Speaker 1: What do you do when you hate your client? It's Rory from Account Manager Tips here. I'm gonna get you through this. We're gonna do it together, okay? Sit tight. You know when you don't like your client? When they like to tell you how to do your job? When they want you to do their job as well as yours? When they're just plain old nasty pieces of work? Okay, so true story. I met a client of mine for the very first time. I walk in, she says to me, your company's stuffed up and what are you gonna do about it? Hi, nice to meet you, I'm Warwick. Honestly, she got under my skin from day one. Another time she says to me, Warwick, now listen, could you call a mutual supplier and arrange blah, blah, blah, blah, blah? I'm like, you know what? Against my bit of judgment, I'm going to do this for you because I want us to work things out. I call mutual supplier, arrange blah, blah, blah, blah. She then calls me and goes, how dare you? I never authorized you to represent us two. This conversation is over, clunk. And she hung up on me. I mean, true, I mean, she hung up on me. What kind of crazy person does that? She was nuts. She literally tested my last raw nerve but I didn't have a choice. I had to work with the woman. So here is what I've learned. It happens to us all, okay? So you are not alone. First things first, it's business. So try to put things into perspective, right? We're not here to love one another. We're here to get the job done, right? So try and separate the personal from the professional. It can be hard sometimes, but that's number one. Let them do the talking. I almost, most of my clients wouldn't know that much about me and it's not because I'm not personable but whenever I get an opportunity to have a conversation with them, I'm always asking questions. I want to know more about them. I want to know more about their job, their company, what they're doing, what the challenges are. So you know what, let them do all the talking and never interrupt, right? Just let them run out of steam until they're ready for you to have your say. Make copious notes, hang on every word. With this woman, I knew she lived in, you know, her whole background from the war right through to her son, to her divorce, to the property that she was buying, to her retirement plans and I made diligent notes on all of these things so that whenever I was going to get back in front of her, I knew her son's name, I knew where she had bought her retirement home, I knew like her war stories and there was always an opportunity for me to question and ask her how things were going so that made a huge difference to our relationship. Matching mirrors, so that's where you kind of reflect their pace. So if they talk a mile a minute, you know, you talk a mile a minute. If they are the strong silent type, you're the strong silent type. If they want to ask short sharp questions, you ask short sharp questions. I think that sometimes works. Use that with caution. You need to be a little bit expert to make sure you don't come off kind of crazy. So, but I have used this to success sometimes. I'm not the most skilled at that. It's hard for me not to just be me so if you can pull that off, more power to you and it is a good tactic. Meet more often in person so people build much stronger relationships when they connect in a physical face-to-face environment. You will not get such a deep strong connection when you are meeting over the phone or communicating by email. So that is another tip. If you're working with somebody that you really don't like, as strange as it may seem, don't avoid them. Meet them more often and you will learn things about them that will help you find a way to connect. Now this may be hard to do but don't bitch about them. Every time this woman used to call me, as soon as I'd hang up the phone, I'd be like, oh God, there she goes again. You know, spend the next half hour venting to anybody that would listen and it really didn't do me much good. It didn't do the team any good and it was really hard for me to get past that negative perception. I was constantly like moaning and she would set me off every time she called me. So try and just take a couple of deep breaths after you interact with them. After they push some of those buttons of yours and move on. Be diligent with your note-taking, with your agenda items, with your emails. Basically cover your ass. You do not want anything to point, you don't want to leave them with any ammunition. You don't want them to be able to fire back at you with things that you may have dropped the ball on. So be scrupulously, ruthlessly diligent when it comes to managing that account. Talk to your manager and let them know about some of the challenges you're having. You are finding it difficult to work with this client. They might have some good advice for you. They may be able to help you navigate some of the challenges. Don't keep it to yourself. You don't want this to be a surprise to them if things do escalate, because it could happen and you want to make sure that you have your boss on your side and that they are aware of some of the challenges. Take a break. So with this woman, I was so determined to make her love me and we were just constantly butting heads. And you know what? Sometimes just take a break and work with a client you really like. You know, that can just help restore your mojo, you know, get you back grounded and centered. And as a absolute last resort, if it is really not working out for you or for your client, wave the white flag and let your boss know that really a change of account manager is probably in the best interest of everybody. It happens. Don't feel defeated. Don't feel questioned. Don't feel ashamed or embarrassed. I have had to reshuffle portfolios from time to time. And there are plenty of excuses that your manager can make to your client that are gonna save your reputation and are just gonna make things better for everybody. I think that's about it. That's my advice for you. If you have any of your own to share, if you like this video, if you have any feedback, advice, or comments for me about managing clients you hate, please comment below. Think about subscribing. And if you want to connect, you can find me at my blog, accountmanager.tips, or at the social media platform of your choice, at Warwick A. Brown. And I'm gonna see you next time.