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Advise on horrible customer

DPD

New Member
First, take stock of the way you do business with this customer. Either it's you or it's him or it's both of you or you just are perplexed by the whole thing. If it's you, then he's actually helping you, although the way he said it leaves a lot to be desired. If you are doing what you can and not meeting his expectations then you will lose this customer - price is not an issue here - its your ability to deliver. It could be that your company simply can't deliver and he needs someone else that can. Usually, the answer is simple.
 

Stacey K

I like making signs
Is he giving you reasonable deadlines or does he literally expect you to drop everything and complete his order? If its a case of "his lack of planning isn't your emergency" then he's being unreasonable and some time lines need to be set in place.
 

rydods

Member for quite some time.
Does he have a Boss? is the person you started this relationship with still there?
While he is "currently" the point of contact, see if there is someone else to deal with. schedule a meeting with his boss, print out the correspondences and ask them how THEY would handle this situation and THEY would like the future interactions to be done.


Several years ago we were doing an installation and while on location the shift supervisor for the company was making off-colored comments about 2 of our crew members.
we initiated a meeting with the higher-ups, it turned into a situation of "he said / they said" and while they claimed they handled this matter "internally", we have had ZERO orders from them as a customer since the meeting.

That being said, we have since started recording (video and audio) ALL installations.
His Grandfather is the head of the company. He's 90 and I've seen and heard from him less and less. The grandson is the future of the company for sure. There are people within the company that I deal with on a daily basis but the grandson oversees most everything. He can be a decent guy but he can be a tyrant sometimes.
 

Notarealsignguy

Arial - it's almost helvetica
Andy, it's way too early to be drinking already.
2016_Sam_the_Eagle_-_Weirdos__44473.1524855938.175.175.jpg
 

2B

Active Member
His Grandfather is the head of the company. He's 90 and I've seen and heard from him less and less. The grandson is the future of the company for sure. There are people within the company that I deal with on a daily basis but the grandson oversees most everything. He can be a decent guy but he can be a tyrant sometimes.
Best of luck.....
In the end, if you are not comfortable with how they act, then do not be a part of the situation

Create an order of operations, what is done in each step/stage, and listing what is needed at each step to move to the next stage (from both parties)
ask them if they have suggestions to improve the efficiency that allows ALL parties a good relationship

A good rule to implement from Tim Ferriss
The Customer is Not Always Right — “Fire” High-Maintenance Customers:
Not all customers are created equal. Apply the 80/20 principle to time consumption: What 20% of people (customers) are consuming 80% of your time? Put high-maintenance, low-profit customers on auto-pilot–process orders but don’t pursue them or check up on them–and “fire” high-maintenance, high-profit customers by sending a memo detailing how a change in the business model requires a few new policies: how often and how to communicate, standardized pricing and order process, etc. Indicate that, for those clients whose needs are incompatible with these new policies, you are happy to introduce other providers. “But what if my largest customer consumes all of my time?” Recognize that 1) without time, you cannot scale your company (and, oftentimes, life) beyond that customer, and 2) people, even good people, will unknowingly abuse your time to the extent that you let them. Set good rules for all involved to minimize back-and-forth and meaningless communication.
 

Gino

Premium Subscriber
Andy D will stick that thing of his anywhere he can. Sorry but it's not what you think it is. Just look at it from a different angle. Andy needs to spend more time with his wife, girlfriend or, Val47 needs to send him some pics.
Looks like he swallowed someone's balls. Same difference.
 

Val47

New Member
Andy D will stick that thing of his anywhere he can. Sorry but it's not what you think it is. Just look at it from a different angle. Andy needs to spend more time with his wife, girlfriend or, Val47 needs to send him some pics.
pictures of squirrels, eating nuts and seeds
 

rydods

Member for quite some time.
Is he giving you reasonable deadlines or does he literally expect you to drop everything and complete his order? If its a case of "his lack of planning isn't your emergency" then he's being unreasonable and some time lines need to be set in place.
I would say the deadlines are reasonable and doesn't necessarily expect me to drop everything but he does feel he should get a bit more attention. I would say his expectations is to have a proof for just about anything within 24 hours. Be on point with the design he was expecting. (This is where we fell off the tracks) His communication of things is not very direct. It's like he likes to try to talk with dialect that is beyond what he was taught in school because it's supposed to be professional or something. Most of the time, I have my entire staff reading his emails to make sure I understand it correctly. He also clearly doesn't communicate things to his workers or they just don't care but by the time I get the message or finally get the design right, now we're behind.
 

visual800

Active Member
I would dump his a$$ 50% sales or not. Im not kissing up to someone that is rude and unprofessional. Thats my opinion. Whatever you lose in your business will come back around from a new source.
 
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