How to Answer: How would you handle an irate customer that has screamed at you for three minutes straight?
Advice and answer examples written specifically for an Aldi job interview.
21. How would you handle an irate customer that has screamed at you for three minutes straight?
Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
Aldi serves millions of customers every year, so a customer will inevitably be unhappy at some point. The interviewer wants to understand how you would handle a challenging situation and how you react under pressure. In your answer, include aspects like customer service skills, critical thinking, patience, communication skills, empathy, and your ability to resolve conflicts. Give a specific example of a time you dealt with an angry customer, and if you've not experienced this, walk the interviewer through how you would handle this scenario.
Written by Rachelle Enns
Entry Level Example
"I would politely ask the customer not to raise their voice at me and to allow me the opportunity to help them. In this type of situation, it's important not to raise your voice back and escalate the situation. If they stopped yelling at me, my first step would be to have them explain the situation to me, so I could better understand the problem and how to solve it. If it were something I could resolve for them at my level, I would do so in the most professional way and apologize for any issues or errors that were our fault. If the issue wasn't something I could solve, I would escalate the issue to my shift manager so they could assist me. If the customer continued to yell, I would remove myself from the situation and immediately get my supervisor or ask security to step in."
Written by Rachelle Enns
Experienced Example
"I once had a customer come into my store yelling about how she had just purchased a pie the day before and it was rotten already. I remained calm and kept my tone pleasant and positive. I apologized for the problem and the inconvenience of having to come back to the store and asked her for her receipt. She did not have it and continued to be upset about the quality of the item and her wasted time having to come back. I again apologized and offered to look the information up in our system for her. I was able to locate her receipt, and we were able to replace her item, and my manager also approved me giving her a discount on another item in the store for her trouble. I was able to de-escalate the situation by being helpful and understanding and not getting emotional in response to her anger."
Written by Jaymie Payne on October 27th, 2022
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