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Firing a Client
It is a tough emotional day when you have to fire a client. When we started in this business, we had one or no customers. It was scary. I can remember waking up in the middle of the night and asking myself why I ever left my regular job to go out on my own. No clients means no income. A truly humbling but, electric experience. Small victories mean more when you have little.
So, we all remember that time. As we mature as business owners, we soon discover an ugly fact. There are clients who aren't partners. They see us as a resource to be managed. There is no warmth or well wish from them. They use us for our service and nothing more. Add to that late pay or payment that is often disputed and you really see the effect of keeping this client as a customer. Hours taken up discussing on non-billable issues. When the problems are not your fault, reality collides with that emotion cited above. You know you must take action.
Firing a client is not natural. It is conflict and most people shy away from conflict. People seek positive environments and skirt unfriendly ones. Ask anyone who has married the wrong person and subsequently divorced. They weren't consistently home on time. There were other places they went to before going into that unwelcome home environment.
Some of us must struggle with the ultimately difficult conversation of placing a client on our "do not call, do not answer" list. Here are some steps:
• Meet them in their office - go to their place so, you may leave as you wish. Meeting in a restaurant allows outside interruption and detail to creep in as wait staff, food, check, and privacy are not in your control. Going to their office is a small sign of respect. Certainly, president's of client firms can close their door.
For the rest of the article, please email us at clientservices@stevensci.com and write "Firing a Client". We will return the full article to you within 3 working days in Adobe Acrobat.
Posted by Matt Stevens at November 20, 2007 9:50 AM