The power of the pushback

We’ve all heard the adage ‘the customer is always right,’ coined by the Swiss hotelier Cesar Ritz. While the sentiment is underpinned by the notions of customer service, compassion and hustle, we’re gonna have to disagree with Cesar. Should you be kind to your clients and do great work for them? Absolutely. Should you do it however the client wants? Very often, no. Here’s why:

You are the expert. You know how to do what you do. No one has thought about your business more than you. You have put the systems and processes in place to deliver value to your clients while being profitable. You offer the best version you have. That’s why the client has come to you. If the client gets to decide how you should deliver your offering, it throws off the balance. Your product or service is compromised because you’re doing it in a different way. It takes you longer, and therefore becomes less profitable. And worst of all, your client will tell all their friends about the ‘way’ they worked with you.

Here’s the irony: If the client is allowed input into your process, it is almost always worse for the client! Imagine a personal trainer who lets you dictate the fitness program and all you want to do are bicep curls. At the end of the day, you’ve got huge arms and everything else is imbalanced. It’s a lost opportunity. Plus, you will show all of your friends your results from working with said trainer. Lose, lose, lose.

On the flip side, there is a LOT to be said for gently saying no to a client. When you let a client know how your process works best and why it will be better for them, you are instilling confidence in your process, product, and leadership. Pushing back tells a client that you are so confident in your process that you are willing to let them go elsewhere if they can’t do it their way. If they don’t buy from you, they are likely not a client you’d want anyway. Imagine the personal trainer gently, but firmly, explaining that she’ll work biceps with you, but only as a part of a balanced program - which will of course be better for you.

The challenge as entrepreneurs is that we want to hustle and show up for our clients, and very often we just really want the business. It is almost impossibly tempting to accept a prospective client’s terms. Pushing back firmly but kindly is usually better for the customer, your bottom line, and your brand.