Happy clients are the best clients. They’re more likely to stay with your promo company, and they’re also more likely to refer others to you.

While you may intend for every client to be a happy one, you might be falling short in a few areas. For example, you might let communication slip a bit with long-time clients as you nurture newer accounts. Or, you might fail to respond to their emails or voicemails.

It’s important to avoid these common pitfalls if you want to build the best business relationships. It’s also important to know how to effectively manage each client relationship.

A post on the Asana blog outlines some simple tips to strengthen your client management skills. We outline the post in this issue of PromoPro Daily.

  1. Respect and maximize their time. When you want to make your clients happy – and keep them happy – you have to be responsive and show that you value their time. Promptly return their calls and emails. If you don’t know the answer to something, the post recommends responding anyway and letting them know you’ll find out and get back to them.

  2. Use the right words. Things may not always go as planned. A shipment may get delayed, or you might show up a few minutes late to a meeting. In these situations, the post advises apologizing but doing so by saying “thank you for your patience” instead of “sorry.” This simple wording change can increase their self-esteem and their satisfaction post-apology.
  3. Create a communication plan. According to the post, this plan should define what channels will be used for various kinds of communication. It should also explain how things should be communicated and who holds which project roles. A communication plan can help you avoid misunderstandings and losing track of crucial information.

  4. Be proactive. Remember that your client chose you because they trust that you’re going to make their lives easier, the post says. How can you live up to their expectations? Be proactive by anticipating what your clients will need and looking for opportunities to deliver more than they expect. You may not always be able to do this, but approaching your clients with a proactive mindset will help you surprise them with opportunities they didn’t know about and create meaningful interactions.

As your client list grows, be intentional about how you interact with each customer. When you improve your client management skills, you’re focusing on what really matters – keeping all your clients happy.

Compiled by Audrey Sellers
Source: The Asana blog. Asana is a work management platform that helps teams organize, track and manage their work.