Avoiding the Bad Customer
Many Americans value their homes as sacred spaces; if they feel they’re getting anything less than a perfect product and process, it’s a personal affront. Dealing with this type of client – let’s call her Ms. Jones – creates a paradox.
She can be difficult to please and expensive if something goes wrong. On the other hand, if you do a good job for her, there’s a high likelihood she won’t shut up about what a great granite guy you are, because it proves that she can really pick ‘em.
Her friends are often the kind that can afford granite. Plus, they need to keep up with….Ms. Jones. Where I come from, we call that free advertising.
How does a company make sure that Ms. Jones is happy with her countertop experience? And, how do you weed out the particular, but reasonable, clients from the time- and money-wasters?
The following five guidelines come from my own experiences with great and difficult clients.
1. Match customer expectations with your sales and production abilities from the start.
One of the biggest challenges of anyone selling countertops is to understand exactly what customers want, and then sell them on what you’re actually able to do for them. To make this process easy on the customer, make sure you’re able to present them with materials that clearly show the colors and edge details you offer as your standards – and what price categories they fall into.
If Joe Schmoe Granite Shop down the street has a certain color priced in a group different than in your offerings, make sure you’re able to explain the difference. If Ms. Jones questions his Group 2 versus your Group 3, have an honest and supportable answer. (It also never hurts to investigate and make sure Joe is really selling the advertised stone, and not a knock-off.)
In the end, your bottom-line price may end up being similar, even for stones in different groups, depending on the rest of the details in the estimate. If Ms. Jones wants to price-shop, always ask to see your competitor’s bid in writing. Prove that I need to reduce my price to get the job, because I won’t do it just on hearsay.
Not all companies stock the same stone, which is something that not all consumers understand. If your competitor stocks a certain color and gets better pricing because of container purchases, be up front with Ms. Jones about your price point – along with your best alternate color.