Customers can have a nasty attitude for no reason. What techniques do you employ to calm customers down when they are irritated?

Focus on your professionalism and kindness. The interviewer wants to know you can avoid making the customer more upset and calm them enough to get help. This could mean assuring the customer that you understand their concerns and acknowledging you will do everything you can to help them find a solution to their problem.

Avoid being flustered by this question! Have a calm and rational explanation of how you would handle the situation.

"I would tell them that I was so sorry to hear that they were experiencing difficulty. I would ask them to please let me look up their account so that I could figure out a solution and proceed accordingly. If I could not help, I would assure the customer that I would find the answer for them or find the appropriate person as quickly as I could. If in-person, I would offer them a place to sit and a bottle of water or coffee while I went to find their Agent."