In This Episode

We know you’ve talked about this.  Perhaps even dreamed about it.  How much better off would you and your team and your company be without that one customer?  That customer who really isn’t the right customer for you, but you’ve held onto them for years.  Maybe saying you’ve “put up with them” is a better way to put it.  And it seems to go against every fiber of your entrepreneurial spirit to turn away any sales…even from the wrong customer!

So what’s a business owner to do?  How about actually firing that customer?  Does that seem too harsh?  Not sure exactly how to do this?  Maybe it’s your first time?  No worries, we’ve got you covered.  In this episode we shared several stories and ideas for how to know when it’s time to fire a customer as well as discussed several ways to actually do the deed (hint, you can be creative with this).

Some signs your customer might be the wrong customer:

• Can’t make them happy
• They negotiate everything
• Don’t pay on time
• “Abusive” to you/your staff
• Don’t refer business
• They aren’t honest with you
• Losing money on them

There are also several ways to fire them:

• Be direct
• Raise their prices
• Introduce them to your competitor
• Say it’s you, not them
• Let one of your people do it!

Sometimes you need to do a little pruning and purging in your business and that includes your customer list.  Much like going to work out, you tell yourself all sorts of reasons ahead of time why you don’t want to do it, but after the workout you feel so much better.  Same thing is true with finally getting rid of that awful customer!

Join Us Next Time

Join us next week when we chat about one of your most valuable assets, your People.  More specifically we will talk about How Do I Create a Path For My Best People To Advance?.

 

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