Client (Re)Engagement: From Hello to Good-bye to Hello Again

Creating FANS by Delivering Outstanding Service at Every Step of the Customer Journey??

Let’s talk about that part of the customer journey that no one ever wants to talk about . . . when the relationship comes to an end.??

FANS is an acronym at MarketLauncher that stands for Former Account, New Success. It describes how we turn our previous relationships into new business.

• Former clients return when markets change.?

• Executives who move on bring us into their new companies.?

• Existing and former clients refer us to new opportunities.?

Our FANS approach to new business has paid off for us with over 50% of our new business engagements each year coming from former clients. This year we had a returning client who had worked with us 8 years ago.?

How this scenario plays out is evident by one recent example of a client whose Board decided the company should bring outbound services “in-house.” While we never like to see valued customers go, there was a bright spot when one of the stakeholders took a moment to send us this note.?

“I want to thank you for your team’s superb professionalism. Brooke Castino and Michelle Haarde are ‘pros’ at the top of their game. I observed them navigate many changing, unclear waters at [our company] for two-plus years. Their client service is a best practice example for any team managing an account. Discontinuing our current relationship was a board-directed decision to take the function in-house. I would unequivocally recommend you.”?

Client Re-Engagement: Turn your FANS into new revenue?

For most professional service firms, the largest potential revenue source is your existing customers, which includes former clients and relationships with individuals who have gone on to new companies that meet your ideal client profile.?

These customers (past and current) already trust your brand and are familiar with your product offering. There are lots of available stats on how much cost is saved when selling to a previous customer vs. acquiring a net new customer, as well as the typical overall boost to the profit margin. Harvard Business School found that increasing customer retention and repetition rates by just 5% can increase profits anywhere from 25 to 95%.?

Maintain a Customer-Centric Approach from Start to Finish … to Re-start!?

Stay dedicated to your clients to the very end. Maintain the highest degree of professionalism possible so that you are the first people a former client thinks of when they once again need services you can provide.

And then, keep in touch! If the client had a good experience working with you all the way up until the bitter end, there's a good chance they will want to work with you again. But you have to make sure you stay top of mind.

Consider these 5 examples of some of our new business wins this year and think about how they might apply to your own network:?

A company we pitched to last year when the CTO at one of our former clients told one of their executives to call ML based on the results we had achieved for his previous company.?

We had never interacted directly with this CTO, so it just goes to show you never know how far your reach actually goes into your client organizations. Find ways to proactively raise your profile. You can do this with strategies that include content or customer surveys - sometimes a combination of both, creating relevant content based on customer surveys.

A company was in discussions to hire an executive at one of our former client companies and was told that ML needed to be brought on if they were going to achieve the kind of results this executive had seen at their previous company.??

We had stayed in touch with this executive even after they left our former client which helped to keep ML top of mind. Make sure you have a process in place to follow your stakeholders as they move around (our next blog covers many tips related to this strategy).

A company start-up that was founded by an executive who had worked with ML years ago at her previous company.??

Again, make sure you are staying in touch with stakeholders. A good content strategy that includes thought leadership designed specifically for your primary audience is one way to stay top of mind.

A company funded by a private equity firm that had brought in an executive to take on the interim CEO role who had worked with ML at a previous company.?

Make sure you are paying attention to those "centers of influence". If a client contact goes to work at an organization that has influence with companies in your target market, it is worth keeping in touch even if they are not in a buying position at their new organization.

A company that was talking with a consulting firm about their go-to-market strategy and was told they should talk with ML to help them diversify their existing customer base and achieve their growth goals.?

Another example of keeping those "centers of influence" close and informed of the latest news about your service offerings, thought leadership content and anything else that might continue to remind them how you can help their customers.

What all those 5 examples have in common is that they were driven by relationships and reputation. And in every case, the previous engagement had ended for one reason or another, and clearly not because of our team’s performance. This is why it is extremely important to deliver your A-game even at the end of an engagement.

It doesn’t just happen organically. We have a systematic and data-driven process. Leveraging thought-leadership content, social media, and proactive outreach at key intervals helps to ensure that ML stays top of mind with all former clients.??

Need help to devise a FANS strategy of your own?? Reach out any time and let’s discuss!?

Lara