Help in dealing with PITA customer

If she's contacted you for 5 orders and then flaked on them, you did the right thing by telling her you were booked.  You don't have time for her nonsense!  I would have done the same thing, there's not much else you can do except "be booked" f you want to remain cordial and polite.

Sounds like she's just using you to plan her cake, quote it, and then taking that to the competition. You are being used.

I agree, you are doing all the work for her then she's taking it to someone else for less. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pyro 

Sounds like she's just using you to plan her cake, quote it, and then taking that to the competition. You are being used.

EXACTLY what I thought also!!

I was thinking the same thing about her taking it to someone else. 

I surprised you've allowed this to go on for so long!

I have certain 'customers' that I'm fully booked for every time they call or e-mail.  Fully booked until the end of time, for them.

She is a waste of your precious time.  Even if she does give you an occasional order she is still not worth it

I agree.  If she isn't a cake maker herself, then she's certainly is using you to get ideas and prices and then go elsewhere where they're prepared to undercut.

Next time she contacts you, the first thing you ask is 'when is it for' and then reply 'Thank you for your enquiry.  Unfortunately, I'm unavailable that week.  Sorry I can't help you'.

Personally, I have no qualms about telling big fat pork pies (lies) to customers and telling them I'm fully booked when I'm not if I don't like the sound of the order or I feel they're going to be a PITA.  But if you have more morals than me, then saying you're unavailable isn't exactly telling a lie.  You're just not available for HER!!  Eventually, she should get the hint.

Suzanne x

This woman is screwing with you.  As soon as she calls the FIRST thing you ask, before she even starts talking, you ask the date and then immediately say unfortunately I am booked that day.  Just keep repeating it no matter what date she gives you.

Or stop taking her phone calls and/or emails.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ApplePomme 

I'm sure you know the type, the contact you, they have all these grand ideas and you spend so much time researching design inspiration, emailing back and forth etc. etc. When you send the quote, they agree and decide on a time to pay their deposit but then something always "just comes up" and they cancel on you.

 

I have one such customer and she is driving me to drink. I made her daughter's 1st birthday cake when I was just starting out and, while she was a bit of a pain in the ass to deal with, she did pay and pick up her order and even sent me another email afterward to say just how much they loved the cake. In the 3 years since then, I have been contacted by her for not 3, not 4, but 5 different cake orders, none of which she has gone through with.

 

The latest one was a wedding cake for this August. I spent HOURS emailing back and forth with her, suggesting things, offering design ideas, answering questions, etc. etc. etc. and now she's backed out on me yet again. In a matter of 2 minutes, she sent one email to say that she "is going another way" for her wedding cake, and sent another email to ask me to make her daughter's 4th birthday cake! I'm done with her SO FREAKING DONE. 

 

But...

 

What do you do with "customers" like these? Put me on a first class train to cake-making-hell, but I told her I was booked for the date she inquired about and put the kybosh on it right away. I don't want to spend another second on her. Should I have done that? I was polite, but it was completely a lie.

 

What do you do with the tire-kickers who never actually book?

YOU need to control the amount of time you waste on non-orders. You can provide 15 minutes of basic contact such as getting the details of the event down etc.

If these time-wasters want more, you can quote them your hourly rate for consultation.  Trust me they will vanish into the woodwork...