when is it time to fire a customer?

[juniorc82]

I have a customer whom I have been servicing for a couple years. The account is a large manufacturing plant and office complex. This account has averaged about 10-12k per year on semi annual carpet cleaning and occasional partition and upholstery cleaning. At first this customer was blown away by our work ,paid on time , and was no doubt our best account. Somewhere along the way the director of maintenance has gotten comfortable requesting me to re clean areas of the building( sometimes warrented and sometimes the areas requested to be recleaned where as good as it could be done) Im sure I have gotten burnt out on the after hours cleaning and closed door policy which has made this a porty only account which gets to be a very grueling 2 weeks of work each turn so I wont rule out some fault on my end. The last 2 services this company has paid more than month late beyond the normal 30 days. I get a call the other day saying he has an emergency and I HAD TO CLEAN THAT NIGHT! I shuffle my schedule around and get there and it is 60 office chairs thats the emergency. So we clean them. I get a call back to re clean several chairs wicked back and looked crappy probley my fault. I go back tonight to touch up cant get the chairs clean so we call him back and tell him that his chairs wont be able to be cleaned to his requested like new condition.
I guess my question is this, now that I have several good and on time paying accounts should I consider getting rid of this account to protect the flock? I feel like this big company throws their weight around and its not fair that I allow them to do that and jepordize the quality of my other customerswork because this big account puts me into a tail spin (and did I mention they dont pay on time). I am very tempted to tell this client they are no longer a good fit for our company but that big check is so tempting ,but on the other hand if they nit pick our work on the summer turn it will really throw things off becuase we are so busy else where . should I fire this custy?

 

[bob vawter]

I have a customer whom I have been servicing for a couple years. The account is a large manufacturing plant and office complex. This account has averaged about 10-12k per year on semi annual carpet cleaning and occasional partition and upholstery cleaning. At first this customer was blown away by our work ,paid on time , and was no doubt our best account. Somewhere along the way the director of maintenance has gotten comfortable requesting me to re clean areas of the building( sometimes warrented and sometimes the areas requested to be recleaned where as good as it could be done) Im sure I have gotten burnt out on the after hours cleaning and closed door policy which has made this a porty only account which gets to be a very grueling 2 weeks of work each turn so I wont rule out some fault on my end. The last 2 services this company has paid more than month late beyond the normal 30 days. I get a call the other day saying he has an emergency and I HAD TO CLEAN THAT NIGHT! I shuffle my schedule around and get there and it is 60 office chairs thats the emergency. So we clean them. I get a call back to re clean several chairs wicked back and looked crappy probley my fault. I go back tonight to touch up cant get the chairs clean so we call him back and tell him that his chairs wont be able to be cleaned to his requested like new condition.
I guess my question is this, now that I have several good and on time paying accounts should I consider getting rid of this account to protect the flock? I feel like this big company throws their weight around and its not fair that I allow them to do that and jepordize the quality of my other customerswork because this big account puts me into a tail spin (and did I mention they dont pay on time). I am very tempted to tell this client they are no longer a good fit for our company but that big check is so tempting ,but on the other hand if they nit pick our work on the summer turn it will really throw things off becuase we are so busy else where . should I fire this custy?

sounds as though THEY are the ones thats gonna do the firin'.....
honeymoon's over....

 

[Brian R]

As soon as you ask "When is it time to fire a customer?".


Now I'll go back and read your post. !gotcha!

 

[juniorc82]

I wouldnt lose a minute of sleep if they did let us go. For the area we clean and the quality they get I am confident that few if none of my competitors could do a better job for the price they pay bob

 

[ruff]

That is why setting the limits from the very beginning (though hard to do) is so important.

Never fire a client, and don't be in the saying NO business. If you can afford it, give them an offer they can refuse.

Higher prices. Extra $$ for emergencies etc. Make it worth your while if they say yes.

 

[bob vawter]

I wouldnt lose a minute of sleep if they did let us go. For the area we clean and the quality they get I am confident that few if none of my competitors could do a better job for the price they pay bob

did i mention that i lost a SIXTY THOU/yr client cuz i wouldn't go to bible study with him....

 

[juniorc82]

I wouldnt lose a minute of sleep if they did let us go. For the area we clean and the quality they get I am confident that few if none of my competitors could do a better job for the price they pay bob

did i mention that i lost a SIXTY THOU/yr client cuz i wouldn't go to bible study with him....

thats scary because my new big account is a prop man. group of bigtime church people

 

[ruff]

I wouldnt lose a minute of sleep if they did let us go. For the area we clean and the quality they get I am confident that few if none of my competitors could do a better job for the price they pay bob

did i mention that i lost a SIXTY THOU/yr client cuz i wouldn't go to bible study with him....

Well........
God bless you Bob!
You stood your ground.

You may go to hell
and be poor
and lonely in purgatory (well, actually it should be quite crowded)

But we love you.
Cuz you stood for the cause.

 

[Brian R]

Funny...my church guy in Sacrament called me today to get a same day appointment (he has my cell phone....yes the account it THAT good).
I called my Sacramento guy...no way to get it done. So we didn't schedule the job....couldn't do it tomorrow because it was for an event.

The sound in his voice was Tootle loo

Yikes.

 

[Desk Jockey]

I agree with Ofer, why fire them. Raise your rates on them, if they keep you then you are compensated for your pain. If they drop you then you got what you wanted without burning bridges. Who knows They mate even come back once they experience other cleaners.

 

[juniorc82]

I should just raise the rate but Im affraid if they accept the new price he will be just that much more picky and that much more of a nip in my azz

 

[bob vawter]

[quote="bob vawter":1ezsvmag]

I wouldnt lose a minute of sleep if they did let us go. For the area we clean and the quality they get I am confident that few if none of my competitors could do a better job for the price they pay bob

did i mention that i lost a SIXTY THOU/yr client cuz i wouldn't go to bible study with him....

Well........
God bless you Bob!
You stood your ground.

You may go to hell
and be poor
and lonely in purgatory (well, actually it should be quite crowded)

But we love you.
Cuz you stood for the cause.[/quote:1ezsvmag]

well thanks for the vote of confidence...it was a fifteen year account that was dang near HALF my gross.....
and it hurt like hell.......
but lets face it....
it woulda been real ugly!

 

[SMRBAP]

Funny...my church guy in Sacrament called me today to get a same day appointment (he has my cell phone....yes the account it THAT good).
I called my Sacramento guy...no way to get it done. So we didn't schedule the job....couldn't do it tomorrow because it was for an event.

The sound in his voice was Tootle loo

Yikes.

Funny how clients do that - treat you like a fast food drive through sometimes

No matter how many times they forget my salt and ketchup, I seem to always go back though. . . .

 

[ruff]

I agree with Oder,

Oder?! :mrgreen:

O.K Richard where do you live?

 

[FLYERMAN]

It doesn't sound like they can be that much more picky but I agree I would raise the rates and I would put a payment penalty on any payments over 30 days and a bigger one for going over 60.

Give you crew a bonus for working this job and they will/may be a little less miserable working that one.

Also if it continues tell them you now charge for re-cleans unless someone stays there to sign off on the work the night you clean it.

 

[Desk Jockey]

O.K Richard where do you live?

Sorry Ofer! :mrgreen:

 

[Brian R]

I agree with Ofer, why fire them. Raise your rates on them, if they keep you then you are compensated for your pain. If they drop you then you got what you wanted without burning bridges. Who knows They mate even come back once they experience other cleaners.

I don't know Rich....I've found that sometimes more money can make things worse.

Maybe not worse on the way to the bank but it puts the "Bitchy" ball in their court and can cause a great hassle.

I've only fired customers when I knew I or nobody else could ever make them happy. They ARE out there.

You make the call.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Truth a lot of our customers are bitchy, it's the clientele cater to.

If we get rid of the picky bitchy clients we would cut a chunk of sales from the company.

Nobody is as picky and bitchy as those that have had their homes and belongings affected by water, fire, sewage or mold.

 

[renegade_cowboy]

Check this out.

A very casual friend of mine owns a bunch of property that I did all the cleaning for. I always went through a maint. guy.. Which always complained about the price..

So I did a house and he was suppose to be there and pay me... We talked on the phone, he said he had to mail the check to me.. Ok.

2 weeks go by, I leave a VM for him... Nothing. 2 more weeks go by and left another VM..

I finally call my "friend" and told him I cant do work for him because of the middle man lack of communication and the fact he always complains about my prices..

The reason he didnt pay me was because he died... From a bad heart valve.. Died around my second VM...

That is the closest I ever came to firing a customer..

 

[Brian R]

Truth a lot of our customers are bitchy, it's the clientele cater to.

If we get rid of the picky bitchy clients we would cut a chunk of sales from the company.

Nobody is as picky and bitchy as those that have had their homes and belongings affected by water, fire, sewage or mold.

I was speaking of the over the top, no pleasing them bitchy.

 

[Ron Werner]

let your price choose who hires you.
As for being picky, charge enough so that YOU can be picky doing the work, ie do what needs to be done. When they call up and ask about recleaning an area, you can tell them that you had already worked on that area, or those chairs, and that was the best they are going to get.
If you are as picky about your work as the client, you can tell them in advance of what cleaned and what didn't.
did I mention to make sure you charge for what you do?
You don't want to be the cheapest guy, and if your price is too high "in their opinion", fine. They'll hire the other guy and soon realize that you were worth every penny.

eg, I quoted a guy $550 for cleaning 1000sf cgd, vacuum it, prespray, scrub, rinse, move some things, etc. I might have needed to come back and reclean some mystery spots. The owner said no way, too high $.
So who did he hire.. Sears. They charged him 300 from what I heard, some guy so big the tenant thought he was going to keel over from the effort, he never moved anything, just prespray-rinse. Did the work on Wed, STILL wet and musty smelling on Monday! They couldn't get in touch with Sears to have them come and fix it so I loaned them a dehum and a couple blowers and will check with them today.
The owner figured me making $125/hr was too much. Yet the other cleaner made the same hourly rate, just did a crappy job.
Don't be afraid to walk.

 

[ACE]

Junior,
You should leave all those small 10k a year or less jobs for the porty only hacks.

 

[ruff]

O.K Richard where do you live?

Sorry Ofer! :mrgreen:

Not a problem.
I just wanted to come and have a beer.

 

[Desk Jockey]

LOL

You're always welcome but it's a land far far away from where you live. :mrgreen:

 

[Ron K]

"people that you met on the way up..ya might meet them......on the way down" Little Feet

 

[gavin]

We forget sometimes that when people are being picky or not paying on time that they are not the only ones who controls the ball.

if they don't pay promptly, charge for late payments
if they start calling you back four unwarranted touch ups, charge them
in short if they want you to do something, put a price tag on it.

just be upfront with your prices, and charge what your time is worth.

it's the hardest to do this when they are an old account and the "extra work" has been slowly added over time for free, and then it just becomes expected. So I would just bring it up before you do the job again, and put new terms on that specific business relationship, no need to fire anyone.... just a re-evaluation.