That iron nemesis…That problem again…

That iron nemesis…And thwarting it

Depending on where that iron problem is, there might be some pretty easy ways to deal with it. Let’s start with that laundry account who get dosed with a blast of it from an old iron water main every Monday morning after they’ve been shut down for the weekend.

That one’s the easiest of all. Just have them run all the machines empty (and with no bleach being injected) on their Monday start-up. Problem solved!

If it’s not that easy one, it’s probably time to adopt a more active plan that includes eliminating all chlorine in the wash formulas and switching to an oxygen bleach. That’s because whereas chlorine causes the almost immediate deposition of any iron, oxygen detainers simply ignore it (well actually it’s the other way around) and allows the iron to go down the drain unmolested and still nicely dissolved in the water.

For the warewashing account with the iron problem, again it’s goodbye to chlorine in that warewashing detergent. Also, it might be time to consider an acidic rinse aid as well. That step might just remove any iron stains that still manage to find its way on to the surface of the ware. In really extreme cases it’s not a really an “our there’ idea to consider dosing that already acidic rinse aid with a bit of a (compatible) acid to strengthen its already low pH.

That problem again…And handling it (again)

We all know that one buyer who is well, “different”. It may be that he or she is particularly testy, or really grumpy, frustratingly indecisive, or so picky that nothing you can do ever seems to make them totally happy.

No matter the nature of that quirky personality, you likely have at least one each of the aforementioned folks in your book of customers. And no matter the situation, we find dealing with them an ongoing chore that’s never much fun.

We probably already know that in dealing with “difficult” prospects the answer tends to be adapting to their particular quirk rather than fighting it. But somehow once we sell that unique persona, we’re prone to forget all that great advice. Maybe it’s the familiarity of seeing them regularly, or perhaps it’s just human nature that lets us forget what got us there in the first place.

No matter the reason, the simple fact is we need to maintain the adaptive approach that got us past their proclivities and won us the business initially. Doing that will maintain the business with the least amount of grief – not to mention making life easier for both you and them.

Next up: Revisiting those difficult personalities.