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I can't remember 90% of my customers!
I either have a REALLY good memory or a really horrible one with customers. In the last week three guys have come in that I danced with in the past month. I didn't remember one at all, one I remembered but only by face I couldn't remember our interaction, and one I remembered after talking to him for five or so minutes.
They were all hurt/turned off by the fact I didn't remember them, and all remembered me... and the fake personal details I gave them. And none of them bought dances from me again.
I talk to so many guys a night and they all just start to seem the same to me, especially because they are usually the same types (white or asian, young professsionals). If I do 4 or more dances with a guy I will remember him, or he tips me really good, or he was just really cool. But the guys I do 1 or 2 with I don't remember... and sometimes not even later than night...
how do you guys remember your customers??
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Honestly if a guy is spending money on me I stare at him really good and make a mental note of his face/name. When they first introduce themselves I shake their hand and repeat their name in my head three times and or during the conversation.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
I just fly around the club hugging everyone in sight. People are always asking if so and so that I just went up to was an old friend or something. I can tell if someone recognizes me, and I just play along. Or if someone looks remotely familiar I say "I remember you!" Then they gush out the rest of it "Yeah! I came in last year with my buddy's bachelor party..!"
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
I don't remember ppl unless they spend a lot, or have done some other type of thing to leave a lasting impression. I dance for way too many ppl a night to worry about remembering them! If they're insulted or upset by that I guess it's too bad.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
usually when i'm introducing myself, they're like "i met you last week.. etc etc" and i save myself with "ohh i thought you looked familiar!!" but i always tell guys i don't remember names very well.. it takes 3 visits for me to remember them by name. i usually make most of my money off only a few guys the whole night.. so i don't have as many names to remember. but usually they tell me they met me before.. if you keep quiet, they do all the talking ;)
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Haha, I usually ask "So when was the last time you came in?" If they say they've never been in before, then I introduce myself. If they say "the last time we danced" then I know we've danced before and I don't bother introducing. Sometime, they'll just start in and say "Two weeks ago, I saw you here but I didn't get a chance to dance with you" then I know they've been here but never danced with me, so I introduce myself.
I usually can remember the really nice guys and the complete assholes best. And all the old business men look the same. And their name is usualy either Steve or John. LOL
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Fake it til you make it.
Also begin to program your mind to remember names better. Just saying "I can't remember names" programs you to forget them.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
I honestly never remember names either. I treat everyone the same and because of this they all look the same to me and I just put all of them in the same garbage bin in the back of my mind. Which I probably shouldn't do but it's what makes the disconnect from work and real life that much easier.
But in terms of remembering customers, good customers, I just tell them straight up "I won't remember your name until probably the 4th visit, so keep coming and SOON I will remember it!". I also stress how much I remember their faces, I bring up details from our previous conversation during the last visit--basically all the information I remember out them so that not remembering their name isn't such a big deal.
And also, like everyone says, just fake it all. Always.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
My long term memory is reserved for generous guys who fork it over (and continue to do so) with no problems.
I'll remember your ____ if you spent ____ before.
Name: at least 200
Name + Job: at least 500
Name, Job + Drink of Choice: 500+
Guys who buy gifts I like get special consideration. ;)
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
With guys who have spent money on me and/or we had a decent amount of convo, I'll usully give them a flattering nickname based off what they wear, what music they like, or who they resemble.
If they initially tell me their name is John I'll tell them sarcastically," Wow, all these Johns in here? Soo original.." and then ask them if I can call them by the nickname I pick out, while making sure they like it, too. It usually makes them smile...
There's a Kirk that I call "Perky", a Paul, that I call, "Paulie Waulie" or "ben franklin" (because of his look/glasses), a Manuel I call "Manu"..The nickname makes it easy to refer back to their original name.
And if they are especially spendy, I will write their name down while at work or as soon as I get home along with identifying details: their job, hometown, frequency of club visits, etc
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
always approach customer with sly smile on face-
"hello stranger/sir , are you looking for somebody?"
if he doesnt know you "no, but you look nice, blah blah" <--- begin hustling.
if he remembers you he will out himself: "why yes bella! how have you been, I've missed you, blah blah" <--- now you know that he's a customer
me: "it's so nice to see you again (search memory, when was he here? a month? two months?) "what has it been, a couple of months?"
him: "yeah, about 3 or 4 months"
me: "and what have you been up to in that time?" <--- this is his chance to spill personal details that may jostle your memory. His job, hobbies, family life, etc.
If after all this you still blank him, just let him do all the talking and converse only about things that have happened since his last visit.
I rarely remember names. I mostly remember clothes, jobs, and FACES. Any familiar face I see will get a wink and hello from me, even if I can't remember dancing/VIPing with him last time.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Quote:
Originally Posted by
britneyireland
Fake it til you make it.
Also begin to program your mind to remember names better. Just saying "I can't remember names" programs you to forget them.
Britney's forgetting to mention that she keeps a log of her customers - what they look like, how much they spent. I'm not that organized... but I think it's a fabulous idea!
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
I used to think I never forgot a face...until sometime around my 6th or 7th year of stripping. Then, I gave up. But still...you wanna fake it, and its easy to learn how to remember names, does take some practice though. Its worth it if you have some repeat clients.
So creepy though, when you're sitting with a guy, and 10 minutes into it, you realize you've just been having the EXACT same conversation with the same person, a few months before.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Here is Ellen DeGeneres' solution to the "forgetting the name" problem:
"The best solution: Say to her, "I'm sorry, remind me again how you pronounce your name?" To which she'll respond, "Kathy." Then you continue your clever ruse by saying, "That's right, the emphasis is one the first syllable, Ka-thy. I always think it's on the second, Ka-thy. I'm glad you corrected me, my old friend." Problem solved!"
;D
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
I have this problem all the time! An unfortunate part of stripping is that all old white men look the same practically.
Sometimes when i see a custie, i am not sure if i have met him before. I usually try to gauge when i ask how he is doing if he finds me familiar or not. When in doubt, its not bad to say you look familiar... worst case situtation you can spin it into something positive abiut them (oh i guess your smile reminded me of this one person... then say something good about the smile).
If they havent spent a lot of money on you before, if you can remind them that you only remember hte customers who spend lots of private time in VIP wiht you. If you phrase this correctly and make it sound like its because you would get to know them better, you might be able to make VIP sound like a good option for them.
Now if you dont remember guys who spent lots of money on you, that sucks. I have this problem a lot more than i should. I am terrible at facial recognition. I am good at remembering random details, so usually I will ask the guy to tell me a few things about him and then i will be able to remember other random details. Then when i tell them a small specific detail that shows I remembered them they feel special and we can chat like old friends.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Quote:
Originally Posted by
minalynx
Here is Ellen DeGeneres' solution to the "forgetting the name" problem:
"The best solution: Say to her, "I'm sorry, remind me again how you pronounce your name?" To which she'll respond, "Kathy." Then you continue your clever ruse by saying, "That's right, the emphasis is one the first syllable, Ka-thy. I always think it's on the second, Ka-thy. I'm glad you corrected me, my old friend." Problem solved!"
;D
That is awesome! I am totally using that to every guy who's name I forget the night he introduces himself to me. haha.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Quote:
Originally Posted by
minalynx
Here is Ellen DeGeneres' solution to the "forgetting the name" problem:
"The best solution: Say to her, "I'm sorry, remind me again how you pronounce your name?" To which she'll respond, "Kathy." Then you continue your clever ruse by saying, "That's right, the emphasis is one the first syllable, Ka-thy. I always think it's on the second, Ka-thy. I'm glad you corrected me, my old friend." Problem solved!"
;D
Yes, yes, this works, 95% of the time. Even outside the club, at other sales jobs, socially, etc.
Definately, I've met so many people in stripping and other sales over the years, everyone starts to look alike now. I meet dopplegangers everywhere. Once in a while, a custy might call you on the above trick, but for the most part, they will play ball.
Thanks mina, for the tip!!!
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
^^ No problem!
It's waaay better than calling someone the WRONG name - esp. if they remember YOU really well. Wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings & all... Then again, I can't be calling people "darlin'" at my day job either. :D
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
I call everyone Bob unless they're super egotistical or something. I even tell them that I'm bad with names and so by the end of the night I'm going to call them Bob. Some of them give me a name too and we just call each other that. Then if I think I recognize someone I walk up and say "Bob?!?" all excited. If they say "Hey it's you!" then I gotta start doing a little remembering. If they're like "nope" then I ask what their name is. I had a guy come in over and over and called him "Bob" and he called me "Anna". Worked for us both.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
ahahha that's sooo something i'd do!! i go to guys and tell them i won't remember their name by the end of the night and make up a ridiculous name for them and they do the same for me.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
ugh not only do i have a bad memory (which makes it hard to remember names) but i think i am at least partially face-blind (basically means i have difficulty remembering the details of someone's facial features so if i am dealing with a group of young suits all with short brown hair or something i will get them all mixed up, and have trouble recognizing someone i met 5 minutes ago when i see them again). This face-blindness means I can often only remember someone by a UNIQUE facial feature like a scar or missing tooth, or a non-facial feature like spiky hair or a polka-dot tie or a certain sports team's baseball cap that they're wearing. Which makes it really hard if they happen to change their clothes or hairstyle suddenly :(
Usually after seeing the same person over and over I start being able to recognize them by face. But it fades with time- one time my bf of 4 years was away for a week and when he came back home I didn't recognize him for a sec. It's embarassing! And then I get pissed off when every single customer I interact with for like 1 or 2 songs (probably THOUSANDS by now) expects me to remember him by face, name, occupation and random details about his life. It's hard/frustrating enough trying to remember the guys who spend hundreds of dollars on me every time they come in, i can't imagine being able to remember every dude who's ever gotten a dance from me.
I'm kinda rambling, sorry... to answer your question, i've sorta stopped going up to guys and immediately introducing myself unless im absolutely SURE ive never met the guy. If not, it'll be like "Hi I'm Serena, what's your name" "It's JOHN! I just told you my name an hour ago" or "We met last weekend, I bought like 4 dances from you, you really don't remember me??" or "*sigh* You forget me every single time I come in here"
So what I try to do is i'll ask the person how their night is going, how they're holding up, etc. Its the kinda question you can ask a person multiple times a night, every night, without it being obvious whether you've ever met them before or remember them or not. Strike up a convo and ask to sit down. At some point if you've never met THEY will ask "um so what's your name by the way?" and you can respond "oh hehe sorry where are my manners, I'm such-and-such" or "heh i guess we were having such a good time we forgot to formally introduce ourselves.
If you approach a customer and they say they're pretty sure they've seen you before and gotten a dance from you, to be on the safe side and to seem like an authority be like "Oh yeh, I saw you when you came in and you DEFINITELY look familiar, I'm fairly certain I danced for you." If they realize that they have NOT met you before you can play it off like "Huh, well you look really familiar, maybe I've seen you somewhere else"
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
I try to repeat their name while i"m talking to them.... THEY end up forgetting mine! if they spend a fair/lot of money, i have a little notebook in my bag that i use to write down details, phone numbers, etc.... if you have the details written down and he texts you before he comes in, then the sight memory will kick in quicker. in my notebook, i also try to write a little description.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Don't feel bad, my memory sucks monkey balls too. I don't even remember the names of half my family members ... distant relatives.
One thing I make sure to do, however, is keep my lies consistent. That way when someone comes in, even if I don't know who they are, I sure as hell know what I told them or didn't tell them. You got me?
I'm, generally, the same girl for every custy. I know my nitch and I stay within that.
The only problems I run into is custys I've used a fake accent with. I never know who they are and have run into a few who have called me out on it. They usually get a good laugh and still spend money on me. They understand I'm there to work.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Athenathefabulous
An unfortunate part of stripping is that all old white men look the same practically.
Funny, but I have the same problem with all men under 30 who wear baseball caps. ;D ... plaid shirts don't help either.
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Re: I can't remember 90% of my customers!
Quote:
Originally Posted by
minalynx
Here is Ellen DeGeneres' solution to the "forgetting the name" problem:
"The best solution: Say to her, "I'm sorry, remind me again how you pronounce your name?" To which she'll respond, "Kathy." Then you continue your clever ruse by saying, "That's right, the emphasis is one the first syllable, Ka-thy. I always think it's on the second, Ka-thy. I'm glad you corrected me, my old friend." Problem solved!"
;D
Hahaha! I remember this bit. I was hysterically laughing. And now I am again. Ty! ;)