Why Fight the Client?
Why Fight the Client?
A good friend of mine is a realtor, I submit to you, a very good one at that. Great negotiator, great source of knowledge and tradeoffs and the realities that go into real estate buying, ownership and selling. If I am you, you want him on your team.
Like with everyone else, when he’s around ideas and stuff about occupations come up. Recently he told a story about a client of his that truly believed that the simple texture commonly applied to ceilings was actually asbestus. In the construction bis it is called popcorn, it is made of tinny balls of styrofoam material mixed with paint and generally shot/flung at the ceiling. I don’t know if it ever was but with reasonable certainty I suspect it wasn’t ever made of asbestus.
To my mind the stuff is both a magic and a pain. It is a magic in that it covers a myriad of problems in a short time and monetary expenditure. It is a pain in that it is ugly, a frustration to patch and generally, I don’t like it. Well, neither did my friends client but for very different reasons.
Anyway, the brilliance of this story is that my friend, smart as he is, was outlandishly user focused in this response to his client. He did NOT try to change her belief on the subject. Rather, he went with it. As a realtor and I suggest as an anything there is a line, a tender and vague line, that needs to be walked with interactions with clients. Yes, at times you can alter or even change their minds about something. But remember, people are psychologically disposed to strong reactions against change. So, you have to pick your battles wisely.
In this case, if the client thinks the ceiling texture is made of asbestus, so be it. It is not a fight worth fighting even if you think they are wrong. Find a house with out the popcorn – eh?
What things are you trying to get your clients to do or think or believe that are just not a good use of your time and energy? What can you get the clients you already have that fit their description of what they need. Remember it does not really often matter what you think. Ultimately your client decides what they want, believe and need. So, How well do you know your client?