Dealing with 'difficult' clients

[Konichiwa_kitty]

I apologise if this kind of thread has been posted before but I encountered my first difficult client yesterday afternoon and I'm finding it really hard to shake off.

I have recently started offering Russian volume extensions as part of my mobile beauty services and whilst I'm getting up to speed post training I'm offering them at a big discount.
A client who I had only seen once before ( for a lash lift/tint and 7 step brows) decided to book for Russian volume lashes after seeing a post on my Facebook page. I booked her consultation and patch test and during this covered all necessary points including;
•preparation required beforehand- no make up, cleansed lashes ready to go
• some aftercare information as I like to 'educate' clients during and after their lash appt as well as provide printed aftercare sheets
•length of time to expect the appointment to take to make appropriate childcare arrangements
• managed her expectations based on her natural lash and what volume lashes would be appropriate to use on her.

Skip to the appointment from hell.

I arrived at her flat where her toddler was running wild and she had a roomful of friends ( the room where we were setting up for the treatment ).
I set up and briefly covered the points discussed at consultation and first red flag was her lashes were caked in make-up and lash glue... cleansing took forever. I politely reiterated that for future infills it would be best if she had no make up on and had thoroughly cleansed beforehand to avoid eating into lashing time.
Whilst taping down her lashes she was chatting to her friends, checking her phone and generally just fidgety. I did my best to put her at ease and ensure a good start to our appt.
All the while her friends were climbing around on the sofas behind me- in and out of the room smoking, the toddler was wandering all over the place and I had to gently keep him away from my tools / glue etc as no-one else seemed to be keeping them occupied and the cat kept jumping on the client. Again I gently reminded her that the materials I use wouldn't be safe near the toddler and that I didn't wish to be nudged causing her injury. So this continued for some time still. By which point I'm getting concerned- this is not the environment to be working in.
The client then proceeds to start trying to check her phone and make phone calls... quickly I said she needed to keep her eyes firmly but gently shut as she was opening them slightly. So her eyes begin to water causing the pads to slip. That situation rectified she then begins EATING. I'm gobsmacked. I very gently but firmly explained the issues of eating during treatments which fell on deaf ears. I wanted to just finish, pack up and leave. The bad behaviour continued througout the appointment at which point im thinking i won't be booking her again as one less client isn't an issue if this is their behaviour. I finish the set by some kind of miracle and they look full, wispy andpretty lovely. Her reaction is 'meh' despite her friends cooing over her lashes. I pack up as she states that the MUA will be coming to do her make up soon despite advice given at consultation. I remind her again that lashes need their curing and settling period to ensure their retention.
I leave so disgruntled and disappointed with the whole evets of the appt. I message her the following day to follow up with her and she states she has lost 'a few' lashes and she was disappointed. I did the patient therapist bit, checking what she did in terms of aftercare ( none; applied heavy make up, including mascara, was out in heavy rain then used a heavily oil based make up remover). Basically anything she did was the polar opposite of what she should have. I then notice she's posted in a local forum to as for 'good' lash extensions. I'm beyond cross. I offer to rectify any issues free of charge as a goodwill gesture but state if it's due to improper aftercare then the issues would be reoccurring and that perhaps a lash lift is better for her in terms of maintenance. She was pretty quick to say oh it's not lots gone just a few. I reiterate I want every client to be 100% happy and that if she needs further assistance to not hesitate to contact me ( hopefully leaving things on a professional note).

I'm cross. I'm certain I don't wish to to book thos individual and I'm certain that she'll happily bad mouth me despite amy issues arisingbeing down to her behaviour as opposed to my methods etc. Is there an appropriate way to 'dump' clients like this? I rewrote by client agreement to cover this bad behaviour amongst other standard things but the whole situation has justleft a bad taste in my mouth.
What would you have done. In hindsight I wish I hadn't even set up!!!

 

[Eloise86]

I wouldn’t contact her any more. If she contacts asking for an appointment again I would just say that I have no availability at all. Or just be honest and tell her unfortunately the way the last appointment was constructed you don’t feel comfortable doing any treatments for her and recommend trying another therapist. I would just tell her every time that I was booked up though xxxxxx

 

[AcidPerm]

To be honest, I’d have left within a couple of minutes of arriving as it was clear she wasn’t going to follow your advice. I’d have told her that having a toddler running around is against health & safety advice and my insurance won’t cover this sort of situation. Making use of ‘health and safety’ guidance and the limits of your insurance cover is always a useful get out clause when you need to sack a client.

Definitely don’t accept any more bookings from this client or offer to re-do her lashes.

I reiterate I want every client to be 100% happy.

I agree that we want our clients to love what we do but it’s an unrealistic expectation because no matter how wonderful you are, some clients are always going to be difficult and will never be satisfied. If you can accept this, you will feel more empowered to walk away from similar situations in the future.

 

[Konichiwa_kitty]

I've slept on it again and have woken up in complete agreement with you. No redos, no further appointments.
I'm just a little gutted that people like this will no doubt bad mouth whatever therapist they see as nothings ever going to withstand their bad behaviour and poor aftercare. And I'm annoyed I gave her the benefit if the doubt thinking the friends would take the little one off.
Steep learning curve- but the plus side is I've updated my terms and conditions heavily citing health and safety to ensure no repeats of this shambles again.

 

[Konichiwa_kitty]

I wouldn’t contact her any more. If she contacts asking for an appointment again I would just say that I have no availability at all. Or just be honest and tell her unfortunately the way the last appointment was constructed you don’t feel comfortable doing any treatments for her and recommend trying another therapist. I would just tell her every time that I was booked up though xxxxxx

I'm not booking her again or offering to recrify anything her lack of care has caused. I've done the professional bit, I've addressed concerns I had with her aftercare or lack of and actually suggested she may like to try someone else. The whole thing was actually pretty disrespectful and a client like her isn'tone I want 'advertising' my work xx

 

[HBJ]

No, please don't book her again unless you are comfortable being firm with her and refusing treatment at the start or during the treatment. It will cause you anxiety before, during and after the treatment which could not undermine your confidence but affect the quality of your work as time goes by.

If she went to a salon she would not be able to act in the same way so personally I would either call her to explain, or you could text or e mail. I would suggest you keep a copy of any correspondence.

If you are not confident in telling her at all, you could either tell her you have no appointments or tell her your insurance company have advised you that they would not insure you in the event of a claim if you continue to work in a disruptive location.

However, she sounds rude and disrespectful so to be honest I would not treat her in anything again. If she does moan publicly it will probably only last few days..you will be old news by then and she will be complaining about the next therapist by then !! Block her on any FB pages and forget about her. Treat this as a positive learning experience. x

 

[Konichiwa_kitty]

Thanks for your reply I'm an anxious person at the best of times and this client has just spiked my anxiety majorly!
I've delicately worded that she may be better placed trying another therapist ( poor them ) and that maybe another lower maintenance treatmentis better suited to her. No more rebooking and no nonsense. Her behaviour set a precedent of what is unacceptable behaviour during appointments and i don't have the time or inclination to deal with people like her.

 

[Eloise86]

Good for you! Well done! I bet you feel tons better now xxx

 

[HBJ]

Well said !!!

I wouldn't even suggest anyone else..let her get on with it !

Good luck xx

 

[Heir]

You were very professional and seem like a kind person. Do not let people like that take advantage of you. You don't deserve it.

 

[House Beauty]

I apologise if this kind of thread has been posted before but I encountered my first difficult client yesterday afternoon and I'm finding it really hard to shake off.

I have recently started offering Russian volume extensions as part of my mobile beauty services and whilst I'm getting up to speed post training I'm offering them at a big discount.
A client who I had only seen once before ( for a lash lift/tint and 7 step brows) decided to book for Russian volume lashes after seeing a post on my Facebook page. I booked her consultation and patch test and during this covered all necessary points including;
•preparation required beforehand- no make up, cleansed lashes ready to go
• some aftercare information as I like to 'educate' clients during and after their lash appt as well as provide printed aftercare sheets
•length of time to expect the appointment to take to make appropriate childcare arrangements
• managed her expectations based on her natural lash and what volume lashes would be appropriate to use on her.

Skip to the appointment from hell.

I arrived at her flat where her toddler was running wild and she had a roomful of friends ( the room where we were setting up for the treatment ).
I set up and briefly covered the points discussed at consultation and first red flag was her lashes were caked in make-up and lash glue... cleansing took forever. I politely reiterated that for future infills it would be best if she had no make up on and had thoroughly cleansed beforehand to avoid eating into lashing time.
Whilst taping down her lashes she was chatting to her friends, checking her phone and generally just fidgety. I did my best to put her at ease and ensure a good start to our appt.
All the while her friends were climbing around on the sofas behind me- in and out of the room smoking, the toddler was wandering all over the place and I had to gently keep him away from my tools / glue etc as no-one else seemed to be keeping them occupied and the cat kept jumping on the client. Again I gently reminded her that the materials I use wouldn't be safe near the toddler and that I didn't wish to be nudged causing her injury. So this continued for some time still. By which point I'm getting concerned- this is not the environment to be working in.
The client then proceeds to start trying to check her phone and make phone calls... quickly I said she needed to keep her eyes firmly but gently shut as she was opening them slightly. So her eyes begin to water causing the pads to slip. That situation rectified she then begins EATING. I'm gobsmacked. I very gently but firmly explained the issues of eating during treatments which fell on deaf ears. I wanted to just finish, pack up and leave. The bad behaviour continued througout the appointment at which point im thinking i won't be booking her again as one less client isn't an issue if this is their behaviour. I finish the set by some kind of miracle and they look full, wispy andpretty lovely. Her reaction is 'meh' despite her friends cooing over her lashes. I pack up as she states that the MUA will be coming to do her make up soon despite advice given at consultation. I remind her again that lashes need their curing and settling period to ensure their retention.
I leave so disgruntled and disappointed with the whole evets of the appt. I message her the following day to follow up with her and she states she has lost 'a few' lashes and she was disappointed. I did the patient therapist bit, checking what she did in terms of aftercare ( none; applied heavy make up, including mascara, was out in heavy rain then used a heavily oil based make up remover). Basically anything she did was the polar opposite of what she should have. I then notice she's posted in a local forum to as for 'good' lash extensions. I'm beyond cross. I offer to rectify any issues free of charge as a goodwill gesture but state if it's due to improper aftercare then the issues would be reoccurring and that perhaps a lash lift is better for her in terms of maintenance. She was pretty quick to say oh it's not lots gone just a few. I reiterate I want every client to be 100% happy and that if she needs further assistance to not hesitate to contact me ( hopefully leaving things on a professional note).

I'm cross. I'm certain I don't wish to to book thos individual and I'm certain that she'll happily bad mouth me despite amy issues arisingbeing down to her behaviour as opposed to my methods etc. Is there an appropriate way to 'dump' clients like this? I rewrote by client agreement to cover this bad behaviour amongst other standard things but the whole situation has justleft a bad taste in my mouth.
What would you have done. In hindsight I wish I hadn't even set up!!!

Well done, you got through it. There's assh*les everywhere and you just happened upon one is all. When you say you are training or doing things cheaply, this is what happens unfortunately.

Don't be disheartened. They won't all be like this.

We all have this 'moment.' Now you know exactly when to stand up and say no- I'm off! That's your gut speaking, listen to it, it knows what it's ok about. Let them know you expect complete serenity in a separate room before you arrive. I can't work with kids around, I can't understand anyone that does to be honest. When you arrive, reiterate and if they can't meet that then you say we will need to reschedule. Take booking fees before you arrive. People that pay them rarely cancel or mess you about.

This is your boundary. Well done, you've discovered it! The line! Now don't let anyone cross it! But first save her number under whatever rude name you want to create for her and block it xxx