Am I nuts? The Guy wanted to pay in FULL before the event, and I told him "No".

djrox said:

Not if you had a cancellation policy that limits or prohibits last minute (a relative term I agree) cancellations.

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That's why you define "last-minute" as I do in my cancellation clause above, or with something similar. Leave nothing "relative" about it!

Also, remember that Papa's statement about refunding the retainer was from the point of view of HIM not being able to make an event.... in which case he is right... any kind of inability of the dj to perform except unforeseeable acts of god or other situations explicitly spelled out in the contract SHOULD see him pay back the client anything they have paid as at that point it's of no fault of theirs that they are without services they had contracted for and retained.

Sounds To Go said:

That's why you define "last-minute" as I do in my cancellation clause above, or with something similar. Leave nothing "relative" about it!

Also, remember that Papa's statement about refunding the retainer was from the point of view of HIM not being able to make an event.... in which case he is right... any kind of inability of the dj to perform except unforeseeable acts of god or other situations explicitly spelled out in the contract SHOULD see him pay back the client anything they have paid as at that point it's of no fault of theirs that they are without services they had contracted for and retained.

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The point is, the payment conditions and parameters must be specifically and deliberately established. The method or preference is irrelevant but the establishment of it is paramount.

My personal requirements are based on the previously stated model as follows: I have 50 Saturdays and 50 Fridays in my inventory. (two weeks of vacation annually) Of those 50, at least 16 are in the blisteringly hotter months in So. Louisiana and are likely not as lucrative. Therefore if a client wants to reserve one of the 34 limited Saturdays, thus preventing me from selling that date, they have removed a valuable asset from my inventory and reduced the number of potential profitable days by one and I expect to be compensated.

Yes, you are nuts.

Here's why:


1. You get to use money today you won't earn until tomorrow.
2. That money is worth more today than it will be tomorrow.
3. Pay a bill, pay less interest, and save more money.
4. The customer is always right - so why tell him he's wrong?
5. He's likely to feel just as generous when it comes time to tip.
6 Tipping is relatively painless when there's no bill to pay.
7. You are doing this for money, no?
8. He can pay your bill today - are you sure he can pay it tomorrow?
9. If he cancels - there's nothing to collect.
10. Worst case scenario - you'll have to give some back.
11. You get to decide how much you give back.
12. It's worth less when you give it back than when you got it.
13. When you have his money he won't replace you.
14. It was his idea.
15, Did I mention the customer is always right?

djrox said:

The point is, the payment conditions and parameters must be specifically and deliberately established. The method or preference is irrelevant but the establishment of it is paramount.

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Um, okay... I already agreed to that/said it myself so.... um.... YEAH!

djrox said:

My personal requirements are based on the previously stated model as follows: I have 50 Saturdays and 50 Fridays in my inventory. (two weeks of vacation annually) Of those 50, at least 16 are in the blisteringly hotter months in So. Louisiana and are likely not as lucrative. Therefore if a client wants to reserve one of the 34 limited Saturdays, thus preventing me from selling that date, they have removed a valuable asset from my inventory and reduced the number of potential profitable days by one and I expect to be compensated.

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Ummm... okay.... understood the first time you posted it.... so... um.... whatever floats yer boat!

Some choose the "days=inventory" approach and some do not. No right or wrong either way, just whatever works for you.

Sounds To Go said:

No right or wrong either way, just whatever works for you.

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Ummm... okay.... understood the first time you posted it....

To me this is like passing up a perfectly good gas station when you are on E in favor of filling up at a preferred station. The *risk is small but not smart.

*What if the station is closed, being robbed or is out of gas?

The customer is NOT always right. I have never believed that and never will...

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Very big mistake on your part!

What you really mean is: that customers are not always reasonable.

Whatever the circumstance, they hold a perspective of their own and they will always be right.

Never tell a customer they are wrong - just that you are unable to satisfy them. Telling them (implying) they are wrong will only polarize them. If you can calmly point out how their expectations exceed your capability - they are quite likely too adjust and re-scale their expectations to fit your limits.

Proformance said:

If you can calmly point out how their expectations exceed your capability

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What if that is not the truth and you are capable just not willing?

I think Papa meant exactly what he typed. It is not arguable that the customer is not always right because they ARE frequently not right. However, the customer is always the customer which, I would concur, triggers a specific, different type of behavior, reaction, and treatment. It is the "Time & Place" ethic and is a lost art.

The difficulty with handling people that are in a position of incorrectness is that the person making the judgment has to be firm and committed to the "right" position, and many do not have that capacity. If you (generic) truly believe there is no right and wrong, if you are a fence rider, pacifist, and/or avoid conflict at all costs, then your issue is not with the customer-seller relationship, it is internal and the external circumstances are forcing you to face your incapacity.

Deep ish, huh?

What if that is not the truth and you are capable just not willing?

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It's the same thing, "unwilling" means contrary to my "policy."

Your attitude about what a customer brings to your desk predetermines your success or failure in nearly every instance. Do you want to be proven right - or proven effective? The purpose of customer service is to be effective at producing, sustaining, and growing customers. "Winning" the argument isn't necessary. You only need a winning solution.

The customer is only wrong with respect to your mind-set, your policy, or your perspective. Hitting them over the head with your expectations gets you no-where. It won't get you their respect, and consequntly you won't get their business or their referrals. What you might get is the infamy that comes with being the war story they love to tell over and over to people who could have been your referral.

You don't need to give in to unreasonable demands, but the fact that you won't comply with what someone else wants doesn't make them wrong.

What they intially demand may not reflect the real problem. If you accept that there is validity somewhere inside the request or complaint then you wil usually find an appropriate solution well short of what you thought was wrong.

This guy couldn't possibly be wrong about wanting to pay in full in advance. Perhaps, if PapaDeuce were prone to frequent refunds he would instute a policy of delaying payments, but that doesn't mean the other guy is wrong.

Attitude can cost you a lot. The most effective way to out-do your comptitors is to figure out what they believe is "wrong" with customer expectations - and then offer exactly that.

Proformance said:

It's the same thing, "unwilling" means contrary to my "policy."

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WRONG, WRONG, and WRONG... and I don't mean contrary to any policy.

Cap,

Do you have any clearing equipment, this forest is too thick.

...and you wonder why people have such a lowly general opinion of DJs?

How many threads are there on boards like these about DJs engaged in battle with clients they describe as wrong? LOL. There's usually a very simple solution - yet DJs typically prefer to piss all over some piece of territory rather than grow business.

There's one right now where the DJ was a volunteer, the event was staged, and he didn't get the position. Yet, he's going to write a letter to tell the client how wrong they are?

:sqerr:

When your wrong admit it - when you're right, just shut the hell up.
So I'll quit now.

Cut and run.

as far as the statement "The customer is always right" goes, Proformance is right on.

Of course we all know that customers are, in fact, WRONG plenty of times. Sometimes they've received bad information elsewhere. Sometimes they have unrealistic expectations because this is not their expertise and sometimes they are just plain niave.

The reality is NO ONE LIKES TO BE TOLD THEY ARE WRONG. But everyone likes to be shown a better way. It's not what you say, but how you say it.

There simply is no benefit in always telling a customer that they are wrong, even when they are, hence the phrase "the customer is always right".

I recently had a bride tell me that a DJ told her it was STUPID to have the first dance right after the introduction. That's what he thought of her idea.
The only thing stupid was telling a bride that what she liked was stupid.