Ever Sell to Family

A

AbbieRose

New member
I had a family member express and interest in hosting with me, and that makes me nervous. Ok it would be nice to have the additional customer but the idea of it being family makes me nervous. There's the fear that something will happen-they will need hand holding, more than I can do, and that will upset the relationship.

And now there is the fear that if I refuse them it will affect it too. Help.
 
This can greatly depend on your relations with the family member in question, and your own comfort levels.

On the one hand, your family-member client coming to you for assistance can point you to areas in your documentation you need to expand.

On the other hand, a family-member client who expects a higher level of support than your other clients because they're family and know how to contact you wherever whenever...yes, there can be a definite problem.

If it's possible to make it clear to them that they're more than welcome to ask for assistance whenever they need it but they need to use the same support channels as any other client, AND will be bound by the same rules as any other client, no problems. If they accept these boundaries, and you feel comfortable that they'll stay within these boundaries (largely), then good: you've got a client who may be an early alert to potential problems that you might not hear of from your non-family customers, but you've also got a paying client.

Inevitably, they will try calling your personal number, trying to buttonhole you at family gatherings, et cetera. (Same thing happened to me.) The first few times, answer their question and remind them to submit a support ticket / post in the forums / whatever, just like you would your other clients. If they continue to try and get special treatment despite reminders, suggest that since they want different support than you provide, that they might be happier hosting somewhere else. Give them a few URLs, tell them things to watch out for (unlimited everything, hidden "gotchas" in the TOS), and give them 30 days to find a new web host or to stop demanding special treatment. (After all, you'd say the same thing to a client who demanded service / support above and beyond what you were willing or able to provide, wouldn't you?)

Just like any relationship, you have to lay out the ground rules. Make sure both parties know what to expect. Let them know, right up front, that if you find that they need more support than you provide your other clients, you'll either charge them extra or you'll encourage them to find another provider. If they know that up front, either they'll be disappointed that they don't get special treatment and they'll go elsewhere...or they'll know that they'll be treated just like any other client, they'll respect that, and you'll gain another client.
 
A family member should be no different than a client that you don't know. If you provide stellar support, then it doesn't matter if they're family or not.

Family will likely request addtional help, but that's exactly what it is - a REQUEST. As stated earlier, having a family member or friends on board can help you see areas of your business that you need to pay more attention to.

I've never had a problem offering support to family or friends. You must make it clear to them that work is work, and if they procure your services, then it's on work time (and will be billed as such if you're doing design/programming). Calling at home is a NO NO.
 
I have no problem hosting family sites from the aspect of uptime or performance.

However, the problem is that they think hosting also means you are their personal webmaster. Keep that in mind before offering them hosting space :)
 
I have no problem hosting family websites too. It can be very good for your business, word of mouth gets around and family members can do that real easy. Don't be so hard on yourself.
 
i give to familly and feel no problem and really happy because why? their never running scam site or doing illegal activity on internet
 
Hello,

This is such a difficult situation no matter what business you are running. Yes, I have worked with a family member (web hosting and design). I felt it was a really great learning experiences and it tested my skills on every level. But, it was hard to keep that professionalization because they are a family member and your used to bsing with them. Best of luck to you.
 
Done it before, and like stated above it was hard to remain professional with them. I'd go ahead and give it a shot though, you never know unless you try :)
 
Certainly if the relative is a close one, I would do it. And I wouldn't make a fuss over the details of when they can contact you and when they can't. Your relationship with them goes beyond hosting, after all.

And there can be business value in this. You can legitimately ask them to mention your company to their friends who need hosting.
 
We routinely ask our customers to refer other customers to us - they never have a problem with this. I don't think that just because the person is a family member that you can only then ask them for referrals.

You'd be amazed how many people will refer your company if you just ask them to.
 
AbbieRose said:
I had a family member express and interest in hosting with me, and that makes me nervous. Ok it would be nice to have the additional customer but the idea of it being family makes me nervous. There's the fear that something will happen-they will need hand holding, more than I can do, and that will upset the relationship.

And now there is the fear that if I refuse them it will affect it too. Help.
Click to expand...

If they are family, be upfront. Here's what I would say.

"Yeah, sure I can host you. If I can't do something though, don't pin it on me. I'll help you find someone that can do what you need. So, are you coming over later".

I guess it depends on the relationship.
 
You need to be professional and confident in what you want and what you need.
If you want to charge then so be It,just let them know,If you want to give It out free Then Thats fine too.
 
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