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MARKETING A SUPPLEMENT OF THE ZWEIG LETTER
Is it time for a client break-up? Take an honest look at your client relationship and ask yourself if it’s still mutually beneficial; if it’s not, it is time to do the hard thing. O P I N I O N
I n addition to working at Zweig Group, I also run a small horse-boarding and horseback-riding lessons program out of my home, a farm on 13.5 acres just outside of town. I started this business in 2011 at a different location as a way to subsidize the costs of my own horses’ feed and to make some improvements to my property. Many of my boarders became friends and were great companions for horse shows and as farm-sitters if I needed to travel.
Christina Zweig
Though I’ve always been conscious of keeping it small, since it was never meant to support me financially, after a move to a new and better location, my side business rapidly gained momentum and started to grow. Suddenly, I found myself with 12 horses to care for, multiple students, children riding who needed supervision every day of the week, and two other outside instructors working out of my property. I was proud of my beautiful property and my reputation of providing a high-level of care, so I rarely said no to requests from boarders. Before I knew what was happening, dozens of people were at my house every day. A literal parking lot developed in my side-yard, and people who I often didn’t know very well were at my house and using my bathroom at all daylight hours. Every single extra second of my time was taken up with horse activities, and I was unable to do things like go to the grocery store or go out to dinner after work. I even had to pay my sister to run to the store for me, so I could use what precious daylight was left to finish chores around the farm. After a misunderstanding about a boarding agreement made with the parents of a teenage girl and the girl herself, I was berated with multiple lengthy texts from the teenager and “While it might not be prudent to fire a client in the middle of a job, there are certain things to take into consideration when making the decision to pursue additional services or work in the future.”
suddenly came to a horrifying reality: My horse business had become a “runaway train,” and it was completely off the tracks! Although mucking stalls is different than providing design services, many A/E/P and environmental firms fall into the same trap that I did and don’t stop to look objectively at their current client situation. While it might not be prudent to fire a client in the middle of a job, there are certain things to take into consideration when making the decision to pursue additional services or work in the future. If some of your client relationships don’t give you a good feeling, ask yourself: ❚ ❚ Does the math add up? If you’re losing money on a client and the relationship isn’t bringing future opportunities, it’s probably time to re-evaluate your fees or the client. ❚ ❚ Does the work fill you with dread? If every time you have to converse with this client you get off the phone with a bad taste in your mouth, it’s probably time for a break-up. ❚ ❚ Are you proud to be working with them? If your client has a bad reputation, is always talking badly about other people and/or firms, or is doing such bad things with your work that you don’t want to be associated with him/her, it’s time to end the re- lationship. The last thing you need is a client talking poorly about your firm. ❚ ❚ Are there more problems and failures than suc- cess stories? It can be tricky to turn down work from a client you like, but if the work never goes as planned you might not have the strengths to really perform well for this client.
See CHRISTINA ZWEIG, page 10
THE ZWEIG LETTER JULY 13, 2015, ISSUE 1111
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