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End-user driving me NUTS with tech-support requests. What do I do here??

by 0ldfart
26 replies
I sell a theme product and have this customer who emails me with STUPID requests that are covered by the documentation. I send him instructions, which he ignores, and badgers me for more assistance.


Has been going on for days now. Feel like Im banging mny head against a brick wall.



This guy is driving me totally freaking NUTS – he wont stop emailling me these stupid tech support questions (I mean these are really DUMB questions). He does not follow simple instructions.


Its getting to the point where its taking far too much time to provide support and its really frustrating.


Can anyone advise?


What do you do when end-users abuse your assistance like this?


I dont mind helping people, but the time here is far more than what he paid for the item, and he doesnt seem to follow anything I say to him, preferring to complain and say that there are ‘faults’ with the product where none exist.


Please help. Feel like Im banging my head against a brick wall!
#driving #enduser #nuts #requests #techsupport
  • Profile picture of the author MikeTucker
    I would refund his money and tell him to go away... Maybe even direct him to my competitors.

    If you want to keep the money, get him on the phone and get it over with.
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    • Profile picture of the author John Romaine
      Originally Posted by MikeTucker View Post

      ....direct him to my competitors.
      LOL!! Hilarious!

      Hey, think of this as an OPPORTUNITY!

      Instead of saying..."Bugger off" tell the guy...

      "Hey listen, we've decided to implement a second level members support area for people that need additional help - guess what? its only $67 a month"

      You'll either make money, or he'll shut up.

      Either way, its a win win
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      • Profile picture of the author MikeTucker
        Originally Posted by ramone_johnny View Post

        LOL!! Hilarious!

        Hey, think of this as an OPPORTUNITY!

        Instead of saying..."Bugger off" tell the guy...

        "Hey listen, we've decided to implement a second level members support area for people that need additional help - guess what? its only $67 a month"

        You'll either make money, or he'll shut up.

        Either way, its a win win


        LOL!! That's fantastic, the next step in your "product funnel" hahahahaha

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      • Profile picture of the author WillR
        Originally Posted by ramone_johnny View Post

        Instead of saying..."Bugger off" tell the guy...

        "Hey listen, we've decided to implement a second level members support area for people that need additional help - guess what? its only $67 a month"
        I wouldn't do this. If the customer is unable to follow simple instructions and is then telling you your product has faults I would immediately refund them. These are the types of people who are going to continue to be a pain in the a** for a long time to come. Just fire them and move on.

        Good customer service is one thing but there comes a point when you need to have a little self-respect and be willing to let go of a customer, even if it means losing a little money.

        Don't be desperate.

        I constantly have people asking me why my product x is better than product y and product z. I tell them all the same thing. I am not going to convince anyone to buy my product, that's their decision to make and they should do their own research. Once again it is those people who ask a ton of questions before buying who usually end up being the worst customers.
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  • Profile picture of the author onSubie
    Hi

    You could first ask if he is having trouble with the documentation, maybe he has difficulty with English.

    Then just start auto-replying:

    Please see instructions provided by the documentation.

    You have already offered much support that wasn't followed.

    Mahlon
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  • Profile picture of the author UMS
    Cut him loose.

    Give him a refund and tell him that your products aren't suitable for his needs (perhaps he would be better suited to being fed baby food)
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  • Profile picture of the author Eddie Titan
    Follow Ramone Johnny's advice or:

    Politely refund the money and inform him of the cancellation of his service. Do not cut him loose right away. Tell him that his account is to be cancelled in "X" days/weeks.

    The reason you use can be very simply: We are unable to continue to provide the same level of customer support to our clients that we are providing you. We hate it when a customer of ours is unsatisfied. To avoid this, we have kindly refunded your money. We apologize for this inconvenience and hope you can find another service provider that can meet your needs.
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    • Profile picture of the author SlowlyMan
      It's your call really. As I see it, you have two choices.

      1) Sometimes you need to fire a customer. If he is a small account and is taking too much of your time, this may be your best bet.

      2) Offer premium service at xx.xx / hour, email, skype, etc. This may be difficult if you didn't set guidelines up front on what you will do for free.

      I really HATE to cut a client loose. I have had a tough time with a few of my clients. Some I stuck with, and they have become loyal clients for years and have referred other people to me.

      On the other hand, if they are frying your last nerve, the best thing may be to offer a full refund and suggest other options. I have done that as well. In one case the client came back a year later. She has been a loyal client ever since.

      Ah yes, the joys of running a business
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  • Profile picture of the author RySpencer
    Don't waste time with this guy. Just keep sending him the documentation everytime he emails you. Maybe he will eventually get the hint.
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  • Profile picture of the author tpw
    Fire the customer. Refund him if you need to do so to get him off of your to-do list.

    When people are this much of a problem, they will only continue to be a problem until you show them the door.

    As business owners, not only do we get to choose who to hire to do work for us, but we also have a choice as to who we allow to be our customers!!
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  • Profile picture of the author Shoot
    Set up a support ticket area of your website that charges per request or a monthly fee or what ever and direct him there for additional assistance. Or just refund him and move on.
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  • Profile picture of the author Randall Magwood
    How much money is he paying you? If it's a high priced fee... go to the local Barnes & Nobles and pick up a Comptia A+ computer book for only $50. Within 1 month you'll be equipped with the computer and technical support knowledge of how to answer your client's questions.
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    • Profile picture of the author Black Hat Cat
      Banned
      Originally Posted by Randall Magwood View Post

      How much money is he paying you? If it's a high priced fee... go to the local Barnes & Nobles and pick up a Comptia A+ computer book for only $50. Within 1 month you'll be equipped with the computer and technical support knowledge of how to answer your client's questions.
      After reading the OP's post, how did you ever come to the conclusion that he didn't know how to answer his customer's questions?
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      • Profile picture of the author KenJ
        I'm sure it's not the case for you but consider this.

        Are you sure your instructions are good?
        I own many premium themes and the instructions are woeful in all cases. All the owners say that their themes are easy to use and customise. This is not so.

        Kenj
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    • Profile picture of the author Jeff Lenney
      Originally Posted by Randall Magwood View Post

      How much money is he paying you? If it's a high priced fee... go to the local Barnes & Nobles and pick up a Comptia A+ computer book for only $50. Within 1 month you'll be equipped with the computer and technical support knowledge of how to answer your client's questions.
      So he needs a+ certification now to help a dumb customer? Are you just trying to add to your post count? It's Clear you did not read the entire first post...
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  • Profile picture of the author sbucciarel
    Banned
    There have been a couple of times where the support that a customer required was way beyond the amount of time I was willing to spend. I cut them loose with a refund and links to the any help in Google they might want to explore.
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  • Profile picture of the author pandadoodle
    IF you said in the document that you provide support or for further help to email you then I would send him an email and include something in future sales T&C stating that free support is subject to 4 hours a month (1 hour a week)

    Anything on top of that is subject to either

    1. Flat hourly fee of $25-250 p.h which ever you feel your time is worth
    2. Offer a flat rate support package with a 12 month subscription for $39, 99 and 199 per month based on what amount of time you offer.

    Customer will either leave you alone, agree to pay or you cut him lose as above.

    Most of my customers when they act like this once I make it clear I don't need his / hers money to live they tend to back off a little.
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    • Profile picture of the author dfs_dean
      I agree with those who said it's probably time to fire your customer. However, (isn't there always a 'however'?), just be careful when you cut him loose. From your post you seem to actually want to provide good customer support.....within logical reason, of course. You'll agonize over it a bit the first time you fire a customer, the next time will probably be a little easier, then a little easier the time after that. Don't let it start the slippery slope to simply taking the easy way out so you end up providing piss poor customer service.

      All that said, I think your sanity and peace of mind is worth more than one customer.

      Peace
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    • Profile picture of the author Kay King
      Has been going on for days now.
      Days...not weeks or months.

      First - stop giving him the personal attention he wants. Do not answer his emails immediately - and when you do send him "chapter/page" of the documentation where the question is answered. Make him look it up instead of spoon feeding it to him.

      If he asks a question you've already answered - send him a quote of the answer and nothing else. Gradually increase the time between his questions and your responses.

      I certainly would not refund unless he asked - and not after a few days. Sometimes the best thing is to TELL the customer he is expecting too much in the way of coaching/support. There are buyers who will see you as their new best friend/mentor - and you have to draw the line FOR them.

      He may be taking advantage, he may not trust his own ability - or he may be dumber than a stick. Decide which is the case and act accordingly.

      kay
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      • Profile picture of the author professorrosado
        Customer support for products that need to be 'installed' should include installation services. You can offer this as a premium service as suggested in previous posts, but it should be available.

        I have had to deal with software that was very well documented but poorly premised. So, as a newbie to "so and so" type of software, there are many reasons the documentation can confuse a client. Developers need to add a "preamble" to their documentation much like the "system requirements" we see when buying software for our computers. In this way we can prepare the client with the proper thinking, rationale and basis upon which the documentation is based, as well as, the functional environment and limitations of the software.

        It would have saved me weeks of headaches and customer service "idiotic" replies if they had just mentioned somewhere that the software managed only one site per installation - this client has a multi site configuration and need. Too much goes assumed with a lot of software documentation. The client side environment must be considered and addressed, at minimum, in a well thought out preamble.
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      • Profile picture of the author michaelwilding
        I have had this a few times. I try to find out why they can't follow the instructions and if I get nothing back then I send them to the page in the instructions where everything is written and ask them if they would like a refund in a way similar to Eddie Titan's post. Often you find they don't refund and stop asking.
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  • Profile picture of the author millionebook
    Hi, I absolutely agree with the earlier response by ramone johnny, this guy needs much more support than normally expected by the sounds of it. Hope everything goes well for you
    Arth
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  • Profile picture of the author noangel
    I purchased a Theme and built a site for a large offline client of mine.
    For reason's unknown, the Theme keeps losing the Logo, leaving only
    the broken link sign.

    I have asked and asked for help with this, I even asked how to just delete
    it altogether. I can't get any help. I am in a situation where this is a site
    built for a client and it does not reflect very well on me or on their business
    for their clients.

    My feeling towards this seller is... don't sell something you are not prepared
    to support and don't dictate what someone can and cannot find challenging.

    So what may seem like a silly or stupid question to some, may not be so for
    others. I am not saying that your support or instruction wasn't excellent, I am
    just offering another point of view from my personal experience.
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  • Profile picture of the author MiFortuna
    A simple reply stating that all questions will be answered within 24 hours. make him wait and then just reply with the page he has to reread. Basically give him a taste of his own medicine and if he still doesnt get the hint refund him. Consider how much your hourly rate is and has he covered the time spent by the fee he has paid for your product.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ben Gordon
    Believe me, I've had A LOT of these clients. What I did with one client, that got REALLY annoying was I set up an automated follow up email for each time he emails me. It just sends him an email saying something along the lines of: thoroughly read the documentation. If you don't want to do this, tell him to give you a call and talk it through with him. If you don't want to do that, tell him that the support is limited to a certain level and that he must pay per question he asks which will shut his mouth up.
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  • Profile picture of the author Troy357
    Banned
    [DELETED]
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    • Profile picture of the author rowbot
      Originally Posted by Troy357 View Post

      You could first ask if he is having trouble with the documentation, maybe he has difficulty with English.

      Then just start auto-replying:

      Please see instructions provided by the documentation.

      You have already offered much support that wasn't followed.
      This contained 3 cookie stuffing images, going to justhost, godaddy, and hostgator. (I deleted them from this quote, but they are still in Troys.) You might want to clear your cookies for these 3 if you are planning on buying anything there.
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