Tag Archives: clients

Are Your Customers and Clients Controlling You?

The other day I wrote about how we cannot control what our customers and clients do—no matter how much we might want to or how much energy we put into sales and customer service. There is a flip side of this coin, however, in that we might be letting our customers and clients control us! Do your customers and/or clients have more influence over your life and your home business than you would like? There is no denying that customer service is incredibly important in any sort of business. Even if you have a small consulting business with only a … Continue reading →

Will You Take Any Clients or Wait for Loyal Clients?

There are several different ways to go about building a customer base for your product and services, but two main camps are the “taken anyone and everyone” camp and the “nurture and build loyal customers” camp. Figuring out which one is best for you and your business will depend on what sort of industry you are in, as well as what your personality and capacity for marketing and networking is. Look at it this way; you are going to put energy into attracting new customers and clients regardless—but it takes a lot of energy and resources to court a client. … Continue reading →

Dealing with a Skeptical Client or Customer

There is always going to be one or two people who are just plain skeptical. It does not matter how open and friendly you try to be, they are going to be curious and concerned—wondering what your motivations are, whether or not the products actually work, wanting to know if you are going to follow through on promises and assuming that you will not. Some of us find skeptical individuals to be tough to work with… Chances are, the skeptical client or customer has been burnt before by unsavory business practices or he or she is someone who is either … Continue reading →

Finding People Who are Easy to Work With

We tend to talk about those customers and clients who are challenging and difficult to work with in our businesses here in the Home Business blog, but I thought it might be a little more fun, and a nice change of pace, to talk about how to find and keep those customers, clients, colleagues, and vendors who are EASY to work with. They are out there, and I think every business deserves a few people who are pleasant joys to work with–instead of only those who make things difficult! What is “easy” to work with for you? Is it people … Continue reading →

Drumming Up Contract Clients

I often write about marketing as it relates to more sales oriented businesses, but for those of us whose home business involves consulting or working with fewer clients on a more intimate or long-term basis, marketing involves networking, finding and cultivating clients on a more long-term basis. For many of us, this can be the most challenging part of our work. Most of us get into consulting or freelancing because we love the work and we’re good at it. We are not necessarily gifted at sales and marketing. In fact, the actual details of getting the work done can be … Continue reading →

Working with Challenging Customers and Clients

Ah, that all our customers could be sweet, compliant and pay on time! Unfortunately, that’s just not the way business goes (nor life, in fact) and any person who spends any time in business soon realizes that customer service involves dealing with some very challenging and difficult customers and clients. Here are some brief suggestions to add to your customer service “tool box” and help you cope with customers and clients who may be more on the challenging side. Dealing with difficult people involves a heaping helping of psychology. If possible, try to set your own personal reaction aside and … Continue reading →