The answer is YES! Who has had a HORRIBLE client? Well we have and it is NOT fun. I have been in the “nonprofit” world for the last 10 years and have of course seen crazy people…but the majority of them just wanted to give back and did not know how too. Now that my business is in the service world, I never thought I would have the power to turn down paying jobs. But after the hell, and I mean HELL my team and I went through last month we are going to almost do a background check on every large event that comes across our desk.
I do not want to go into all the details, because I believe the more time and energy one wastes on negative thoughts you can’t move on. Moral of the story was we put in over 80 hours of work and time and the client decided not to pay 2/3 of their bill or one of our vendors bills. BAD KARMA is coming your way client W, but we did learn a lot of valuable lessons from them.
After the smoke somewhat settled and we could really think about what happened and why, we realized it wasn’t us. This is how they are to probably everyone who provides a service for them. I wish there was a “Better Client” bureau that you could blast people on so small businesses like myself could’ve checked to see if they were listed as a “DO NOT WORK WITH”.
Instead of being fearful and wary of every potential client, Girl About Town came up with a list of who our Best Client Is:
Trustworthy
Open to new ideas
Realistic budget
Excited to work with us
Organized
Communicates via text or through email
Does not call me on the weekend
Pays on time
Is respectful to staff
Has realistic expectations
Kind
Voices what they want if it is a specific style for their event
Someone that appreciates the unique touches & little details that our events and setups have
Now that our potion is laid out it is time to manifest that perfect client. What does your perfect client look like? I think I am going to create a client letter from now on that every new client must read and sign prior to working together.
I wish you the best of luck and remember, you have as much of the power as the client does!
Xo
GAT
