When to say goodbye

Sometimes expectations can’t be met or a customer’s behavior may expose your organization to undue peril. Kate Zabriskie is the president of Maryland-based Business Training Works, which assists companies in establishing customer service strategies. She offers some signs that it's time to part ways with a troubled client.

The client cause 80% of your problems but doesn't come close to contributing to 80% of your revenue.

From time to time, any customer could require more energy than others. Those high-demand situations are normal. What isn’t normal, however, is the perpetual squeaky wheel that routinely disrupts normal business operations.

They are abusive to your employees. When management allows customers to abuse employees, it’s the same as perpetrating the abuse directly. Do customers swear, yell, demean, or harass your employees? If so, it’s time to draw a line in the sand and let them know what behavior is and isn’t acceptable.

Their behavior is out of touch with your ethics policies and practices. You are the company you keep. If you are enabling your customers to act in a way that is in disagreement with your organization’s values or the law, it may be time to say goodbye. Do you really want to associate yourself and your organization with those whose business practices are illegal, immoral, or routinely questionable? When you like the people on a personal level, it can feel like a tough decision when you’re making it. The good news is once you do, you won’t look back.

They expose you to unneeded financial risk. If you spend more time chasing payments than performing work, it’s time to consider a new payment plan at a minimum or a permanent breakup if that step doesn’t solve the problem.

You’re no longer a good fit. Sometimes people and organizations grow apart. Nobody has done anything wrong; the two parties are just in different places and it’s time to say goodbye.