Disappointed clients? Make it a win.

There’s a scene in the movie The Hunt for Red October, where a submarine captain turns right at a torpedo. The music builds. The tension mounts. We brace ourselves for impact…and…nothing. The torpedo hits the sub and falls apart. No explosion. No nothing. By heading towards the torpedo, the captain didn’t give the torpedo the time to arm itself. A torpedo needs to travel a certain distance before becoming active.

And that’s pretty much what clients are like, too. I’ve heard a lot people talk about clients like adversaries. People to outmaneuver and outwit. And there are times when clients overstep their bounds, no doubt. But, more times than not, dissatisfaction comes from misunderstandings, and whether or not the fault is ours, we need to deal with it.

Two things I’ve learned is that most people really don’t like being a bother, and when they complain, a good part of what they want is validation. Think about it. When you have a good relationship with a vendor, do you really want to confront them? Here’s a second thing. The slower and more adversarial you are, the more contentious they become. So take the time to hear them out.

Every mistake is an opportunity. Maybe not an opportunity you want, but an opportunity, nonetheless. No company can avoid every mistake. But some deal with it well, and some run away. Even if you can run and it works, it solves nothing. You don’t get to figure anything out if you don’t deal with things, and you don’t get the feedback that lets you grow. You just get away with one thing leaving one person feeling shortchanged.

Instead, deal with it quickly, decisively, and proactively. Sympathize, and understand it’s an opportunity to show what you’re really about. People spend a lot of time trying to create companies that show they care. But it’s not just about the fun stuff – the taglines, the marketing, the sales, and the pictures. It’s about the back end too – what happens after the product comes in. When things go wrong, it’s a great chance to show exactly how much you care. Good companies succeed as much in how they deal with what’s gone wrong as they create something right. Both are really just sides of the same coin. One informs the other. So if you want to make it out the other end without the bruises, remember that not all mistakes need be problems. Sometimes, the best way to sidestep something is to turn into it and take it head on.