Last week, I described how a client of mine learnt why and how he had to tell his own customer that sometimes ‘the customer is not always right’. It may require courage. It may lead to a loss of follow-up business. However, it is a necessary skill to acquire in running a business.
The same thing happened this week. I was asked by another client how they should handle a disruptive customer that was creating a highly negative atmosphere, which in turn was impacting on other people. Simple, I replied. Ask them to behave or to leave with a refund.
Naturally, the client was stunned. “I will lose revenue,” they exclaimed. Of course, but they also ran the risk of losing many more irritated but stable customers. 24 hours later, the cause of the negativity had departed…and with full mutual understanding.
The point is that sometimes we are so anxious to win a contract and then please the customer that we often forget that customers have to be managed, just like suppliers. Just because customers may feel that they have the supreme right to demand whatever they want, that does not make them correct. It is your job to remember that and point that out when necessary.
For example, I was asked to partake in a meeting, where a client of mine was desperately seeking an extenuation of a contract with a leading customer. The problem was that my client had failed to appreciate that he had been maneuvered into selling his services at a loss. My role effectively turned out to show both parties that this was unacceptable and could not continue. Eventually, my client realized that they needed to walk away from the opportunity.
What makes us stoop so low? Why do we so willingly abandon our business model? Some would argue that it is fear.
I have just reread a brief article from an Australian Rabbi, Ralph Genende. He cited Tina Montalto, who wrote:
I think our biggest fear is living up to our potential. We are afraid of our greatness. We are afraid to venture beyond the norm, the expected, the usual. We are afraid to be different, to stand out, to be the unique beings we really are. So we fall into the trench of common, ordinary, and routine. Yes, a trench. A hole in the ground. Dug in times of war for protection. Dug in our consciousness to hide our true selves.
Manipulative clients will ensure that you do not have any freedom to operate, as they play their ‘trump card of fear’. Thus, they keep control, but do not move forward.
Genende’s concluded with some practical words of advice. While not sacrificing humility, sometimes, it is only when we step out of ourselves that we can truly appreciate just how much we have to offer. And it is that higher value what we want to supply to our clients, so that everyone benefits.