TPTW....Do we have to 'LIKE' our clients!

[MINKUS]

Hi all

I was just thinking...do we have to 'like' our clients/customers!

Dont get me wrong 95% of my customers are GREAT:green: however i have an odd 3 or so who i just dont ...dont know how to say this really other than....dont 'gel' with!

I'd never refuse to do their nails or anything like that because its all money in the bank etc etc. Some clients i suppose you do just 'gel with' and would do anything to accomodate them and some you just..er.......DONT!:green:

So..the question is do we have to 'LIKE' our clients/customers!!

Or am i just a WEIRDO !

Thanks Guys

AMb x

 

[Jen Smith]

Good question Amber...

I am lucky really as I like all but one of mine too. This one client is a right busybody, constantly moans... not about me to me ... but I bet she does to other people as she constantly complains and puts other people down to me and its not like I agree with her... I tend to shut off or try and change the subject.. but she always manages to bring it back to bitching.. lol! ... and she just makes me feel deflated after she has been.

I am sure she is just insecure but I will continue to do her treatments as long as she doesnt become offensive.

As for your question Amber.. I think we have to come across as liking all our clients if you want to keep them coming back to you ... but as for actually liking them, then nobody can like everybody all the time. Personalities will always come into play and some people will get under your skin more than others... :hug:

 

[fifitrix]

I'm like you Amber, I like the majority of my clients, love doing their nails and we have a great chat at the same etc., then there are the ones who I'm quite glad to see them go when I've done their nails.

I'm glad to say they are few and far between though and my other clients make up for the minority.

 

[suzie49]

I dont have a large client base at the moment as I havent long started, but I can honestly say I do actually like all of my clients upto now, but I am a funny b****r so I can see some people winding me up the wrong way, then I will just have to grit my teeth, smile and think of the money :lol:

 

[Bagpuss]

I know what you mean hun...I love most of mine but do have a few that i don't gel with...infact i would say they mentally drain me...:lol:

They would never be aware of it as i would never let it show but lets just say i don't look forward to them coming like i do most of my others.

Its all money though and you have to take the good with the bad...as you know.

hey just a thought but i wounder what category i fall into with my hairdresser...PMSL.

 

[Katykitten]

Very good question! I love most of my clients, but I do have one or two whose appointments I don't look forward to, they don't seem to know the word "Thank you" and always leave with me feeling that they are not pleased with their treatment, having said that they are both return clients so I must be doing something right. These sort of client can sometimes really knock your confidence though, especially if your having a hard/bad day already xx

 

[angel fingers]

i think when you are building your clientelle, then everyones money is good. but when you get to the point of having a full diary its better to say no to those who arent your cup of tea than to dread their visits.

 

[nailzoo]

NO, we don't have to like them ....... BUT, we are being paid to pretend we do.

I really like most of mine, but there's the odd one that gives me the irrates.

 

['chelle]

In a word.....no!

I couldnt have put it better than Nailzoo. You dont have to like them, but you do have to pretend to. I like most of my clients, and it is rare for me to actively dislike a client. Still though, their money is as good as the next clients and they get the same service with a smile as my best mate would get.

 

[MINKUS]

but when you get to the point of having a full diary its better to say no to those who arent your cup of tea than to dread their visits.

So how do we go about this !!!:green:

 

[MINKUS]

• its the ones that you 'struggle' to make conversation with.....
• the ones that say 'oh i didnt see you put the clear on that one did you do that'? and i definately did....or could you just put a bit more on that bit i dont think you did that.....:irked:
• the ones that almost 'chuck the money' at you
• never say 'ah they are lovely thanks'

 

[ADiva1]

No, you dont have to like all of your clients. Wherever you go and what ever you do, there will be people you dont 'connect' with. Just sense it and deal with it accordingly.

If its to the point of you dreading their visits, then dont have them around as they are the energy suckers!

On the other hand there are some people who are there to be unnecessarily difficult. Those are the ones who dont see the clear gel layer applied etc!

 

[Doorie]

• its the ones that you 'struggle' to make conversation with.....
• the ones that say 'oh i didnt see you put the clear on that one did you do that'? and i definately did....or could you just put a bit more on that bit i dont think you did that.....:irked:
• the ones that almost 'chuck the money' at you
• never say 'ah they are lovely thanks'

I'm lucky to either work on others clients, either pick the ones I wanna work on... but I do remember that time when I had clients like you're refering above...
I'd shut up, evade somewhere and think of what I'd do next, and they would speak and speak and speak and I'd be smiling and nodding...

and ooh, you don't polish the cuticules too? [TARD]

 

[g5m_sh]

All of my clients are word of mouth, so they are a friend of a friend of a friend so they are all more or less on my wave length!!

But i do have a few...
" how much is it for a bottle of that purple stuff " - My retention + is a fortune
" you haven't done my thumb " - i have, i do the thumb 1st on each hand.
" how much is it again " - the same price i have been charging you for the past year.
" them down the harbour are are doing nails for £15 " - well go to them if you want to (PLEASE)

 

[RedAdmiral]

Just earlier my dreaded client recommended me to her friend who is just as bad, my client doesnt like me, talks about herself - mainly how much richer she is to any1 that'll listen, lets her child run riot in salon, and acts like she would rather be somewhere else! I dont get her :grr: she tries to pop in as much as she can but at the same time recommends me to her friends?
Is it a power struggle? if she acts this way I go to pieces and she has d upper hand.
Out of my whole client list I just have a few that make me feel this way, recently a few clients have become a tad bitchy (young girl has her own salon what do I know about business blah blah blah or the new one can you ACTUALLY make money doing nails? OMG good luck to you!) I always have a full beam smile on and try to find comman ground but some make it so so hard

 

[Bev Rose]

No, we cannot be expected to 'like' all of them.

I have a great bunch of clients and I love them all....except one.:irked:

 

[simmy]

On the flipside...
Have you ever been in the situation where you have been for treatments and don't think the therapist likes you?! I'm a therapist but still like going to get my nails manicured, facials and waxing; but the therapist who I've been going to for years always gives off bad vibes! She hardly ever cracks a smile which is so difficult to endure seeing as I'm quite bubbly! The search for a new local therapist continues..... !!!

 

[Vetty]

Nope, don't like all mine either - but their money is the same colour as all my other clients......!!

I have a couple that I struggle to make conversation with, I used to have one who was the most self-centred person I had ever met - I truely don't think she asked about me in the 2 years I did her nails...... One recently let me do a single colour NNO and all 10 nails and when I'd finished buffing them said 'is it too late for pink glitter?'........:grr:

Generally my clients are great, and I have made some real friends among them!

 

[naildoctor]

If I have one that's seriously negative, I just try and change the subject. But when they get negative about my work, that is a different story. I don't ever mind hearing what they prefer. If I hear it too much, I tell them that I really want them to be happy and that I can help them to find someone else, One of two things happen. They either simmer down and shut up, or go away. Either one works really great for me. Chances are, their gripy-ness has nothing to do with you, they just don't realize they're taking it out on you!

 

[JANEY K]

I like all my clients not because they line my pocket with cash, they are a loyal bunch and always get me more clients