Hard Conversations

It's not generally a topic people like in society, but then I suppose it depends on what society you hail from. No matter what business you are in, your customers will naturally push the boundaries of service away from what was intended.

So, what do you do? You know what you think is reasonable, but they think they are being reasonable, too. Think about it - you do the same with people you frequent as a customer: you expect more the more often you use them. When it gets out of hand, which it sometimes can, you have to step up.

Of course, depending on your location in the supply of the service (are you internal or external and how far away from the requester is your business unit). The further the distance is, the more likely the customer is going to use you without considering what it does to you. And especially in those circumstances, you have to have hard conversations with the customers about the service.

What tips can I give? Well, for me, be polite. You might have to be forceful, but that's no excuse for yelling and being angry in return. Bad behavior never justifies other bad behavior, and it never pays to be unreasonable to your customer, because the customer is the one who ads for your service and they can choose to un-pay if you are out-of-line enough.

Next, make sure you know your position and can back it up with data, and have at least one proposal for how to make it work. Make sure you have thought it out clearly, and it is not just an idea. You are coming with a complaint about how the customer is behaving so you must make sure you explain how you expect them to behave very clearly.

Finally, you need to make sure you frame the issue in a way such that you demonstrate the benefit to the customer of working with you - it has to be for mutual benefit. You might have it in your mind clearly, but you need to make sure they *understand* what you understand in order for it to have a chance to succeed.

And sometimes that benefit might be that you continue serving their needs. When you state what recourse you will take if they refuse to work with you, you have to be ready to actually take that recourse. If you don't, then they will no longer trust you. Don't bluff, be honest - I have always found that to be the best policy of any. While it is not always easy, it always pays off in the long run.

And of course, when you come out of the negotiations, if you do succeed, make sure you keep your end of the deal. It makes sure that the customers will be more willing to work with you when they see that you keep your end of the deal rigorously, too.