What is a bad client?
If you are in business then you will certainly know the type of client I am talking about. A phone call or personal visit from this person is a stressful affair for everyone in your office. We all have our different ways of dealing with them, but if not dealt with correctly, they will have a severe negative impact on your business.
In my years of dealing with all kinds of clients, I have discovered that there are a few major areas that a bad client impacts on a business:
- They take time away from your good clients. A bad client is usually demanding and time consuming. In addition, you may well find they are not that keen to part with their money. They want freebies and discounts because they feel like they deserve it. With your time and effort focusing on this rotten client, your eyes are certainly not focusing on the client that is easy to deal with, listens to your advice and respectfully pays his accounts on time.
- They disrupt your business. How many times have you or your staff had to stop what they are doing in order to appease the demands of that client? How much time is wasted listening to this person’s complaints and how many jobs are stopped just to complete this person’s unrealistic and unjustified demands?
- They affect the office stress levels – It might be stating the “bleeding obvious” – but these type of clients reduce our enjoyment and increase our stress levels. This is not good for any person. This in turn reduces our motivation and ultimately can have a major impact on the business.
Sit back and look at how disruptive this client can be to your business!
How profitable is a bad client? As a general rule the more demanding a client is the less profitable they are! Yet we continue to jump at their every demand. Why?
Many of us are guilty of listening to the “squeaky wheel” instead of understanding which clients are really important to our business, and spending our time nurturing those relationships.
So, what is your perfect client?
For me, the perfect client looks like this:
They listen to your advice and is grateful for it too!
They are respectful to not only you, but every person in your business.
Their account is paid on time. If there is an issue – it is sorted quickly and easily.
Take some time today and think about those clients in your business who are having a negative effect on your business. If you need some help moving them on, check out my blog on How to Fire Clients.
