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Customer called me screaming.
"Your crew tracked paint through my entire house. There are footprints on my hardwood floors. This is unacceptable."
My stomach dropped. I apologized. Said I'd be there in 30 minutes. (Those drives are the worst, IYKYK)
Drove over preparing for disaster. Playing out the conversation in my head. Thinking about how much this was going to cost to fix if it didn't come up.
Walked in the door.
The "footprints" were three small drops in the hallway that someone had stepped on and left a track. Maybe the size of quarters.
Now here's where most contractors mess up.
They get defensive. "Ma'am, that's barely anything. We'll wipe it up, no big deal."
That's how you turn a small problem into a mess.
Instead, I got on my knees. Looked at the spots closely.
Nodded seriously.
"You're absolutely right. This shouldn't have happened. I'm going to clean this up personally right now, and I'm going to have a conversation with my crew about protecting floors better."
Spent 10 minutes wiping up spots that would've come off with a wet paper towel and a special cleaning solution for wood floors that I picked up on the way.
She watched me do it. Her whole demeanor changed.
"Thank you for taking this seriously. Most contractors would've just argued with me."
Left with a hug. Got a 5-star review the next day. She's referred us twice since.
The spots weren't the problem.
Her feeling heard was the problem.
Most "difficult customers" just want to know you give a damn.
Could my crew could've fixed it? No. They made the mess.
They lost her trust.
Get on your knees and wipe up the spots.
Humble servant always wins.
"Your crew tracked paint through my entire house. There are footprints on my hardwood floors. This is unacceptable."
My stomach dropped. I apologized. Said I'd be there in 30 minutes. (Those drives are the worst, IYKYK)
Drove over preparing for disaster. Playing out the conversation in my head. Thinking about how much this was going to cost to fix if it didn't come up.
Walked in the door.
The "footprints" were three small drops in the hallway that someone had stepped on and left a track. Maybe the size of quarters.
Now here's where most contractors mess up.
They get defensive. "Ma'am, that's barely anything. We'll wipe it up, no big deal."
That's how you turn a small problem into a mess.
Instead, I got on my knees. Looked at the spots closely.
Nodded seriously.
"You're absolutely right. This shouldn't have happened. I'm going to clean this up personally right now, and I'm going to have a conversation with my crew about protecting floors better."
Spent 10 minutes wiping up spots that would've come off with a wet paper towel and a special cleaning solution for wood floors that I picked up on the way.
She watched me do it. Her whole demeanor changed.
"Thank you for taking this seriously. Most contractors would've just argued with me."
Left with a hug. Got a 5-star review the next day. She's referred us twice since.
The spots weren't the problem.
Her feeling heard was the problem.
Most "difficult customers" just want to know you give a damn.
Could my crew could've fixed it? No. They made the mess.
They lost her trust.
Get on your knees and wipe up the spots.
Humble servant always wins.
