The objective of most businesses is to grow their customer base. However, there may come a time when you need to get rid of a client. A bad client can suck the life right out of you and make you hate the job you previously loved and sometimes the price of money is not worth it.
However, its not always easy to fire a client because there may be other strings attached. The client may be your father-in-law, a family friend or your bread and butter client.

The Time to Fire a Client Comes When:

They insist that you work for less than your usual rate
Unless you are desperate for work, you should always insist that all your clients pay your usual rate. Clients that are unwilling to pay full price obviously doesn’t appreciate the value of the services you offer. These clients usually expect more for less and will treat you as if you were their personal employee, rather than a skilled contractor.

They don’t pay on time
You started your business to make money, not to provide your clients with free tech work. There are a few reasons why a client wont pay on times. Sometimes they simply forget, they are falling on hard times or they simply don’t respect your work. For clients who don’t pay on time its usually best to find out why they haven’t paid before firing them.

They become aggressive or threatening
When a client threatens to sue you or cause bodily harm, its time to get rid of them. If you have any contractual obligations to fulfil, do them and fire the client quickly.

They client wants you to compromise your ethics
They might want you to do something like break into another persons user account, install keyloggers and other spying software or provide and install pirated software. Often clients simply doesn’t understand that these practices are questionable, you need to educate them and let them know your moral standing about them. If they still expect you to do what they asked then they need to be fired because they don’t respect you as an individual.

How to Fire a Client

Once you have made the decision to fire a client its best to do it in writing such as a letter or email. It helps prevent misunderstandings and raised emotions which could occur over the phone. It also serves as a record should any dispute arise.

If they owe you money then its best to get the money before you fire them. If you cut your ties with them then they will see little reason to pay you. Its also possible that they will withhold payment from you as a means of revenge if they feel bitter about being fired.

As mentioned before, if you have any contractual obligations that need to be fulfilled, either fulfill them or be aware of any termination clauses in the contract. If you cant do either its probably a good idea to contact a lawyer.

When giving them a reason why you can no longer do work for them. Its usually best to be honest but not offend. If you feel that they are likely to be offended because of the reason, there are many things you can say such as:

“My business is currently changing direction and we can no longer do this type of work”

They cant really argue with this but its a good idea to have an answer ready if they ask what direction your business is now taking.

“My schedule is booked up and I wont be able to get onto it for (insert distant date here). If you need it done faster its probably a good idea to call someone else”

So that you don’t leave your client high and dry, recommend another provider to them that is not a friend or tell them to look in their local business directory.

Questionable Tricks:

• Double your prices for them. If they don’t want to pay that much tell them that you cannot help them and they’ll have to find someone else. If they accept, they are a little less painful to work for when you are being paid double. This option only works when you don’t have your prices posted on your advertising.
• Refer them to your competitor. This frees up more of your time and slows your competitor down.

Unfortunately, most businesses will encounter a bad client sooner or later and firing a client may seem like a move in the wrong direction. However, it might be the best strategic move you can make. Spend less time on bad clients and use that time to find more good clients.

I have personally had a few bad clients in my years as a computer technician which you can read about here. I would love to hear some of our reader’s bad clients stories. Leave a comment.