: Similar to emailing the business, writing a complaint letter is a good way to vent your emotions and capture your feedback. There are many good templates out there (including the one linked to in the previous sentence) and the letter ensures that you have a hard copy of your complaint saved in case you need it later. The downside of this method is that businesses today do not like paper trails, your complaint will likely be ignored or even trashed.
Complain on social media: Facebook and Twitter are two new ways to file a complaint that many customers have found useful. Although social media channels have only been around for a few years, they offer an instant way to communicate with a business. Many customers are using social websites to file business complaints. There are many benefits to this, as it's difficult for a business to ignore you when you post something on their public Facebook page or on Twitter.
Write a blog post: The last way to submit a complaint about a business is to create your own personal blog post, similar to the one you are reading now. By posting a complaint on your own website, you ensure it cannot be ignored forever. It's easy to create a free blog online, if you are interested in going this route.
Although, I would recommend only doing this if you really feel like the business has wronged you in a major way. It's very time consuming and the least convenient way to complain. Still, it allows you to create a large platform to get the attention of the business in question.
If you are upset at a business there is no reason to run and hide. You are a customer and have the right to voice your complaint anywhere you want.
Whether it is online or offline, the most important thing to remember is to be kind and be truthful. Lying about what happened or creating a fake story to ruin a companies reputation hurts everyone, including people like me.
So use this information wisely, and best of luck with your complaint.
