Every customer would look like the right customer because you are a small business seeking to grow by every means. So you accept every customer, not minding their behavior and pricing habits. Is customer satisfaction really possible for every customer? Well, not specifically. If you’re an SME owner, you most likely understand how necessary it is to grow your consumer base and keep them returning and loyal to your brand. However, some customers are torn in the flesh so much that the torn they bring isn’t worth the money they bring. In this category, customer satisfaction becomes almost impossible. Thus, you need to understand how to measure customer satisfaction and let go of customers who do not meet the criteria.
Customer satisfaction remains a key tool in every business strategy. SMEs tend to act a lot of closely with their purchasers, so coping with a foul one will leave you in an exceedingly tough spot. These issues and problems can kill your business. If you don’t put an end to these customers, they are likely to put an end to your business. Be careful with these 10 kinds of client that your SME business ought to avoid.
1. The Endless bargainer
Maybe your price tags are fixed, or maybe you accommodate some negotiation. Either way, you most likely have a fairly sensible plan of what you’re aiming to charge a given client. However, some customers would determine to stay on talks. They’ll keep making an attempt to shift the price even down to the extremes till you see no gain or profit anymore in the deal. Customer satisfaction can’t be done at the loss of the business. Quickly discard such customers, they never see value or rather, they never appreciate the value when they see one. These kinds of customers show you faults in your products and talk down on the product just to have a price reduction and then, they go back to boost of how excellently they bargained. Eradicate such customers before they eradicate you out of business. divert to somebody who’s willing to pay what you would like to charge.
2. The client in an exceedingly Rush
This client desires the complete package delivered in less the time, and they’re not aiming to take no for a solution. typically you’ll desire to discuss a good rate for this rush job, during which you really should go ahead. In alternative cases, however, this consumer is simply in an attempt to push you to complete a not possible project for low pay, and you would like to refuse the offer. Don’t allow yourself to be compressed into a timeframe you won’t meet up to unless they are willing to pay for the rush work; you’ll just find yourself exhausted, and delivering an inferior product that does not meet your brand standard and then finally fails in your customer satisfaction efforts to please the customer.
3. The Buddy
This client is that guy you knew shortly in school, or your aunt’s good acquaintance, or the person you met at a celebration that only once. They’re determined to use this association to accomplish a far better worth, that simply implies that they require you to do honest work for an unfair wage. They expect you to give them cheap prices simply because they know you. Don’t fall for this one. It’s okay to supply “friendship’s rates” to actual friends and family, however, don’t feel pressured to try and do it for anyone that claims to be your ‘’buddy-paddy’’ at the expense of your business. Customer satisfaction can be for this class of people if only they are willing to pay a fair wage.
4. The Time-Hog
This type of client is especially strenuous once you’re providing a service. They’re willing to pay the complete worth, and their request is affordable, however, they’ll ask so much interrogating questions, make so many modifications along the way, require a lot of meetings asking for out of the world changes. Works like this would wear you out and the project might never get completed and besides, they’re not willing to pay for the extra time you put it.
How do you solve this problem? Define the scope of whatever work you wish to do for a client and make it known what an extra update would cost should there be changes along the way. This does not mean you shouldn’t be flexible but it sure would control excesses. If there is no agreement on these terms, let them go. “you cannot come and kill yourself because of a client”
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5. The Bad communicator
This client sends vague emails, doesn’t reply to your queries, and leaves you improvising. They clearly don’t state what they need or expect. it’d look like they merely don’t mind what they end up getting. However, this can be seldom the case. dangerous communicators will usually refuse to pay or leave dangerous reviews blaming you after they don’t get what they require, thus unless you’re a mind reader, say no to clients of this nature. To solve this, let the client needs be spelt out clearly and an agreement reached.
6. The Taster
This type wants to taste before they buy and most of the times they never buy. They just take the tasting and off they go. Go to a suya joint, taste a sample suya from all the mallams there and walk away without buying any. Won’t actually want to buy, all they want is to taste and walk away. Don’t fall for these types of customers. They incur a lot of debt if they eventually buy. If you must sell to them, you must learn how to recover bad debt
Read Also: Bad Habits you need to kill before they kill your business
7. The Questionnaire
These customers are always coming to ask for the product or service price. Every time, they come to ask for price, enquire about this or about that, and after they are done with the enquiry, the next thing you will hear is, “I will get back to you” and they never will. Don’t build your hope on such type of clients. Sometimes they only use those details to make buying decisions to buy elsewhere or perhaps they simply love window shopping. Customer satisfaction is almost impossible with them.
8. The “I too know” client Yet knows nothing.
This client worked within the business twenty years past, or their recent friend ran such kind of business in the past, or they’ve been reading concerning it online recently. A client that shows a true interest is sweet, however, you don’t desire a client who forms I too know. If they argue together with your strategies, ignore your recommendation, or insist that they grasp higher than you, they’re in all probability not aiming to be pleased with the finished product despite what you are doing. They are simply hard to please and would always pick faults and place criticism.
9. The Perfectionists.
If you know you work well, customer satisfaction is easiest with them. When a client approaches you with high expectations and an extremely refined sense of what they require, you would like to watch out before you proceed. If it within your ability to bring their dream to reality then opt for it. However, if you’ve got reservations then steer away from the perfectionist with these qualities. They aren’t willing to shift grounds even if you tell them their goals are unrealistic not minding how loud you sound it into their ears. Disagreeing with them makes them perceive you as immature.
10. The “I will get back to you kind of customer”
Steer further from the 1st-time client who keeps telling you a lot of work they might offer you if you simply try this first job without charge, or for a significant discount, or give them with a bunch of free samples. Most repeat customers can decipher whether or not they need to patronize you once more after you’ve delivered, not before, thus solely provide them with a similar offer that you simply would to the other first-time client and say no if they keep pushing. They come along with promises of recommending you to many other clients in their circles and all those talks about giving you exposure. if what they offer isn’t what you need, don’t feel bad
A bad client will be a true headache for you and your business. In fact, in an exceedingly worst-case situation, they will be devastating for SME ventures, significantly if it’s simply beginning out. Avoid these 10 kinds of client to keep your SME business running swimmingly, happily, and freed from superfluous drama.