Before we go into preparation, here's a clue to my approach to dealing successfully with customer service complaints. You need to reverse the roles.

The job of a customer service rep is to manage you. They reflect your concerns with the right tone of voice and will likely apologize for something they have no personal part in. By treating you as an emotional being in need of having your feelings acknowledged they solve your problem to their satisfaction, not yours.

To get the result you want (or better) you need to reverse the role. You manage them. They expect you to want emotional reflection. Politely brush it aside. Get back to the issue at hand. Clearly explain your issue. Don't talk about how the problem makes you feel. Don't use the same language you would with a friend. You are talking to a person, granted, but they represent a corporation. You are in effect talking to a corporation. Corporations do not have feelings, they do not need emotional reassurance. Neither should you.

This puts you on an more equal footing for the rest of your engagement with them and allows you to assume the role you'll need to play to achieve your aim.

