Maintaining Client Relationships is Key to Success!

You know you need to differentiate yourself from your competition to win business but this is also the case to retain business. Having a strong value proposition can help you do both. But sometimes clients might consider your services to be the same as those from other providers. What do you do in that situation? It actually comes down to the relationship and whether the client likes you and trusts that you can, and will deliver in line with their expectations.

People buy with their hearts and justify with their heads and they generally select people who make the best personal connection with them.

That's why client relationships are so important?

Once you establish a good relationship with a client, don't let the relationship end. It's time to take it to the next level and keep them as happy as possible. Not only by making sure the service you deliver is excellent, but to stay in touch with them after the contract is fulfilled. Offer support throughout the year; send them articles and reports they might be interested in. It’s important to keep in contact even if the contact is sporadic.

Use those touches to make sure that they know all about the additional services that you can provide because while they may know about the one service they received, they probably don't know about other ways you can help.

Tapping your current (and past) client base, introducing them to other services, and networking are all ways to grow and get new projects. Your direct contact can act as a champion for you and your services to introduce you to other decision makers within their organization.

The more you stay in front of someone, the more you are on their mind and likely to call on you when a new need arises. Plus, they're more apt to refer you to others. Do not underestimate the power of a client's happiness and word of mouth; client relationships-both positive and negative-impact the success or failure of your business.