To be successful in most any business I do believe it is important to manage client expectations. It doesn’t matter what type of business you are in.
I went to a new doctor today. I’m in an HMO and just automatically think the worse possible situation will occur. Long waits especially.
Some Expectations Are Easy to Exceed
I arrived at the office as instructed, 15 minutes before my appointment time. The waiting room was somewhat busy but not unreasonable. I signed in and was acknowledged nicely. I settled in with an industry magazine to read, but within ten minutes my name was being called. I was totally shocked and assumed they just wanted information.
I followed the “in-take” nurse to a room where she did all the vitals and history. No hassle so far. She leaves and I think, now comes the wait. Yet, within five minutes, yes five minutes, the doctor walked in. After we finished the nurse came back to give me my flu shot and I was done. I was in and out in less than 45 minutes.
Talk about exceeding my expectations. Next time I hope it’s the same, but because they are on-time. I will be too.
Now, that’s the type of service we all want. And that’s what we as a business owner or a salesperson tries to achieve with every transaction – exceed expectations.
Do You Ever Ask How You’re Doing?
The doctor’s office sent a survey following my visit and asked had they met my expectations of my visit. And I gave them the highest score. Now, the bar is high however, and we will see when I go back.
When we first meet with client’s we try to understand their wants and needs. We ask them a lot of questions. And we usually tell them we may not provide the perfect recommendation our first time because we don’t know all their personal preferences and styles.
I had a client insist that they wanted bright, colorful items. My recommendations included some yellow colored items. Turns out she hates yellow. It spoiled her to even look at the suggestions (even though they came in other colors – odd). How was I supposed to know?
Ask Questions
We try to learn as much about our clients as we can. Do they like phone calls, emails, texts for communication? How often do they want to see us? Do they like us to keep them on time by reminding them of upcoming deadlines?
In a creative business it can sometimes be even more difficult to manage expectations. Some clients are excellent at giving direction and others not so much. We try to ask probing questions and yet we still get conflicting direction.
Then we have those clients that want to design their own brochure with our “help”. Worst case scenario. They think they will save money. They have an inside person that says they know how to do it, but they really don’t have a clue. They ask for templates and then don’t know how to use them and so on and so on. And in the end, we end up charging them more because they wasted so much time.
For some clients that I know well, I go to the meeting with a check list. They don’t like to be bothered much and when I get in front of them, we want to get as many decisions as possible. I meet with them quarterly to go over all of the events for the upcoming quarter. And that works for us both.
Be Timely with Requests
On the day to day we also try to manage client expectations as to when they will receive the quotes, presentations, or samples they have requested. We try and get quotes and presentations to clients within 24-48 hours, but sometimes it’s impossible. We therefore ask them if “early next week” will work for them. Most are very understanding and appreciative. At times, they let us know they really do need it asap. So, we work to get it done.
Some clients are required to get three bids for jobs over a certain budget amount. We provide our quote in our usual 24-48 hours and then check back a week later to see if they have made a decision. Most times, they are still waiting for the other two quotes. And they say they have been “chasing them” for the quotes.
They don’t like it. And in most cases, we win the bid, not because we were the least expensive, but because they didn’t trust the other vendors to deliver on time.
Are you Giving your Best?
Recently a key member of one of our larger clients changed. The new person came from another company and had his “own” people. My account manager was devastated. I told her not to worry. Keep being her attentive, creative self and she would win him over.
Others in the company were still enthusiastically meeting and purchasing from her. They would have her provide him quotes for projects and at points she would “get” the project. On one large project she quoted she checked in repeatedly over a couple of weeks. Finally, she was informed, they were still waiting for the quote from “his” vendor. And she won the very large project.
You guessed it, she won him over. He has admitted that her level of attention, creativity, and responsiveness won him over.
Our sales team met recently and discussed our competition and how we stack up against them. One expressed concern that he had seen samples from a competitor in the conference room of one of his clients. My response, “if you are servicing them correctly, giving them what they need when they need it then you have no fear”. Why would they leave?
And this expectation follows when an order goes wrong. And they will. They always do. We are not in total control so something will go wrong. But it’s how you handle the error and make it right while managing your client’s expectations that will have them not feeling used or abused.
Make them a Star
Clients are relying on our expertise to help them get their job done on a timely basis. They don’t want to go to their boss regularly and say, “I don’t have the quotes yet”. Be the stand-out.
Managing their expectations and providing timely updates will help you to make them a star.
Danette Gossett is the founder of Gossett Marketing, co-founder of Promotions Rescource LLC and co-author of the best-selling book “Transform” with Brian Tracy. Danette utilizes her more than 30 years of advertising agency and corporate marketing experience to develop effective promotional campaigns and products for her clients. Visit GossettMktg.com or SalesPromo.org and follow us on twitter @MarketngTidbits.