Navigating Getting Fired by Social Media Management Clients

Let's talk about everyone's least favorite F word....fired.

Everyone reading this, we hope that you have never had to experience being fired, but the reality is, that it happens. We all have heard the stories of how Orpah, Disney, and Mark Cuban got fired and still turned it into success.

And, while those stories are constantly passed around, it doesn't make getting fired feel any better for us in that moment. At our Social Savvy agency, we've been in business for nearly six years now. Within those six years, you better believe we have been on both sides of the firing process and neither is fun to navigate. However, it can be inevitable and can lead to healthy redirection. So, let's talk about our top tips for navigating getting fired by a social media management client.

1.) Give yourself time to grieve

Losing a client and that income from the client sucks! We aren't going to sugarcoat it. Take a minute to throw yourself a pity party because regardless of what the situation is, it is absolutely not fun to restructure your client roster, especially if it's abrupt. Give yourself a hot second to let it all out, and then leave it there.

2.) Reflect + Get to the Root

What was the issue? If you have a feedback form, this can be a good time to send it their way because you need to know what exactly happened so you can gain both closure and constructive criticism! If you already know the issues think about whether or not this is something you can fix or a client-specific issue that you have to just move on from. What can you take from this experience to create a better experience for clients moving forward?

3.) Offboard Professionally

This is where having a solid offboarding process to rely on is key! Emotions are high, so you need to go back to your templates and structure so you can remain efficient, and professional, and end things on the best possible note. Even if the client isn't being professional, keep that prof-game face on and handle it with grace. Provide them with any information they will need, send your feedback form if you'd like, and thank them for your time working together.

4.) Restructure

Losing a client is always going to lead to a gap. Take note of it and create a plan on how you'll recover from that gap moving forward. Do you need another high-ticket client to fulfill that revenue? Do you need two clients to fill the space? Do you need to cut back on certain things until that income returns? Does your team member working on this account need additional tasks in the meantime? Strategize how you will navigate this from an admin perspective!

5.) Rebuild your confidence

Don't go into your discovery calls with a chip on your shoulder because of your last client. That was one client, and this is a completely fresh start. Remember who you are, and all the awesome work that you do, and bring that confidence back up!

Listen to episode 77 of Hashtag Managed for more on this topic!