Comments on: Let’s Fire Our Customers

By: Framing your Customer

Framing your Customer — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 14:17:31 +0000

[...] is a whole different discussion about firing your customers, but thats an explicit option, not a cultural [...]

By: Play Wack-a-Mole – gently, now – With Your ‘Bad’ Customers | CityOf.com – More Local… FASTER.

Fri, 09 Jul 2010 19:50:49 +0000

[...] a bit more panache and patience, they’re likely to break less furniture as they leave,” blogs Steve Blank, serial entrepreneur and author of “The Four Steps to the [...]

By: John Stack

John Stack — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 12:12:50 +0000

Great post and very useful. I’ve fired two customers and have been fired from customers. It’s definitely a reality. While I completely agree with this notion, the signals might be more important (when you might fire them): 1) You don’t have a bi-directional (respectful) relationship. 2) They don’t care about your profitibility and ultimately, your staying power. 3) Managing the relationship is more consumptive than the rewards. 4) You don’t see any revenue gain past three years. 5) The customer’s needs don’t match your long term direction. Also, there are a variety of strategies for “easing out” gracefully such as finding an outsourcing vendor or new partner. Fire might be a strong word.

By: Daily Links #103 | CloudKnow

Daily Links #103 | CloudKnow — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 01:45:26 +0000

[...] Steve Blank: Let’s fire our customers [...]

By: links for 2009-09-24 « Blarney Fellow

links for 2009-09-24 « Blarney Fellow — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 01:06:48 +0000

[...] Let’s Fire Our Customers « Steve Blank (tags: product-management startup business) [...]

By: Nathan Furr

Nathan Furr — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:20:30 +0000

Great post and wise advice. I wonder if the greater challenge for many CEOs is recognizing that customers need to be fired at all. Most startups I talk to struggle and fail because they chased too many opportunities rather than focused their efforts on one. So first step is learning to focus on one, second step is learning to recognize that it’s time to pull the ripcord, third step is firing your customers so they stay on your team. I’ll add I’m particularly curious about how founders recognize that point at which they need to exit / fire the old customers.

By: Twitter Trackbacks for Let’s Fire Our Customers « Steve Blank [steveblank.com] on Topsy.com

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:19:04 +0000

[...] Let’s Fire Our Customers « Steve Blank steveblank.com/2009/09/24/lets-fire-our-customers – view page – cached + Customer Development Manifesto: The Path of Warriors and Winners (part 5) + Can You Trust Any VC’s Under 40? + Customer Development Manifesto: Market Type (part 4) + The Customer Development Manifesto: The Startup Death Spiral (part 3) + The Customer Development Manifesto: Reasons for the Revolution (part 2) + The Customer Development Manifesto: Reasons for the Revolution (part 1) + The Leading Cause of Startup Death – Part 1: The Product Development Diagram + The End of Innocence + Coffee With Startups * Archives + September 2009 + August 2009 + July 2009 + June 2009 + May 2009 + April 2009 + March 2009 + February 2009 * Other Stuff + Steve Blank + Entrepreneurship o Books/Blogs for Startups + Secret History — From the page [...]