John Leeke wrote:

> My advance payment policy quickly filters out those who do not intend to pay
> as the relationship is set up. It is difficult to develop a business
> relationship before doing business. I often think of this as "trust building,"
> and will often do one or a few smaller projects wtih a new client to build
> that trust, then do the major work. Whenever I have used this technique as a
> project manager it has always lead to high success.

We use both the advance payment (calling it "mobilization" money, meaning, pay us
and we will be motivated to mobilize), as well as the approach of, "Give us the
small job and we will talk about the larger job." I think it is true that you have
to try your best to weed out potentially bad customers. Beyond bad customers I
believe that you should sit down once a year and weed out all of the marginally
profitable customers. It gives you more time to spend developing relationships
with the profitable ones, and more time to seek out new relationships.

I have one really good customer that consistently gives us larger projects each
year. They also pay their bills without a lot of questions and hassles. Now we are
at a point where we negotiate without going to bid, no competition. It saves both
sides a lot of time, it is bothersome and expensive to run an estimating service,
and they know that we will provide the best service possible. The incentive is
that when you have a customer this good you will do almost anything to keep them
happy. Needless to say, when this customer calls with a problem I drop everything
else.

The idea that there has to be an adversarial relationship in the preservation
project is bullshit. It is as much bullshit as saying that all artists should be
starving artists. Forcing service and material suppliers into a mode close to
starvation only results in debasing human nature. After we get past screwing
around with the money, when we have had enough of the scramble to survive, then I
think what we really crave is respect. I cannot survive on respect alone, but give
me respect and I will go a lot further. I try to return respect to those who
supply services to us in turn. It is not always easy, as human nature seems to be
inclined to move to the negative assumption like bolt lightening. I'm constantly
fighting against negatives, nibbled to death by bullshit.

][<en Follett