BarbaraVilliers
Registered Guest
Kristine
As promised copy of article. I think all dealers and buyers could find it of interest.
Louise
Why should the customer always be right?
Clive Gott
“The customer is king” “Find out what the customer wants and find a way to give it to them.” “It takes months to find a customer and seconds to lose one.”
Have you ever read these things and thought what a crock of old baloney that is?
It’s all very well living our lives trying not to upset the customer, bending over backwards to deliver their every need, but how many times have you bitten your lip when what you really wanted to do was let them know what you really felt? Me too!
And if the truth were known so has probably every supplier, customer-facing employee or one-man band in the country. When do you ever hear or see expressions like “Treat your supplier with care… you never know when you might need them” or other supplier-focused endorsements?
The fact is, many customers see their suppliers as dispensable: “If they don’t give us want we want, when we want it, we can always go somewhere else.
Some of them are even audacious enough to think that we need their custom so badly that we’ll put up with anything just for their signature on an order form or contract. Not me! I’m more than happy to challenge sloppy clients or customers
The next one I “sack” for not delivering what they promised or for messing me about at the last minute will not be the first. And the last one I sacked will not be the last. I know what I’m worth and prepared to accept and put up with from my customers.
Let me be clear here. Most organisations I’ve chosen to work with since starting out in business on my own have been fantastic. They’ve asked for something and, if it has been within my line of expertise, I’ve provided it. This has been accompanied by an invoice and they have paid. This is called mutual respect.
However, there have been a few clients or customers who have, for the want of a better expression, tried it on. One client in particular, a household name supermarket, took me right through the process of many meetings, discussions and final agreement for a bespoke training programme they required. At the final meeting prior to starting the work we were due to sign contracts and settle on delivery dates.
With the contracts in front of us I was asked when my course notes would be delivered to their training team. As this had not previously been mentioned and was therefore not a stated requirement I said the course notes would not be delivered.
I was told the contract for £18,000 – a lot of money for a one-man band – could not be signed unless my course notes were delivered. I walked out of the meeting without even looking back.
The business was lost but my values and self-esteem remained intact. I suspect the person making the demand thought I would be so desperate for the contract and the 18 big ones that I would begrudgingly agree to hand over everything I had lovingly prepared for the programme. How wrong they were. I was disappointed but very proud of myself.
Similarly, a second company, again a major national organisation, was sent packing for agreeing then constantly changing dates, sometimes at a few days’ notice. I’d been promised at least 10 days work but again walked away. I’m worth more than to allow myself to be used and manipulated in such a way.
So how do you decide which clients to hang on to and which to let go so you can concentrate on the more appreciative and mutually beneficial working relationships?
My accountant told me he used the following exercise. I liked it so much I’ve adopted it for my business. Here’s how it works. There are six areas to score your clients on:
Fee levels. How much is the client worth to you during your relationship?
Profit levels. How much profit do you make from each client?
Do they pay on time?
Do they introduce new business?
What is the potential for new growth? Can I grow the account within the organisation?
The hassle factor. How much trouble or hassle do I have to endure in the relationship? (My friend calls these BMWs – Bitchers, Moaners and Whiners)
Score your clients out of 5 for each category. If they pay within a month you might give them a 5; if they take forever and you have to send at least one reminder, mark them much lower in that area. The maximum score is 30. Decide what your cut off point is and sack the worst ones.
As a guide, I have a client worth a few thousand pounds a year to me, so they might get a 4 on Fee level. But if they need two reminders for every invoice and if they are calling (hassling) me every week or so to put things right or change something I would only give them a 1 or at best 2 for those two areas. If I “sack” them I could spend more time looking for a couple of hassle-free clients who perhaps pay less but pay on time and don’t give me grief every week.
One further thought. Why not let your top five clients know how you rate your customers and thank them for being in your top-five list. For the record … when my accountant told a client that he was rated second the client asked what they needed to do to be first… just a thought!!
As promised copy of article. I think all dealers and buyers could find it of interest.
Louise
Why should the customer always be right?
Clive Gott
“The customer is king” “Find out what the customer wants and find a way to give it to them.” “It takes months to find a customer and seconds to lose one.”
Have you ever read these things and thought what a crock of old baloney that is?
It’s all very well living our lives trying not to upset the customer, bending over backwards to deliver their every need, but how many times have you bitten your lip when what you really wanted to do was let them know what you really felt? Me too!
And if the truth were known so has probably every supplier, customer-facing employee or one-man band in the country. When do you ever hear or see expressions like “Treat your supplier with care… you never know when you might need them” or other supplier-focused endorsements?
The fact is, many customers see their suppliers as dispensable: “If they don’t give us want we want, when we want it, we can always go somewhere else.
Some of them are even audacious enough to think that we need their custom so badly that we’ll put up with anything just for their signature on an order form or contract. Not me! I’m more than happy to challenge sloppy clients or customers
The next one I “sack” for not delivering what they promised or for messing me about at the last minute will not be the first. And the last one I sacked will not be the last. I know what I’m worth and prepared to accept and put up with from my customers.
Let me be clear here. Most organisations I’ve chosen to work with since starting out in business on my own have been fantastic. They’ve asked for something and, if it has been within my line of expertise, I’ve provided it. This has been accompanied by an invoice and they have paid. This is called mutual respect.
However, there have been a few clients or customers who have, for the want of a better expression, tried it on. One client in particular, a household name supermarket, took me right through the process of many meetings, discussions and final agreement for a bespoke training programme they required. At the final meeting prior to starting the work we were due to sign contracts and settle on delivery dates.
With the contracts in front of us I was asked when my course notes would be delivered to their training team. As this had not previously been mentioned and was therefore not a stated requirement I said the course notes would not be delivered.
I was told the contract for £18,000 – a lot of money for a one-man band – could not be signed unless my course notes were delivered. I walked out of the meeting without even looking back.
The business was lost but my values and self-esteem remained intact. I suspect the person making the demand thought I would be so desperate for the contract and the 18 big ones that I would begrudgingly agree to hand over everything I had lovingly prepared for the programme. How wrong they were. I was disappointed but very proud of myself.
Similarly, a second company, again a major national organisation, was sent packing for agreeing then constantly changing dates, sometimes at a few days’ notice. I’d been promised at least 10 days work but again walked away. I’m worth more than to allow myself to be used and manipulated in such a way.
So how do you decide which clients to hang on to and which to let go so you can concentrate on the more appreciative and mutually beneficial working relationships?
My accountant told me he used the following exercise. I liked it so much I’ve adopted it for my business. Here’s how it works. There are six areas to score your clients on:
Fee levels. How much is the client worth to you during your relationship?
Profit levels. How much profit do you make from each client?
Do they pay on time?
Do they introduce new business?
What is the potential for new growth? Can I grow the account within the organisation?
The hassle factor. How much trouble or hassle do I have to endure in the relationship? (My friend calls these BMWs – Bitchers, Moaners and Whiners)
Score your clients out of 5 for each category. If they pay within a month you might give them a 5; if they take forever and you have to send at least one reminder, mark them much lower in that area. The maximum score is 30. Decide what your cut off point is and sack the worst ones.
As a guide, I have a client worth a few thousand pounds a year to me, so they might get a 4 on Fee level. But if they need two reminders for every invoice and if they are calling (hassling) me every week or so to put things right or change something I would only give them a 1 or at best 2 for those two areas. If I “sack” them I could spend more time looking for a couple of hassle-free clients who perhaps pay less but pay on time and don’t give me grief every week.
One further thought. Why not let your top five clients know how you rate your customers and thank them for being in your top-five list. For the record … when my accountant told a client that he was rated second the client asked what they needed to do to be first… just a thought!!
