Designing client relationships successfully and staving off unreasonable demands is vital, but for that, you must know how to build a successful relationship with clients.
Have you ever experienced any of the following conditions when you need to excuse yourself from a personal gathering and answer your client with a quick email?
Sometimes you’re enjoying leisure, browsing through social media, having quality time with your kids or pets, and your client reaches out through messenger with an awkward question and wants an answer immediately.
Due to such unexpected demands, often you’re forced to finish their project, leaving everything aside to meet their deadlines.
Sometimes, you wake up in the morning and plan to go ahead with your schedule. Suddenly, you receive emails from your client and that too after 8:00 pm the night before, and they’re furious that you haven’t answered back.
Often, your clients fail to clarify their requirements while bestowing you with the responsibility of a new project. They don’t meet their deadlines, but they still expect you to meet yours, to read their minds. It is an intrusion into individual freedom, which hampers the joy of working. Often, they alter their scope, remake their order, and assume you should carry this all for free.
It is easy to criticize irresponsible clients for these embarrassing situations. They are unaware of their responsibility, but once the blame game is over, you need to do whatever the client wishes whenever the client wants.
As a service provider or freelancer, you must pay heed to what your client demands, and so you tend to follow when they say follow. You wish for a great testimonial with prospective referrals in the future, so you must go ahead with stupid client requests instead of standing your ground. Naturally, you find yourself accomplishing tasks you wouldn’t generally accomplish because it’s easier to follow than indulging in a tough conversation.
However, when the same things happen every time, you start to feel resentful of your clients. You often think that the client is taking advantage. Such thoughts are not wrong. We all had the same thing in mind at a certain point.
You may think that going the extra mile to adapt to every outrageous request is delivering extraordinary service. Unfortunately, it is not. Such things harm your business more than anything else.
By not putting realistic expectations upfront, you’re giving an account of pushing and asking as you are free to adjust every time.
Two crucial aspects of client onboarding you need to be careful about
Whenever you greet a new client into your business to start a new project, trigger an onboarding campaign to educate your client, prepare them with the information they require, and endow them to be a great client.
There are numerous moving parts to a successful agency-client relationship, including communications, internal and external tasks, and activities.
Setting clear expectations
Establishing realistic boundaries
You expect your clients to love you and want to make them happy as well. Receiving admiration and due remuneration is all you want at the end of your labor.
Setting conceivable expectations and being upfront about your client’s demands will make them feel satisfied. It also reinforces that they are working with a professional, not a friend, and indicates that you take their assignment and the relationship seriously.
I am sharing my experiences running a Pune based Web development company on things that matters the most in a successful business relationship with your clients.
1. Response time
Have you ever thought of how long it takes to receive and respond to a phone call and email?
Do you respond to your client messages within 24 hours?
Do your clients receive priority response times with a larger retainer?
What kind of response times do you expect of your client?
I received an email from our client after our working hours. So we could not revert them immediately. The next day, the client got angry because he thought we didn’t respond to him on time.
You may also face similar things, and to avoid such situations, you should have clear communication with your client regarding the same.
Let them know your working hours. Also, tell them your expectations from them.
Within what period do you want to have an answer from them? Tell your client it may affect the said deadline if there is a delay in providing it. It will help you to prevent such hassles.
2. Scope of work
Let the client know the repercussions once the scope of work changes.
Clarify what comprises a new request or scope change and how it may change the management method.
Make sure your client comprehends those changes and additions to the scope and how they can affect the budget and timeline.
The client must understand the milestones and deadlines, and both of you must negotiate in this regard.
Keep communicating regarding what is expected of you and the client to meet each project milestone. A website strategy is a must. In the beginning, we communicate our milestones to avoid any miscommunication in the future.
3. Respect time
Have a sound discussion with the client regarding the value of your time and their time. Inform them that you’ll show up on time and be prepared to work for every delegation, but you also expect them to do the same.
4. Set the Roadmap Together
Keep reassuring your client and provide consultation along the way to assure the project’s success. You expect them to listen with an unbiased mind. Ensure that you are unbiased too. Try to engage yourself in a positive conversation for a positive impact.
5. Involve Your Client in the Creative Process
Remind your client that you enjoy working with decent people. Make conversation friendly, but not over-friendly.
Let them know that you’re eager to help them in the best possible way. However, don’t forget to tell them you will not withstand rude, mean, offensive, or hurtful behavior.
One of my clients’ spouses was nastily disrespectful to one of our team members. So, we had to take this hard decision of not working with him in the future, and we clearly stated that to them as well.
6. Be Clear About the Communication Process
You need to be clear regarding the communication process of your clients.
Check whether you’ll be able to communicate primarily by email or phone.
Is there any availability to send the links via a video chat?
Can you meet them in person?
At the work front, being honest with your clients is counted. Check their capacity to complete a project, what kind of support you provide, and in what way the work needs to be provided to you.
Participation is essential. Let your client know that this is nothing but an interactive way, and you require them to participate entirely and connect with you or your team as needed, providing input, background, revision, and feedback.
7. Be Crystal Clear About your Expectation
Remember, while setting expectations with new clients, you must make them aware of your requirements. Be open enough to meet their expectations. Have a positive and impactful conversation to reassure a new client about your ability. Let them know that you are the best choice for the job.
For instance, when I design websites for our clients, we let them know how we are doing the same and why we are doing it. We also ask our clients for their inputs, what they would like to have, and accordingly design their websites.
8. Set Your Parameters Up Front by establishing Realistic Boundaries
Establishing boundaries and setting expectations go hand-in-hand. Help your client to give their best. Let them feel comfortable with the entire process of investment.
While setting boundaries as part of your client onboarding, protect your time, sanity, and schedule.
Do not forget to follow the guidelines of your client. It is also essential.
9. Communicate Your Working Hours: Know about the Acceptable Communication Tools
Do share your timing. For example, we at DevignTech, are open from morning to 10:00 am to 8:00 pm, and we convey the same thing to our clients.
Response time:
Let your client know what happens if they call you outside of scheduled business hours or send a mail or at what time they can expect a response.
Social media:
Nowadays, everyone uses social media, but simply because you’re on Facebook at 9:00 pm, that doesn’t imply your client can poke you through Messenger for asking questions regarding their project.
Communication types:
Make sure your client understands what communication tools are not accepted or off-limits. For example, we do not allow communication about a client project through Twitter direct messages or Facebook Messenger.
Location:
If you’re working from home, you may need to communicate and let them know whether you want to take meetings at your home.
10. Behave like a Professional
While working with clients, you need to behave like a professional. You can’t have informal talks no matter if they turned out to be your friend. Be the expert and demonstrate your leadership qualities.
Don’t escape uncomfortable and hard conversations whenever they are needed. It implies setting boundaries, clear expectations, and enforcing them.
Take sufficient time to teach your client regarding your expectations about them. Let them know what they can expect of you, your timings, and how you’re available. Do set your relationship up for success but make sure that you don’t get run ragged by an arrogant or out-of-control client who keeps asking you to jump through higher and higher hoops.
You can use phrases like “firm, fair, and friendly” to describe you and your agency’s approach to serving the clients.
We are strict about budgets, the scope of work, boundaries, deadlines, and such significant parts when we are doing business together.
Why can’t you always say Yes?
It’s good to be always fair and never behave without empathy, integrity, and honesty.
Being friendly is okay because it creates an enjoyable environment to work with amazing people. However, that doesn’t imply you will always say yes to their proposal.
Expressing your opinion is essential, else they will take you for granted.
Final Notes
During a new client onboarding, you should establish boundaries and set expectations. Be firm, fair, and friendly in approach, which in turn will reinforce your professionalism, strengthen trust, and give rise to a successful agency-client relationship.
