Should You Lose Your (Difficult) Customer?

Disconnet

An email ruined your day.

It came from a particularly annoying customer whom you cannot please.  Cannot may even be an understatement.  You have done everything short of moving heaven and earth and yet he is unhappy.    The sun is hot, he says.  My cat is meowing, he cries.  The grass is greener on the other side, he complains.  And the ultimate: I am disappointed. What you have done is below my standards.  You cannot please me.  Why can’t you please me?  I don’t think you ever will.

You jump and have jumped at every bark of that voice, adjusted things a little, bent over backwards, overdelivered, allowed yourself to lose a little dignity, for nothing.  Your nerves still get frazzled every time he calls or he emails (and he calls and emails to make sure you know about his unhappiness).

So what do you do?

I remember that 4-hour Workweek author Tim Ferriss advocated losing that unpleasant customer.  He says serving that customer (“serving” sounds right, as in master-servant) is a waste of your time, a waste of your energy and a waste of all your efforts.  Contrary to what you believe, he will never be pleased, and it is not because you lack the magic powers but because it just is not possible.  Nothing can please him (was born that way).

Besides, pleasing this customer would distract you from continuing to please those customers who already love you.  Those customers are the ones who should have your time, and your focus, and your hand-holding and all your energy (and not even much because they are putty in your hands).

Tim’s advise: cut unpleasant customer loose, get back your sanity, and although there is some lost business there, you will find that some losses are actually gains.

Kathy Kolbe of www.kolbe.com said in the League of Extraordinary Minds Panel Discussion:  “Everytime you need to compromise yourself, because (you tell yourself) that customer won’t stick if I don’t change my modus operandi, if i don’t work differently….  Let that customer go.  We have fired 30% of our customers since we have been in business.  If customers can really harm your integrity and I just don’t mean that in terms of of legal issues, (but harm even) your personal integrity…  (which) means that you are (not) being who you are, you are not allowing yourself and your organization to thrive…”

We had our share of unpleasant customers when we had our logo design business a few years back.  The range of responses/feedback we got made it a roller coaster ride everyday, and I was at the frontlines.  Since a logo is very personal and some people attach strong emotions to it, which (most of the time) they do not know how to convey (especially since everything is by email), you can just imagine our frustration (anger, pain) with some of the comments, which were sometimes downright nasty.  But since the logos were outsourced to us and we had no direct contact with the customers (that would be harder, on second thought), it was not within our option to “fire” the customers.

But if it is in your hands, maybe you should take heed.  Drop that customer that make you pee your pants (and grit your teeth) and you will find out you can live without him.

As a matter of fact, you can live happier without him.

Article by Issa.  Painting by Danvic. Copyright 2009-2011.
Website: www.YouWantToBeRich.com
Email: issa@youwanttoberich.com

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