19 Hilariously Accurate Client Red Flags - Benji Carlson

Nothing in the world of contracting sucks the life out of you or your team like a miserable client. A sorry SOB whose apparent mission in life is to ruin yours.  It almost seems they take pleasure in the process.

What I’m saying is I think we can all agree that avoiding the crazies is in your best interest.  And the sooner the better.

After running my own painting company and talking to over 1000 contractors, I’ve noticed there are a few client patterns that have emerged in our collective experience.

I should mention, this list is by no means exhaustive and if you have your own red flags I’d love you to leave them in the comments below. I read all the comments you guys put in there.

Episode Highlights (6 Key Phrases That Should Raise A Red Flag):

- “Can I help out? And what kind of discount will I get if I do?”
- “We bought the materials already, just charge us for labor.”
- “I could do this myself, I’m just so busy”
- “I’m a realtor and I’ve flipped many houses so I know what things cost.”
- “I have a brother-in-law who does some flooring. Can he be involved?”
- “I’m super busy, do we have to meet?”

00:00 - Intro

03:12 - 1. The Helper

03:47 - 2. The "We've got materials already" Client

04:49 - 3. The "I could do this" Client

06:04 - 4. The Precisionist

06:46 - 5. The Real Estate Guru

07:24 - 6. The Contentious Couple

08:20 - 7. No Deposit Dude

09:23 - 8. New Homeowners

09:58 - 9. The Silent Partner

11:28 - 10. The "Contractors Are Idiots" Client

11:52 - 11. The "No Time" client

12:15 - The "My Brother's A Contractor" Client

12:51 - 13. The "ASAP" Client

13:41 - 14. The Neighbor Hater

14:24 - 15. The Slob

15:15 - 16. The Underestimator

15:58 - 17. The Piecemeal Quoter

16:59 - 18. The "No Questions" Client

18:14 - 19. The "Weird Dog" Client

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[normanneff]

The "I love you" client. At the first meeting this person flirts with you. They express how much confidence they have in you: "I know you're going to do a great job!". Then, they call you frequently just to talk. They want YOU, not the Work. When you don't become their mate they get very angry! Run away at the first sign of this.

[jaydargert]

absolute gold and in 33 years of business I have met them all even the crazy dog person.

[mattdallas]

This is absolute gold! I had client names and faces flashing through my mind the entire time!

[poppyfairfield]

Good list. Most of these types flee when I say “I use my own trades, for a reason, and it’ll take several weeks just for a proper rough estimate and when I begin you need to be covered by WCB and escorted by me to enter my site ”. The sticker shock of the first rough estimate weeds the rest out. The “I can do this myself” guy or “ASAP” guy are hard no’s.

[qqbqeilltqagoffq]

That's funny as Shit been self employed for a lookoonnnnggg time I had to listen to the list HOLY GRAIL YOUR SPOT ON

[eschwarz]

excellent list that has broad application to many professions and life in general.

[heritagegrower]

Regarding Deposit. What you should do is a contract outlining the defaults. This way if the client decides to cancel the job, they should pay the default as outlined in the contract. No-one should loose, that's why you do a contract that protects both sides. As a client, If you ask me for a deposit, then be prepared to provide me with your paperwork (insurance, licensing, and such) prior to transfer of funds.

[JustinBeller]

One other way to decipher the "No Questions" client is that they may have already made up their mind and they are just getting a quote from you to compare other quotes to. This might be the time to ask the following to the client: 1.) "Have you got other quotes for the project? You don't need to tell me from whom or how much, but have you got other quotes?" 2.) If you know your competition, what they do and what the use for materials, it would be a good opportunity to ask, "What do you understand about (x - competitor's product) versus (y - your product)?" You can then go into the primary differences. In the end, you might be surprised. If your prices are higher, but your workmanship and product is superior, you might get the job!

[stupka]

This was very triggering. LOL and pretty with you on the dog thing)

[quinntonandrews]

I pulled out forms from an entire project after they changed the sizes 3 times, I told the guy he can explain to his wife why the work won't be getting done, he also had me quote 6 other houses the year prior which he had his guys do instead

[revisionedpainting]

#20. The client that texts texts you 30x a day with questions before even starting the project.

[CurtisLawson]

These are great! Really all of them (except the weird dog!) really boil down to people asking you to move outside your process. Don’t do it!

[landscaper]

Clients are not your friends. Be stern never make an exception for anyone.

[gregm]

Thanks for doing this video … the I don’t want to do a deposit .. because XYZ co burned me is common one … my reply is we have to buy materials specific to your project , engineering, permitting etc … if it makes you more comfortable … I can have materials delivered to your garage … still had a few that would not do deposit … offered them 12 Mod 0% told them if they want to pay cash they can cancel financing still not try that option … that’s when I said no thank you!

Also the ….”I can do this myself but don’t have time “
Have one of those right now … she’s on back burner low priority to quote … lol I’m not wasting 2 hrs to do design and quote with someone like that …

[elevationconstructiongroup]

How do you handle a client who asks you to break up material and labor?

[jamesward]

You will never get caught as hard as by the client who has always paid on all previous projects without issue - till this one. On this one, you waived all your usual protocols because they are now "a trusted client!" - you've even been exceptionally patient, making the excuses for them - fact is, you broke the "Trust Nobody" rule & have been caught.

I'm alright at making sure they pay - reasonably alright - but I get caught by these types too. They are the hardest ones to plan for - up to now, they were perfect clients. Suddenly they aren't. Watch for those - those will bite you the hardest. "They wouldn't do this to me!"...yeah they would..

[gavinphx]

Realtors are the worst 90% of the time. And then there’s the piecemeal quote seekers. 😂

[teresastephens]

Cleint is living in a pig pen. I turn around and leave.

[PrayWithUsNow]

If you take advice about your clients from some guy in a T-shirt, who looks like he just got out of bed, it is not going to go well for your business…