Most salespeople are grateful for every customer. Some customers are worth a lot of time and engagement and even some difficulties. But if a customer costs you more then (s)he gives , there is no reason to continue the relationship. Reasons for leaving may be a loss of money of even your mental health. Inc.com described three types of customers who are better to avoid from the very beginning.
1) Leeches
Such customers let you design a solution and then hire somebody else. Your competitor can then offer a lower price, because you have done part of work for free. So if a customer asks you to do work which you would normally charge, ask for something in return. If your customer prevaricates, its probably because (s)he wants to just use you for free work.
2) Players
These customers use you like a strawman to manipulate the vendor they are really planning to purchase from. They will ask you to bid on an opportunity with the promise that the lowest bid will get the business. In reality they have already decided to hire another company or person and want a lower offer from you in order to get a lower price from them. If you think you have got in to this situation, learn as much as possible about your competitors. If it seems like it is not you who is being considered as a the final vendor, think twice, is it really good for you to stay in this difficult battle?
3) Exploders
These customers treat you badly in public, berate you, slander you or otherwise act in an unprofessional manner. If you get into such situation and want to stay there, prepare yourself for a loss of energy which you could otherwise use for others customers. Inthe end, you will not want to help your customer because of his continuously behaving badly. These people do not explode just in front of you but also in front of other people. So you can recognize such customers early and avoid them.
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