Why South Africans Suck as Clients, Myself Included

[Norri]

I'm so frustrated with this country as a whole. Selling here is so much more difficult than selling them elsewhere. Let me give you an example.

I have a client who hasn't been receiving my email replies. In other words he hasn't heard from me in a while but has just paid for a service. Understandably, he's concerned, but what he does next is ridiculous.

After just one day of not hearing back from me, he emails me swearing and claiming that I'm scamming him and that I'd better reply immediately or he'll do this and that and the next thing. One day!

He may be the exception but his type is NOT rare in this country.

Contrast this with the same thing happening with one of my US/UK/AU clients and you get a completely different response. They don't think I'm scamming them, they understand I may have replied but they didn't get it. They just message me and we organise alternative means of communication. All without resulting to mudslinging.

I have a theory and the theory is that, being South African, we're so used to being scammed, robbed and defrauded that we, as individual
citizens, are just WAITING, nay EXPECTING to be victims. And so we treat every business transaction as a fight. This is how things are done
here but, know this, this is not the norm. It's just OUR norm and it does not serve us. Be vigilant but, for goodness' sake, be civil too. You'll find you'll have more bridges to cross back over when you need them.

(I fire rude clients. Bugger 'em.)