In the world of sales, there are often no right answers. What would you do in this tough sales situation? Make the call below, and see instantly how your judgment compares. Final results will appear in LBM Journal. Be sure to check back next month for a fresh Tough Call.

Tough Call - (Dis) Loyal Builders

You gave Loyal Builders its start, yet you’re losing their business through no fault of your own.

You’ll never forget the first time you met Andy Loyal. It was August 1998 when young Andy told you that he wanted to get started as a homebuilder.

Unfortunately, without much of a credit history, and no track record as a builder, Andy was having trouble getting credit. Armed with nothing more than a desire to succeed, and extensive carpentry experience, Andy was asking you to take a chance on him and his fledgling company. You remembered times when others gave you a chance, and debated whether it was time to extend this opportunity to a new generation.

You’ll never forget his appreciation when you agreed to give him a $10,000 line of credit, nor his vow to repay your generosity by buying materials from you.

It’s nearly 10 years later, and new housing is off to the extent that some well-established builders have been forced to lay off workers. Somehow, Andy’s company, Loyal Builders, is getting more than its share of both new homes and remodeling jobs. You take a certain amount of pride in Andy’s success, considering that without you taking a chance on him 10 years earlier, Loyal Builders might not exist. Plus, he’s been true to his word by continuing to buy the bulk of his materials from you—which has been the one bright spot in an otherwise bad year. Unfortunately, that one bright spot may be about to go dark.

After learning that Loyal Builders got the bid for a new custom lake home, you went out to discuss the scope of the project with Andy—and were shocked at what he had to say. Despite the fact that you gave him his start, and have treated him well over the years, he’s decided to buy the materials for this project from your No. 1 competitor.

Once the initial shock wore off, you realized that he didn’t make this decision lightly. Surely, he was responding to some very negative experience he’d had with your company. It was up to you to uncover the problem, fix it, and retain Andy’s business. But that’s not how things played out. Your biggest surprise was yet to come.

Andy wasn’t moving his business because of poor service, late deliveries, high prices, poor quality—none of the things that you’d expect. Instead, he said he was moving his business because he wanted to give someone else a try. After all, the other guys had been after Andy’s business ever since Loyal Builders became successful. Never mind that his new supplier was among those who turned him away in the beginning—and that you were the one to help him launch his business.

When pressed, Andy insists that he likes you and your company, loves the product, pricing, and service—yet just wants to try someone else. He even admits to having had some bad experiences with his new supplier already, but is determined to build this home with them as his supplier.

Not only does Andy’s lack of loyalty bother you, it’s a tough year and you need his business now more than ever. The fact that you were counting on it makes this situation that much uglier.

What would you do?

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