Last week Jeff Golbaum asked:
“There have been times when I’ve been asked to do work for someone who I know will not….how to put delicately?.....work out. Is it acceptable to say no to someone who is willing to spend their money on my services — I am a specialty printer — whom I know will not be a good fit for either of us?”
Hi Jeff (told you I’d get to you!).
The answer is a loud, enthusiastic, yes! Say no! Perfectly acceptable. If you know that the relationship between you and a potential customer is headed down a dangerous path, by all means say no. Read my blog Just Say No for more reasons to delicately bow out. There are many reasons to do so, in a very, very nice way that can in the long run benefit you both.
If it’s clearly not a good fit, neither you nor your customer is going to come out of the experience with a warm and fuzzy feeling. Much better to forego the sale and refer them to someone more suitable.
I am often asked if I will “do” a company’s social media. I don’t “do” social media. I will set you up, I will teach you and empower you to do social media, but do? I can barely do my own. Much better for both parties to refer them out to a social media expert who does this type of work and does it much better than I do. A sentence like “you know that’s really not my expertise, but I know a great guy who gets great results for his clients in blanket blank field. Let me put you two in touch” goes so much further than doing a sub par job for them just to get paid.
We can’t all be expert at everything. In the long run your potential client will thank you for it (hopefully) and think of YOU the next time they need your services, or, better still (for that psycho client), will refer someone else to you. I have a ‘psycho’ clause in my contract. Suggest you create one as well!
So Get Found, Get Heard, Get Crackin'!
