When to FIRE a Client!
A little while ago a fabulous post from Stephanie at her sales-centric blog that helped us provide better clarity on some of our clients. Not so much the Good, but rather the Bad and the Ugly. It indentifies the top three clients you just gotta cut loose. I reckon she’s really on the money with these three and we’ve all worked for them and if we were honest… some of us have even been one of them.
You can find the original post HERE and a summary of key points reprinted below. It’s a site well worth revisiting.
At one point in your sales career it will hit you that a client is neither profitable nor a part of your ideal client profile which, means they’re costing you and your company money.
Before you fire a client here’s a list of my top three that should be cut loose.
1. The Blue Light Special Client – This is the client who wants everything done for the least amount of money. At one point they stop being profitable and now become a drain. Stop throwing your time and money out the window when you could be prospecting for the right client. The best way to deal with them is to raise your rates until they ask to be let go or start to charge for everything you do.
2. The Sky is Falling Client – This client is always in a panic mode and expects you to be at their beck and call no matter what. Of course it’s always your product that is at fault not them. It’s best to call them out on this and say it’s obvious that the product is the wrong fit for them. They’ll either work with you or let you take the product back. Many times they will not want to look bad in front of their management and will be agreeable to work with you on getting the bugs out of the system.
3. The Check’s in the Mail Client – If you spend more time conversing with accounts payable then it’s time to re-evaluate the client. Some of them may not be soluble enough to support your products or services. Most of the time these accounts are inherited, and were a mistake in the first place, but someone may have been desperate. In this case, finding a suitable solution that works for them is necessary, even if it is a competitor. It’s worth the aggravation.
It’s not easy to let clients go and before you do make sure this is a team effort and your management is involved. It should be carefully orchestrated on how, when and who will do the talking. Diplomacy is the key. Most of the time the client is unaware of their behavior and once confronted they’ll make the effort to work with you. The key is not to burn any bridges, but make it a win-win situation.
Nice one Stephanie – thanks for the great post and again, if you enjoyed this then make your way over to her site. She has another fabulous post all about sales prospecting that crosses the line.
Source Note: Check out the original website post here.
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