Chapter 16
CREATING RIGHT RELATIONSHIPS WITH CUSTOMERS
MAINTAINING STRONG, integrity-based relationships with clients is no different than maintaining right relationships with anyone else. There are large corporations, such as Nordstrom, and Hewlett-Packard with their “HP Way,” that subscribe to high ideals for employee relations and customer service. Such companies set the benchmark for other larger organizations, particularly when contrasted with less impressive corporate performance norms. In a big-vision small business, customer relationship can be cultivated to a higher degree of personalization and mastery than in companies whose intense focus on fast growth and high profit margins renders relationship a lesser priority.
A big-vision small-business owner sees relationship cultivation from the perspective of a master craftsman, so that the possibilities take her and her group to a level well beyond simple jargon masking the mediocre. A customer relationship can be strengthened by communicating skillfully and respectfully; checking in on progress, performance, and expectations regularly; delivering quality products and services that match the client’s expectations; following through on promises or being up-front about why you can’t; providing excellent response when things go wrong; and being thoughtful about ways to increase the value of your services to the client without unduly increasing costs or ignoring your own bottom line.
“Some businesses treat customers as job orders and not as relationships. When I focus on building relationships, the jobs come and referrals are made,” says Jill Erickson, whose Milwaukee-based company, Create A Scene, designs murals for restaurants, retail spaces, and private residences. While artistic talent is a critical part of Erickson’s exchange with clients, her attention to right relationships is a nonnegotiable aspect of her business and one reason she’s gained the respect of both clients and peers. “It boils down to how I’d want to be treated. If I was that client, what would I want? They don’t want to be imposed upon by the stereotypical artist attitude,” she says of the often temperamental or unprofessional interactions commonly associated with some of the more creative trades. “In return, I make sure the client values my services and pays a fair fee, because not everyone understands the effort that goes into the painting process. Honoring myself at that same time is another way of honoring my clients.”
Erickson’s focus on respectful interactions and mutually beneficial experiences provides a good example of the balance required in creating and maintaining right relationships with customers—a key component of not just a healthy bottom line but a rewarding livelihood as well. The larger an organization and the more prominent its focus on fast growth or maximized investor return, the greater the pressure to view customers as commodities that one must amass in the most efficient way in order to meet quarterly earnings projections and thus receive a more positive rating from Wall Street analysts. In a small-scale enterprise focused on deep connection as a pathway to qualitative growth and success, financial viability serves right relationships, not the other way around.
Right Relationships Begin before the Sale
In the average enterprise, many vendor-client relationships sour due to a gap between expectations created through the marketing hype and the customer’s experience with the firm. In a big-vision small business, the bar is set high for customer relationships. To foster such a master-craftsman level of right relationship with customers, you have to start with your marketing and sales approach.
Selling is a form of communication, and business owners must sell their products and services in order to reach and communicate with those who can benefit from their work. Unfortunately, many companies invest far too little time making sure that the marketing and sales communications are clear, that the interactions are reflective of the organization’s vision, and that promises made are in line with what the customer experiences. Many companies communicate one thing to entice the customer to buy their products and services yet deliver something quite different once they’ve made the sale. A big-vision small business works to bridge that gap, leveraging the big-vision priorities, applying the golden rules for right relationship, and using some of the following techniques to foster healthy, mutually beneficial connections.
Know your products and your services—and why they’re of value to your customers. Effective salespeople sell from the heart, or at least from their vision; they genuinely believe that the client would benefit from the product or service. They know the product and (to a certain extent) the client, inside and out. This knowledge allows the successful salesperson to address questions and concerns while maintaining confidence about the ability to help someone else.
For you the business owner, if you can’t articulate your company’s merits, persuade a client to trust you, and energize someone else about the power of your product or service, how can you effectively serve the client and your own organization’s goals? A good salesperson knows she has to make the contact, build the relationship, and gain her client’s confidence before she can begin helping that client meet his goal. This is where knowing the advantages and contributions of small business—shared earlier in Section One—becomes all the more important. The same is true for effectively communicating how the big-vision operating priorities benefit the customer.
Know your audience and speak their language. Truly effective salespeople tailor the information they provide to their audience or prospective client. This sounds deceptively simple. Unfortunately, many marketing and sales communications—whether presented on paper, in person, or via the Web—are presented through the filters of their creators rather than tailored to the interests and needs of their recipients. What’s more, such communications can be so laden with meaningless jargon that the materials are useless because they fail to distinguish what they’ll actually do for the customer in comparison to competitors. A small business has the advantage of being able to make a deeper, more personalized connection with the customer, so don’t sabotage that advantage by using indifferent language. Jargon doesn’t always make you seem smarter. Sometimes it just makes you sound like you’re from another planet—and one for which the customer doesn’t have (or want) a language decoder.
Discover your prospective client’s primary issues, needs, or goals. Through solid research (Web, print, conversations, or interviews), identify how your services can help the person(s) achieve goals, meet needs, or resolve issues. In doing so, you’ve shifted your mindset from “Must make the sale; must complete the tactic” to the user-focused “How might our product or service truly help this group work better and meet its goals?”
Ask questions and listen. You’ve probably heard the saying “When you open your mouth, your ears slam shut.” It’s true, and good salespeople know it. Only when you understand the client’s needs can you know how your services might benefit her. Selling does not equal talking. Two common mistakes: talking too much and describing how you can help before you’ve gathered adequate information. By applying several of the golden rules that help develop better listening and interaction skills, big-vision small-business representatives try to make every communication an opportunity to learn more about the customer and share information and expertise that helps the customer solve a problem or identify and enhance a strength (which no doubt solves another problem).
Do you ever provide the boilerplate solutions that are common to large companies? (I hope you’re shuddering at that thought.) No, you listen and ask questions to find out what a particular client needs. This technique can also help you build a strong rapport with the client and increase his or her confidence in the expertise your company offers—another area where a big-vision small business can shine with master-craftsman quality.
Focus on benefits, not just features. Even sales and marketing professionals often focus more on what they’ve got to sell than how their products or services can legitimately benefit the client. Perhaps this is one of the dangers of having a focus solely on numerical goals and the pressure of meeting fast-growth quotas, where an “I have to sell you” mentality makes the features more important. If you’re going to help your client live or work more joyfully and effectively, you’ll need to show how your products and services can help them meet both qualitative and quantitative goals, deadlines, and the expectations of their superiors in the organization. A benefits-focused approach answers the question “So what good does this do me?” A big-vision small-business approach also includes “How can this make life and work more enjoyable and meaningful?”
Know your purpose and your limits. This is pretty straightforward, but often learned the hard way. Remember the big-vision priority, featured in Section Two, about working to a higher degree of ethics and integrity? Regardless of your good intentions, fabulous service ethic, and great roster of services or products, if you aren’t the best person (or company) to meet your prospective customer’s needs for whatever reason, say so. Then build a team of people who can or refer the client to another source. An appropriate referral can be a great sales tool because the prospective client will remember that you were interested in meeting her needs rather than making your sales quota. You’ve treated her in accordance with the tenets of right relationship, making her a person instead of rendering her a commodity. Determining which projects are inappropriate and which are potential opportunities for expansion is much easier if you’re checking in regularly with your vision and business plan.
Once you’ve earned your customer’s business, you have a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate the advantages of her choice to purchase products or services from a big-vision small business. The opportunities for qualitative growth and high-bar performance don’t end with the sale but transition into the next phase of the relationship by satisfying common expectations and determining how to go beyond the mediocre.
Common Expectations
One of the most important factors in creating a strong foundation with a new customer or for a new project is solidifying a common understanding of expectations and deliverables. Think it’s easy? If so, you’re very likely making the same assumptions as most people who end up saying, “I should have made that clearer at the start.” Don’t assume your customer knows how you work, what to expect, or what you’ll deliver.
Many high-potential relationships fail because participants assume that, because they’re using the same words and nodding their heads, they’re translating those words into common expectations. One of the complaints we hear during assessments we’ve conducted for client companies is that they need to do a better job of clearly and proactively communicating expectations and processes at the beginning of a project, and of keeping customers informed about progress. Too many customers shoulder the responsibility of calling the vendor for updates and fail to get what they expected because expectations were never made clear.
Let the big-vision priorities and golden rules serve to guide you. As you begin a new project or relationship, discuss in explicit terms what the client will be getting, and what his needs are regarding communication and service throughout the process:
• What’s made her happy or dissatisfied with previous projects undertaken by other vendors or merchants?
• What would have to happen to make sure he’s able to give you rave reviews upon completion of the project?
• Does she want daily or weekly progress reports?
• Would he prefer those updates by telephone, e-mail, or fax?
• When does she feel in-person meetings are necessary or appropriate?
• Does he agree with your proposed delivery dates?
• Are you two in sync about what will be delivered and how?
• Have you discussed how your company works on such projects?
• Have you discussed, specifically, what you need from her and her team to produce your end of the project agreement?
• Does he know what responsibilities you and he each have to create a successful outcome and a good relationship that continues past the project delivery date?
• Have you introduced him to the members of your team who’ll be contributing to his project?
How might you adapt these questions to your particular type of client interaction, whether you own a consulting firm, a retail store, or a restaurant? Regardless of your company focus or industry, building right relationships is a mutual responsibility for which you can be a guide. Establishing common expectations and understanding right from the start will help create a positive relationship and experience for both the customer and the people of your company, and thus help you make the most of each opportunity for qualitative growth.
Now that you’ve gotten the relationship with a new customer off to a great start, use your master-craftsman standards to sustain and revitalize that connection, as well as optimize service to new and existing customers. The next chapter offers food for reflection and dialogue on maintaining big-vision right relationships with clients.