Building Your Client Relationship - Amazing Client Experience

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This special edition features practical advice on how to create an amazing Client Experience (#cx) and accelerate the growth of your professional practice from top customer service and #cx expert, speaker and bestselling author - ?Shep Hyken . Shep was one of my guests in an episode of SWITCH ON!, my weekly interview show with THE SWITCH (see here the link to this respective interview).

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Think about the last time you had a really great experience as a customer — remember the ways that experience left you feeling.

Now do the same as the last time you had a poor experience as a customer.

A positive client experience is crucial to the success of your professional practice because a happy client is likely to become a loyal client who can help you boost revenue.

It is not a secret. Attracting new clients is hugely important for professional firms, but the development of the firm-client relationship is arguably even more important!

So, why do many professional firms often focus so intently on getting new clients and prospects and lose sight of the need for a real?client-services strategy?

The way you think about client experience has probably had a profound impact on how you look at your firm as a whole.

This is just one reason why creating and obsessing over a great client experience is so important for your firm.

To understand more about how to create an amazing Client Experience (#cx) and accelerate the growth of your professional practice, here is Shep’s advice:

Key Points & Important Quotes:

1. Emphasizing Basic Yet Fundamental Practices:

• Quote: "You know what to do. You're just not doing it... I'll tell you right now, you don't return your phone calls quick enough."
• Advice: Highlighting the necessity to master basic practices, such as responding promptly to client communications, as the foundation of excellent client service.

2. The Importance of Responsiveness:

• Quote: "Somebody asked, is there anything that we could do better? What's the one most important thing we can do? And the client from the stage says, 'I just wish you guys would call me back a little bit quicker than you do.'"
• Advice: This underscores the significance of simply returning calls and staying responsive to client needs as a key factor in client satisfaction.

3. Proactive Engagement:

• Quote: "If you already have the information, why can't you reach out and just say hey, I wanted to give you an update on what's going on?...Your goal is to make the client feel they have information."
• Advice: Focus on proactively updating clients rather than merely responding to their inquiries, which can enhance their sense of control and confidence.

4. Consistency in Client Experience:

• Quote: "They always return my call quickly... They're always quick to keep me updated. That word 'always' followed by basic expectations."
• Advice: Consistently meeting basic expectations can be more impactful than occasional grand gestures. This consistency helps build trust and reliability.

5. Building Trust:

• Quote: "It's not that you can have a bad experience if you've earned the trust. The client knows that even if there is a bad experience that you will still take care of them."
• Advice: Building a strong foundation of trust ensures clients believe they are taken care of even when things go wrong.

6. Training and Education:

• Quote: "I would love to create the course that's in every law school that's just, you know, maybe one credit and they've got to go through it to understand the servicing, the experience that your clients need to have."
• Advice: Advocates for the inclusion of client service education in formal law school curricula to prepare future lawyers for real-world client interactions.

7. Meeting Expectations to Create Amazement:

• Quote: "Amazement isn't about being over the top, it's about meeting expectations on the most basic way."
• Advice: Excel at meeting basic client expectations consistently to create a sense of amazement and satisfaction.

8. Consistency and Predictability:

• Quote: "Meet the expectations consistently and predictably. They build the trust which then creates the relationship of why would I take a chance of going anywhere else?"
• Advice: Consistent and predictable service delivery helps build trust and fosters long-term relationships with clients.

9. Opportunities for Special Efforts:

• Quote: "Once in a while you'll have the opportunity to go above and beyond and do something special...those instances drop in your lap once in a while."
• Advice: While going above and beyond is important, it’s the consistent everyday efforts that truly build the credibility and trust necessary for long-term relationships.

10. Tangibility and Implementation:

• Quote: "If you experience it yourself, you can easily just copy paste it for your own firm and start implementing."
• Advice: Firms should model excellent customer service practices they experience themselves and implement them within their own operations.

11. Being Slightly Better Than Average, Consistently:

• Quote: "Being amazing is being a little bit better than average all of the time." "On a scale, maybe 10% better than average."
• Advice: Aiming to consistently be slightly better than average can yield significant results in customer satisfaction and loyalty.

12. Personal Touch Matters:

• Quote: "Just using my name bumped it up a notch... they used my name again. Just using my name bumps up the experience."
• Advice: Personal touches, such as using a client's name, can significantly enhance the customer experience.

13. Going Beyond Basic Help:

• Quote: "Not just let me tell you where, but let me show you... they start to make suggestions."
• Advice: Offering a level of help that goes beyond basic instructions and engages the client's needs truly enhances the service experience.

14. Understanding Client Needs:

• Quote: "They think that being good at customer experience is agreeing with everything I say. That's not true. What's good for me is what's right for me."
• Advice: Effective client service means understanding and acting in the best interest of the client, rather than merely agreeing with them.

15. Service Awareness and Internal Culture:

• Quote: "Become aware of the moments that they're creating, the interactions that they have, and they recognize the opportunities."
• Advice: Cultivating an internal culture of service awareness helps staff recognize and seize opportunities to enhance client interactions.

16. Mapping the Client Journey:

• Quote: "Map out every interaction and look for the opportunities within those interactions to make them better."
• Advice: Analyzing and mapping out client touchpoints can identify areas for improvement, ensuring a smoother and more satisfying client journey.

17. Quick Response Times:

• Quote: "I've had clients where they think calling somebody back in two or three days is acceptable. No, it's not."
• Advice: Prompt response times are critical; delays can lead to client dissatisfaction and erode trust.

18. Technology’s Role:

• Question Prompt: "With all the technology that is supporting customer service, how can you say that nothing has changed in customer service?"
• Response: "In our industry, there's probably less that's changed than the typical industry in that there's all these digital self-service solutions." "Digital tools: portals for checking invoices, project statuses, etc." "But the core of customer service remains the same: answering questions, solving problems, resolving complaints, and making clients happy."

19. Core Principles Remain Constant:

• Key Insight: "100 years ago, clients wanted their problems solved and to be happy. 100 years from now, it will be the same."
• Process vs. Outcome: "What happens in the middle is just the process; the end result needs to be the same – a satisfied client."

20. Consistency Across Time:

• Key Insight: "People still complain and want to be happy. The essence of client experience is timeless."

21. Human Touch:

• Quote: "Client experience is about human, distant behavior that only humans can do."

Six-Step Process to Enhance Client Experience

Step #1: Client Choice:

• Question: "Why would a client choose us instead of another firm?"

Step #2: Competitive Edge:

• Question: "Why would a client choose another firm over us?"

Step #3: Adapting Competitor Strengths:

• Question: "Can we adopt and improve upon what competitors are doing well?"

Step #4: Outside Industry Inspirations:

• Question: "What brands outside our industry do we love, and why?"

Step #5: Applying External Lessons:

• Question: "Can the practices we admire in other industries be integrated into our firm?"

Step #6: Unique Value Proposition Revisited:

• Question: "After implementing these ideas, why would someone want to do business with us?"

Nothing changed

Despite technological advancements in customer service, the core principles of addressing client needs and ensuring satisfaction remain fundamentally the same.

Consistent, clear communication and a human touch are key to building trust and enhancing client experiences. Implementing best practices from both within and outside the industry can differentiate a firm and foster long-term client loyalty.

How will you plan to enhance your client experience?

Please share your comments and input with me, I read every comment personally.

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If you have any specific questions regarding building client relationships, please send us an e-mail and I will be happy to help.

Until the next edition…

SWITCH ON and keep them loyal!

Warmly,

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Itzik is considered the global leading authority on business development, business networking, client relationships, and personal branding. He is a highly sought-after international speaker, trainer, business mentor, & attorney-at-law. He is also the bestselling author of “The Attention Switch” & Founder of THE SWITCH?? , the leading online training, education and done-for-you platform for professionals globally. Itzik teaches, trains, and mentors lawyers, other professionals, and professional firms to attract and win their ideal clients by becoming seen as authorities in their field, creating and maintaining successful and strategic relationships, and learning to SWITCH their relationships to referrals+revenue+results.

See more information: itzikamiel.com | THE SWITCH???or connect with Itzik via: [email protected]

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