by : Denise O'Berry

No matter what you do, there will come a time when a customer will ask for a refund for some reason or another. Do you give it to them?

That depends. If you have an unconditional money back guarantee, there's no question. Refund the money -- no questions asked. What if you have no stated guarantee? What would you do? How would you proceed?

Your best course of action will normally be to go ahead and negotiate a refund. Perhaps it won't be a full refund, but one that both you and your customer feel comfortable with. The time and effort you would invest to argue over it is most often not worth it. Consider this:

• Determine how much one hour of your time is worth.

• Determine how many hours you've spent dealing with this person.

• Do the math.

• Compare your total with the price the customer paid. Is it worth it?

You'll spend tons more "money" in your wasted time and effort. Neither of you will walk away happy. And don't forget that unhappy customers are the most vocal about the treatment they received.

Listen carefully to the feedback the customer provides you and chalk it up to a business lesson.