Stay ahead of the pack with this client service secret! (Source: Paolo Camera)
Almost all of us have Clients. Sometimes we call them Customers. Sometimes it’s clear who they are, but sometimes it’s not. At Quicken Loans, My team and I essentially have 2 Clients: every person in America who needs a mortgage or wants to refinance, and the senior leaders of our company. Today, I’m writing about the latter.
You see, there is an old saying we have: “good AND bad news should travel fast.” To us, that means it’s always better to share the news – good or bad – and deal with it right away. If it’s good, you celebrate it. If it’s bad, you deal with it. However, you never sit on it, as that can only lead to bigger problems later on.
So, in the spirit of “good and bad news should travel fast” here’s the secret to happy Clients:
Make sure your Clients NEVER (and I mean never, ever) have to ask for a status update!
Informed Clients are inevitably happy Clients. If you can achieve this goal, you will have happy Clients. The trick is to ensure you are delivering the right update at the right time in the right way. Some Clients prefer updates directly in person, while some prefer you update their assistant. Some like email, others like voice mail (see my voicemail tips). Some prefer presentations (see my presentation tips).
So, your path to happy Clients is two-fold:
- Make sure you know exactly how your Client wants to be communicated with
- Communicate proactively, clearly, and consistently on all of your projects for that Client
Practice these two things on your projects, and you will reap the rewards.
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