The Most Effective Yet Overlooked Method to Enhance Your Practice: Client Service

Have you ever encountered poor customer service? Perhaps your fast food order for dinner was missing the toy from your child's favorite meal—bonus points if you discovered this only after arriving home to a very hungry family.

Or maybe, after trying on various sizes of shoes, you decided on the size 6, only to find that the clerk had mistakenly given you a box containing one shoe in size 5 and another in size 6. (This may or may not have happened to me.)

Everyone makes mistakes. After all, to err is human. However, if multiple errors occur within a short span of time, you might be inclined to take your business elsewhere.

Your intellectual property (IP) clients are no different. They want and expect exemplary client service from you.

In this edition, I delve into different strategies to enhance the client experience, ensuring their satisfaction and loyalty.

Personalize Your Approach

I'm not suggesting you take things personally, but rather step a bit beyond the business realm to establish a personal connection. What hobbies do your clients enjoy? Do they have children? Are there any special events on the horizon?

It is essential to maintain appropriate boundaries and avoid controversial topics. However, to build relationships, you should be authentic and genuinely curious to learn more about your clients. Ensure this is a reciprocal process by appropriately sharing some aspects of your own life as well.

People tend to keep working with individuals whose company they enjoy and find pleasant to be around.

Showcase Your Value

You may have heard the advice to set low expectations and then exceed them. However, be cautious not to set expectations too low. After all, your clients are paying you to be the expert and to resolve a problem for them. The second part of the saying is accurate however — over-deliver. At the very least, meet the expectations set. In other words, demonstrate your value.

When delivering outcomes to clients, consider the entire package. Naturally, you will have addressed the issue or resolved the problem they approached you with. But have you anticipated all possible questions? Did you complete the task within the budget? On time? Is there an additional service you can offer?

Utilize Collaborative Language

Team members collaborate to achieve a common goal, support one another, and act in the team's best interest. On the other hand, sports announcers critique the team. Are you a team player or a sports announcer? It will come as no surprise that your clients want to feel that you are part of their team. How do you make them feel this way? Use collaborative language to emphasize that you consider yourself a team player.

Instead of saying, "Your problem is," try "The problem we face is." Instead of "That won't work," try "An obstacle we may encounter is." Instead of using "but," use "and," as in "We received a rejection from the Examiner, and here are the possible next steps."

Make Each Client Feel Special

Everyone likes to feel special. Put in some effort (and perhaps a few funds) to make a client feel valued.

Invite them to an event you know they will enjoy (which you will know because you have taken the time to get to know them, right?).

Make a point to remember their birthday, if appropriate, or some other special milestone.

A handy tip is STATOY: Send them something with a note that says, "Saw This and Thought Of You."

Conclusion

Happy clients are loyal clients. By demonstrating your value, being a team player, and making clients feel special, you are likely to foster greater client satisfaction, resulting in more billable work. It's a win-win situation. These straightforward strategies can significantly enhance client happiness and loyalty, proving that sometimes it’s the simplest efforts that make the most substantial impact.

?