Bookkeepers and Mobile Bookkeeping Services

Recently we were asked how you deal with “bad” clients.

Simply, you don’t!

You can choose not to work with clients that have the potential to consume your time, energy and resources.

You have a responsibility to all your clients, and therefore cannot afford to be distracted by troublesome clients. When you’ve been in business for a while, you begin to realise that some clients can cost you more money than the fees that you are charging them. There’s a number of reasons why you should be selective with your clients:

1) It’s your business
It’s your choice who you choose to do business with. This can have a huge impact on your happiness, productivity, quality, and the future of your business.
It’s critical that you are working with the right clients. The secret is knowing when to say no. A ‘bad” client can destroy morale, may force your good staff to leave out, and be detrimental to your business. Working with the right client isn’t work at all — it’s a pleasure.

2) It’s a business decision
Just like any other business decision you have to make, saying “yes” to a client is a business decision. You look at the pro’s and con’s just the same as when you decide to rent some particular office space, or buy this computer or that computer

3) Would you Hire that Person?
Unless you are really desperate, you don’t generally just hire anyone because you need help. You look to see how they can be of benefit to your business.
So ask yourself – would you hire this person or not? In some ways taking on a new client is like hiring a new person – you have to work with them. The relationship may be tighter than you think- your future is tied to their performance

4) Is no work better than no clients?
The more you take on and the more these bad clients eat away at your time, the more it forces mistakes. This in turn created more problems. It’s a sign of a maturing business when you realize that you have to be selective about who hires you.

5) The Client That Wants to Negotiate Your Rate
If a potential client has come to you asking for your services, and then they try and beat you down in price, there’s a fair chance that they’ll think you are a soft touch when you give in. Before you know it they’ll be demanding more and more from you and then give you all the excuses for not paying you on time. After all, why should your existing clients be paying more than a new client?

There’s enough challenges in life without taking on new problems. Remember this: there’s always plenty of work out there even if things are looking a little bleak for you right now. Go and do some pro-bono work for a charity before doing work for a “bad” client. You’ll feel better, and you’ll find that new business will come knocking at your door.