De-Escalating confrontations is a learned skill and an important part of employees’ jobs.
Contrary to the old saying, the customer is NOT always right, especially when it comes to selling age-restricted products like cigarettes, vapes or nicotine pouches. If a customer is not eligible to purchase one of these products, whether they’re underage or have an expired ID or are just attempting to go over a purchase limit, your staff must step in.
But telling a customer “No” can be a scary proposition. What if they get mad, or loud or threaten the safety of your store or employees? Your staff needs to be prepared for those scenarios, and part of that preparation is knowing how to bring down the temperature when things get heated.
At We Card, we’ve developed a solid de-escalation method from our decades of experience. We call it the AERO technique. AERO stands for Apologize, Explain, Remove and Offer. Let’s talk about each one.
Apologize
Start with an apology. Be polite and remain calm. Your tone, body language and word choice make a big difference in defusing a tense situation before it even starts. A simple “I’m sorry” is a great start. Repeat as necessary.
Explain
The next step is to inform the customer of why the sale is being denied and what the consequences would be for you and the store if the sale did go through. This should be stated as fact, not a personal attack. “The ID scanner says you are underage. It’s illegal for me to sell you this product,” is a good example of what you should say. Shifting responsibility to the scanner, the store’s policy and/or the law is not only correct, but a way to direct a customer’s frustration away from the employee. If you’re not using an ID scanner, it’s helpful to point to your nearby We Card signage and say, “it’s illegal for me to sell you this product.”
Remove
Removing the product from the counter accomplishes two things. It eliminates the possibility for a customer to grab the product and run. And it shows that negotiation is not possible. Selling the customer this product is off the table now, and there’s nothing they can do to change that outside of presenting you a valid form of ID. In the event of a customer going over a purchase limit, an employee may remove just the excess product from the counter to sell them the approved amount.
Offer
Once you’ve moved past the Remove stage, offer the customer another service. “Is there something else I can get you?” maintains a polite and helpful customer service attitude that helps move on from the conflict and lead to a better outcome.
AERO is a great way to defuse most situations, which is why it’s a cornerstone of We Card’s Employee Training Course. We Card also has a handy laminated tipsheet – Know How to De-Escalate Confrontations Tipsheet -- which you can keep right at the counter for employees to refresh their AERO learning. Make sure to review these principles with your employees (even veteran ones) annually, so they are prepared and ready when the time comes.
Learn more about employee training and other useful information for store managers at WeCard.org.
