An eight part series on taking people out on the water.
Part 8.
How does the day end?
To conclude, I have to admit, that some of the day’s on the river during the early years were certainly a challenge for me. Some clients that were very difficult initially, turned out to be real nice people. It was a case of not looking at the clock and hoping the day would end soon, but to try and get on the “good side” of that person and enjoy the whole experience. Some of those people have duly turned out to be good friends, it was an important lesson in life to be more affable, empathetic and understanding. Return business is a great indicator that you may be doing something right, word of mouth another. New business is also important to give balance, that comes from honest advertising, putting yourself out there in many forms, reputation and referrals.
Going back to part one, we had some targets that were set to be achieved, from both parties. It is vital that those targets are met and the clients aspirations are fulfilled. I have a personal policy to not only achieve that, but to give people far more than they expected without them realising at the time. It is important that the day also ends on a high note! There will be a time usually around the halfway point in the day, that there is a dip in performance, it is common, it happens in all aspects of work we do. To finish at that point will be a disaster, do not get frustrated, trust me it is normal and soon rectified with a coffee and a chat.
A high note finish could be, catching a decent fish, learning a cast that was not in the programme for the day, seeing some unusual wild life or just having a pleasant day on the water. After packing up, going through some of the salient points of the day, the client is dropped back at the meeting point hopefully still alive, happy and dry. Pleasantries are exchanged, a couple of flies, snips or whatever is appropriate offered, any questions, relative information and a sincere thank you are given.
Happy Days!
