I am really enjoying the articles over at Creative Manager Pro. One article that sticks out to me right now is When to Walk Away from a New Business Prospect by Connie Burtcheard from CSB Consulting. This article is very relevant to me at the moment because it reinforces much of what Kerry recently talked about in his post Difficult Clients II.

Kerry has provided a follow up of his Difficult Clients post with Difficult Clients II in which he suggests that sometimes you just have to fire the client, a statement that I reluctantly but wholeheartedly agree with.Kerry has provided a follow up of his Difficult Clients post, which I provided several possible solutions to on Graphic Define, with Difficult Clients II. He suggests that sometimes you just have to fire the client, a statement that I reluctantly but wholeheartedly agree with. Sometimes relationships just don’t work, no matter how hard you try. Kerry goes on to provide a series of steps to let the client go and make sure that there are no hard feelings.

I am not sure how, but I stumbled onto this hilarious website that provides a…ahem….service to help you get off of a phone call. You just have to see it for yourself to get the full context.

creativepro.com has a great article by Eric J. Adams in the The Art of Business series titled ‘Tis the Season to Give Gifts… Thoughtfully. The article goes over some great gift ideas, outlines the process you should probably follow to make your life much easier, and provides some links to sites that specialize in corporate gifts. Eric’s advice sounds spot on, “take the time or spend extra to have the gift wrapped nicely. Include a handwritten note with a personal sentiment. And, if possible, hand deliver the package.”

Kerry has defined some of the major signs of a difficult client. In the spirit of being proactive, I thought I would take a stab at providing some solutions to these problems.

I always find that listening to others experiences helps me realize that I am not alone in the daily struggles of maintaining a graphic design business. Take a read of Mike Lenhart’s client horror story over at the Graphic Design Forum. I think we can all relate!

Sounds like Starbucks needs to reevaluate their customer service! This story also rings true for our own implementation of client relations - how often are you letting the “process” or “rules” get in the way of making a truly great relationship with a client.

My commute each day is roughly 3.5 hours long, round trip. That is 3.5 hours that I use to stay in touch with contacts, research potential and current clients, and use to keep learning even more about how I can help studios succeed in business. How long do you get to dedicate to your new business efforts?

A few months back I went to see author Keith Ferrazi speak. In his speech to us, he emphasized that “business is human”. This simple statement completely rocked my world - let me explain why.

Sales and networking guru Harvey Mackay has a new website. After a quick perusal I immediately found some useful tips, especially this one on The Ten Biggest Networking Mistakes.