Should You Fire This Client?
A reader asked, "I have an immediate question and something that has given me sleepless nights. I'm into keeping all my customers happy, just like you suggest.I'm contemplating firing this customer.
Problem is, in the past they've sent in an awful lot of business. As a
company, the revenue is large, but in the first few months of working
with them, they have not been as profitable as we would like them to
be. They are very difficult and irrational when I try to educate them
on this industry, and I believe they may be shopping my ideas and only looking for the lowest price.
Do I fire this customer, or continue spending most
of my days and nights with a very unhappy group of people?"
Answer: Do you understand why they are so unhappy? Do you know what is most important to them? Is it price, or is there something more that you're not providing? What do they value most in a promotional products consultant?
Without knowing the complete picture it's hard to answer your question but... after you have done everything possible to communicate with them, try answering the questions below.
You can use these questions to evaluate all your promotional product accounts.
--Are they profitable? On average can you make at least a 35% gross
profit margin on the orders that you sell to them?
-- Do they accept the price you give them as a fair value for your services?
-- Do they pay in a timely fashion in 30 days or less?
-- Do they respect your ideas and your input without "shopping it?"
-- Do you enjoy working with them?
-- Do they have the ability to give you larger orders and repeat
business?
-- Will they be a source of referral business for you?
If you answered yes, to most of the above it sounds like you have a good account.
If not, evaluate your relationship. There are times when getting rid of an account makes sense.
As a promotional products consultant, your good health and happiness are directly linked to your sales success. Think about what this customer is costing you in terms of time and aggravation, and then I am sure you'll make the right decision.
What do you think? Have you ever fired a client? How do you evaluate your clients?
Have a great day!
Rosalie Marcus
Rosalie@promobizcoach.com
Professional sales coach and promotional products business expert Rosalie Marcus is the creator of How To Make More Money in Promotional Products Sales the Ultimate Business Boosting Program! For more information about her products and programs reach her at Rosalie@promobizcoach.com or 215-572-6766.
Visit her web sites: http://www.promobizcoach.com/ , http://www.promobizwoman.com/
posted by Rosalie Marcus @ 8:37 AM
4 comments
4 Comments:
Thank you for the information. It is hard to think about, but I have done this in the past and now I can sleep at night.
The best reps that I know have a way to spend quality, not quantity, time
with customers to maximize their usefulness to the customer and the profit
at the end of the day. Make sure you do time usage reports on a fairly
regular basis to make sure you do not have what appears to be a large profit
account but in reality is only allowing you to make minimum wage. Sorry, I
don't work for minimum wage. Good people and good companies are aware that
you have mouths to feed at home and it takes a certain amount of time to
spend on a project before it becomes a not so profitable encounter. If they
don't understand, move on. My grandfather gave me some great advice.
"Don't let your customers help you work yourself into the poor house".
Gary Brown
I STARTED OUT IN THIS INDUSTRY 15 YEARS AGO AS A TELEMARKETER...WE WERE TRAINED "ONE CALL...ONE CLOSE" - AND "FIRED" CUSTOMERS (NOT CLIENTS) THAT KEPT SAYING "CALL ME BACK". ONCE WE STARTED OUR OWN BUSINESS AND BECAME "DISTRIBUTORS" ... LEARNING MORE ABOUT THIS INDUSTRY AND WHAT IT WAS TRULY ALL ABOUT...WE NEEDED TO CHANGE OUR VIEWS ABOUT CUSTOMERS(VS. CLIENTS)...NEW AND OLD.
SO, YES, WE HAVE "FIRED" CLIENTS...AFTER CAREFUL EVALUATION AND COMMUNICATION.
ONE OF MY LARGEST CLIENTS ONCE TOLD ME THAT SERVICE IS VERY IMPORTANT TO THEM. ABOUT SIX MONTHS LATER, THEY WERE "SHOPPING" ME WHEN I SENT THEM A QUOTE...I GENTLY REMINDED THEM OF THE SERVICE I GIVE THEM...(PRICELESS!)...NO MORE PRICING ISSUES...
IF I DON'T VALUE MY TIME...WELL- YOU KNOW THE REST OF THAT!
SUZAN BOLSKI
ANYTHING GOES PROMOTIONS
I don't know if offering a guarentee will set you apart form others but it should make your customer you are working with feel good knowing that you will stand behind what you sell.
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