It's the nightmare that every businessperson dreads: a shouting match with a customer or client.

Flush with frustration over something gone wrong, the client or customer flies into an uncontrollable rage. Complaints escalate into shouts, accusations fly and, sad to say, an occasional profanity slices what little silence remains.

Although every small-business person needs strategies to defuse and resolve these disagreements, it's hard to know where to begin. Click here for seven responses that may help tame even the most unpleasant situation, courtesy of the Microsoft Small Business Center.