by Cara Lumen
She was abusive, disrespectful, and bad-mouthed the person she had worked with before. How on earth did she get through the Red Velvet Rope Policy and how can you identify a red flag client before you start?
Define Your Red Velvet Rope Policy
You know those soft red velvet ropes that are lowered to let certain people in and keep others out. We each get to create our own red velvet rope policy to be certain we work with people we are meant to serve.
The client I described was not mine, it was a client of a friend of mine and my friend was in knots because even when she said she wanted to end the client relationship the woman cried which made my kind friend have a hard time sticking by her decision. And it was an example of how manipulative the woman was.
We talked about how she was not serving in the role of friend to this needy person. She needed to place herself in the role of a professional keeping a professional relationship with her clients. She needed to define and set boundaries for herself. She gets to make choices about how she wants to work with people and who she wants to work with.
Why you must do the choosing
Think of a client that you do not like to work with. Are you resentful? Do you drag your heels a bit when it’s time for her call? Will you be glad when the time agreement has expired? That’s not a good match. That’s certainly not your ideal client.
Now remember how great you feel when you love the client you are working with – the great work you do – the satisfaction you feel at your clients’ success. That’s why you must choose your clients carefully. So you can do your best work.
How you can spot the red flag clients
What intake structure can you put in place that will help you recognize a potentially poor relationship and never undertake it? Well, you need to have a really clear picture of your ideal client – particularly the qualities you want to attract. Do you want to work with people just beginning in business, ones that have established themselves and are ready for a big next step, or a high end client that needs someone to help them keep a larger company on track? Do you want a person who is decisive or one who prefers to ask five of their friends for an opinion before making up their mind? Does your ideal client keep her agreements and exhibit innovative entrepreneurialism to solve their problems? Is your client capable of achieving success? Do they want it? Do they expect it? Will they accept success?
You need to create a few questions that you can ask in your initial conversation with a potential client that will let you know that this is a person you are meant to serve.
How much business/marketing knowledge do they have?
This is important because if a client is new to business they need to be very clear why they are in business and who they want to serve. They need to have a business plan and a marketing plan. If they haven’t done that you will need to help them through those steps. This is foundational work that needs to be in place and be continually reviewed. It is the holder of their vision and the design of their path. .
What do they have in place and what is working and what is not?
When I work with people on web page development I need to know what they have in place – opt in, shopping cart, web host, merchant account, blog, etc.
I need to know their vision.
And they need to know what is working and want is not. When they know where their strengths are it shows me they have set up measurable guidelines and continually monitor their progress.
How pro active are they?
Will this person do their homework, follow up on their agreements, and think up new ideas and possibilities? Those people are wonderfully exciting to work with. If they are really full of ideas will they allow you to help them focus and accomplish one step/project at a time? Will they take direction and do they value what you have to offer?
Listen to what they don’t say
It’s trickier to discover what their personality is like to work with. Ask them about their relationships with other professionals and listen to what they do and don’t say. Are they kind, respectful, honest? Or disgruntled, and complaining? Ask some open questions and then just listen and you’ll get some good clues that will alert you to any potential red flags.
Make it ok to say “no”
Expect the best from everyone but listen to your intuition. Don’t take a client because they have a pulse and a pocketbook. If it doesn’t feel right see who else you can recommend, or simply say, “This isn’t something I can help you with.” If you are their last chance or they are under a last minute deadline that is a major red flag. That means no one else wants to work with them and they wait till the last minute to get things done. Don’t fall for their story. Your life and business is yours to design. You are the director who casts the play and directs the action. Cast the players in your business thoughtfully.
You are not meant to work with everyone. There are certain people that you are meant to serve and when you do you can help them achieve amazing results.
© 2008 Cara Lumen
