The Virtues of Quality Customers

Granted…. SalesFirst Recruiting is an agency where human relationships rule all. But in the realm of sales, where relationships are probably the foundation of success, the significance of partnering with high-quality customers cannot be overstated. As sales leaders and professionals, our journey towards sustainable growth and success is intricately tied to the caliber of clients we engage with. In this blog, we will discuss how to tell if you are doing business with clients who value partnership, prioritize win-win scenarios, and uphold open communication channels. Conversely, we’ll show you how to spot clients who knowingly or even unknowingly espouse win-lose mentalities, are not aligned with your values, and who resort to coercive tactics.

The Virtues of Quality Customers:

Want to know if you have a good customer? It’s not about their annual spend. It’s about partnership, winning together, and communicating.

1. Partnership: High-quality customers view their relationship with vendors not merely as transactional but as collaborative partnerships. They understand that success is a shared journey, where both parties contribute expertise, resources, and effort. These customers seek to understand our offerings deeply, aligning them with their goals, and actively participate in co-creating solutions. Even the best clients will have their challenges, but when a client appreciates the work you do, just about every obstacle can be overcome. We have a really terrific customer that we’ve served nationwide for almost 12 years now. They can have some REALLY slim margins from year-to-year, and once in a while they’ll push back on the recruiting fees that we work so hard to generate. We’ve had some tough conversations about that, but ultimately we both know that we need each other. We understand them, and they understand us - despite the fact that neither party is perfect.

2. Win-Win Scenarios: Collaboration flourishes when all parties involved stand to gain. Quality customers prioritize win-win scenarios, where both their interests and ours are met harmoniously. They recognize that sustainable growth stems from equitable arrangements where value is exchanged fairly. SalesFirst Recruiting, for example, is lucky to serve a longstanding client who has a very fair 90 day guarantee. But once in a while this client runs into an issue because of the policies they must follow to release employees. So when they called us and told us they’ve decided to release an employee but to give them a few extra weeks on processing it, we made a fast decision to honor their request. Why? because we both want the same thing!

3. Communication: Open and transparent communication forms the backbone of productive partnerships. Quality customers understand the importance of articulating their needs, concerns, and feedback constructively. They encourage dialogue, actively listen, and work together to address challenges promptly. Through effective communication, trust deepens, and issues are resolved expediently, strengthening the partnership. At least once per quarter, we run into some unique situation where our carefully written T&Cs are stress-tested. Sometimes we wonder aloud if a client is TRYING to break our contract, which we thought was perfect up until that point. But we know that when we have a good quality client, we can share our opinion, ask for their opinion and come to a fair resolution that allows us to move forward.

Navigating Away from Bad Customers:

If you find yourself loving that customer of yours that gives you tons of business, by all means, continue serving them. But if you really want to know if this is going to be a long-term customer of yours, ask yourself if you’ve seen any of these behaviors.

1. Win-Lose Mentalities: Engaging with customers fixated on win-lose outcomes poses inherent risks. These clients prioritize their gains at the expense of the vendor, leading to imbalanced relationships. Such dynamics breed resentment, erode trust, and hinder long-term success. Recognizing and avoiding these red flags is crucial to preserving our integrity and sustainability. SalesFirst once had a very large customer that dominated its industry tell us that a candidate we submitted was good enough to be hired by their internal recruiters but not good enough to be worthy of an agency fee. Ok. Fair enough. But then they asked us if they could hire the candidate without a fee. What?! We promptly ditched that customer and moved on to a lesser known but much better customer.

2. Misalignment of Values: Incompatible values and objectives can strain even the most promising partnerships. Bad customers may exhibit behaviors or demands that contradict our core principles or business ethics. Persisting in such associations compromises our integrity and jeopardizes our reputation. Aligning with clients who share our values ensures coherence in actions and fosters a cohesive partnership culture. Just recently I, Adam Morris, had to reach out to the CEO of a company that hadn’t been responding to our invoices. This happens from time to time, and usually a calm conversation takes place and we uncover a root issue that needs to be addressed. In this instance, I was met with a defensive posture, yelling, and threats. We don’t represent companies that are toxic at the top. It’s a hard line for us, so we moved on.

3. Coercive Tactics: Blackmail and coercion have no place in healthy business relationships. Bad customers may resort to threats, ultimatums, or manipulation to extract concessions or advantages. Succumbing to such pressures undermines our autonomy and diminishes our worth. Upholding our standards and principles is non-negotiable when confronted with such tactics, safeguarding our dignity and credibility. If you fear having a tough conversation with a customer, it may be because you know deep inside that they don’t play fair. And if that’s the case, it may be time to cut bait.

Conclusion:

If SalesFirst Recruiting can do it, you can do it too! By prioritizing partnerships with high-quality customers who embrace collaboration, champion win-win scenarios, and prioritize open communication, we pave the path to sustained success. Conversely, steering clear of engagements with clients embodying win-lose mentalities, conflicting values, or coercive tendencies safeguards our integrity and fortifies our resilience.

And Candidates…… rest assured that there’s a really good chance that when we send you to a client of ours, they are run by good people!