How to Deal with Tough Clients in a Painting Business
Running a painting business can be rewarding, but it also comes with its challenges, one of which is dealing with tough clients. It's something that every painting contractor is going to deal with at some point, and it's not without good reason. The painting industry has a reputation for bad customer service, and customers are often waiting for something to go wrong. The second a mistake happens, they are on edge, ready to pounce. In this article, we'll discuss how to deal with tough clients and ensure that you please every single client, every single time.
Catch It Early
One of the best rules to follow in the painting business is that a job starts the second there is a concern from the customer. Whether painters showed up late, or there is a concern about the power wash or the prep work, you need to be on high alert. Customers will always give you one chance. If there is a mistake, how you respond to that mistake dictates whether or not they need to be concerned. If they bring up one issue to you and you say, "I'll take care of that," they expect you to do it. If they have to call you a second time because you didn't take care of it, you're in trouble. They no longer trust you and can no longer count on you to oversee the job. They are now taking the management of the job into their own hands, and this is a problem.
Realize that the first time there's an issue, you've got to catch a problem client early before it truly becomes a problem client. The first sign of a problem client is when they have one concern, but there are no second chances. If you don't handle the job to their expectations after the first concern, you're done. You're going to be in trouble on that job, and that is now a problem client.
Don't Let Them Call You a Second Time
The second thing you need to do is ensure that they never call you a second time. They're never going to call you and complain a second time about the job. How are you going to do that? You're going to go above and beyond on this job. You're going to have to learn this the hard way, unfortunately. Even though you're watching this video or reading this article, and I'm telling you to go above and beyond, you're going to have to go way above and beyond the first time there's a concern or issue. What you're going to do is go above and beyond for you. You're going to think you went above and beyond, and you went to what you know is normal, but the customer's expectations were here. If you fell short, the second time, you're in trouble. So, the next time, you're going to go to where they expect, and then a little bit more. You're going to have to keep doing this until you get it right.
Dealing with tough clients is one of the toughest things about running a painting business. However, by catching the problem client early and ensuring that they never call you a second time, you can avoid most of the problems that come with it. Remember, every customer is different, and you can't please everyone every single time. However, by going above and beyond, you can please almost every single client every single time. It's not easy, and it takes a lot of effort, but it's worth it. So, the next time you're dealing with a tough client, remember to catch it early and go above and beyond.
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