How do you react to "smartass" type customers?

[Gavin]

There was a windy down this way when I started. Actually pick up his business after he got done! Customers would tell me he used to get right shitty. F and blind and threaten. Needless to say he was reported several times and arrested a few. Not sure if he was banned from cleaning or got such a bad wrap that he called it quits. I know one of the custies had a restraining order though as he would come to the house and abuse new windies. Never met him myself though.

 

[Smurf]

There are plenty of what I call nutters about cleaning windows @Gav as is cheap to start up on your own.

Our window cleaner many moons ago was ok with us but wasn't very regular as he was either going into hiding from the fuzz or kept getting banged up. Bless him /emoticons/biggrin.png

 

[SolarPanelCleaning]

If somebody owes you money, just take something of value of theirs. There may be a 'mens rea' but in my world morality supersedes law.

 

[Smurf]

What? /emoticons/biggrin.png

If somebody owes you money, just take something of value of theirs. There may be a 'mens rea' but in my world morality supersedes law.

 

[SolarPanelCleaning]

Sorry, it must be the stress manifesting itself!

 

[Smurf]

I bet you have a great collection of garden gnomes now being held for ransom /emoticons/biggrin.png

Pay up or the gnomes gets it :rofl:

Sorry, it must be the stress manifesting itself!

 

[TolishAPurd]

its recently been about one a week that i fire off insults at- all totally justified i might add. and i do feel good afterwards , why that is lord knows as im shaking physically
one woman tother week said im not having this ,im calling the police, i then repeated the f... off several times ,increasing in volume ,over whatever she was saying - to press home the point.

its weird when you think about it, for some time you were being paid and doing your job and now theres this total breakup where they say im trespassing and calling plod .

Laughed loud at this. Interested to know what caused the issue in the first place?

I've had issues with people, but never had to swear though I've felt like it many times. I just try to stick to the facts. eg. This is why you're wrong, this is what I'm going to do about it. It doesn't give them anything to say about you, and you don't get walked over.

 

[SPCleaning]

I sent a Paypal invoice yesterday to a customer and got a reply, 'Please remove me from your round I have moved'

I sent him an email explaining that he arranged for the window cleaning that has been happening regularly for the last three years and that I will expect to receive payment in due course.

He came back with, 'Your email is out of order, I'm not paying for some one else.'

 

[Smurf]

Was nice of him to let you know eventually....Best pop round and knock on that door to see who lives there now.

 

[SPCleaning]

Was nice of him to let you know eventually....Best pop round and knock on that door to see who lives there now.

I bet most of us have been caught a time or too like this. They can be the nicest people, but do they care enough to tell us when they move? Very rarely.

 

[boarcity]

heres my nemesis . REALLY

 

[Dave B]

Love saxondale..based in stevenage even though you never actually see any of stevenage as is filmed elsewhere

 

[Smurf]

:rofl:

heres my nemesis . REALLY

 

[Smurf]

Do your hear a wee fella on yer shoulder telling you to say things too?

 

[boarcity]

praps im at the point in my business [6 yrs in ] where if you mess me about i HAVE to get my own back . as i say, i feel good afterwards

 

[Tuffers]

I've got one who has gone on the 'to dump if causes any more grief pile.' She lives out in the sticks and is a very nice MILF. She owes for the last 2 cleans (June and July) and I have left a SAE both times. Neither cheque has arrived. I got a text that she was in on one of the occasions (June) and that she paid me on the step. Now, I can clearly remember thinking on the 2nd visit that they are not home again and that I will have to leave another SAE with 2 cleans owed. She is also now saying she owes me double for July in her last text

 

[Smurf]

You could also destroy your business in a blink of an eye by being so unprofessional no matter how good it feels at the time.

 

[boarcity]

I've got one who has gone on the 'to dump if causes any more grief pile.' She lives out in the sticks and is a very nice MILF. She owes for the last 2 cleans (June and July) and I have left a SAE both times. Neither cheque has arrived. I got a text that she was in on one of the occasions (June) and that she paid me on the step. Now, I can clearly remember thinking on the 2nd visit that they are not home again and that I will have to leave another SAE with 2 cleans owed. She is also now saying she owes me double for July in her last text

bloody decent of you to leave a s.a.e.

 

[boarcity]

You could also destroy your business in a blink of an eye by being so unprofessional no matter how good it feels at the time.

i wouldnt actually lash out , even if they ran at me fist flying. or would i ?

i did each time get the opinion of my workers, as we sat in the van after the events. they thought i handled the first one well, a nitpicker who got on my goat - i said "youre obviously a difficult personality ,dont you ever ever Ever call me to clean your windows again "

the second and subsequent outbursts ,the ones i swore at ,altho they agreed i was pushed, theyve not said much apart from a chuckle . im fairly determined to not swear in future,in case this all escalates .

 

[Smurf]

I can understand it's very hard at times to keep our cool but we all have to act professional.

That doesn't mean to be walked all over either but how we go about putting our point across without harassment or menace we all have to learn if we want to stay in business. /emoticons/wink.png

 

[cheapncheerful]

lucky for me ....i only freak out at home....cant imagine what the neighbours think...but...i am lucky as i now have my medicine../emoticons/biggrin.png