Build Your Client Relationships by Keeping in Touch

Lasting, loyal client relationships don't just happen by accident.

You'll have to put in the time and build the trust necessary to be a valued resource for your clients, leading to repeat and referral business down the road.

The power of referral business can't be understated. When I worked in retail, I had clients follow me from location to location, and from one company to the next.

Recently, an old long-time client recently tracked me down via LinkedIn, and asked me to consult for him and put him together with a trustworthy integration company.

Relationship building is so important that vendors like Speakercraft are devoting resources to helping their dealers grow and build stronger client relationships.

"We're there to help, from being product vendors to offering business advice. One avenue is coaching dealers on building a referral network," says David McCoy, Western Canadian Sales Manager for Speakercraft.

"Dealers may think that they have a referral structure in place, but they really don't. We can help them get the ball rolling, and structure a program that will see their referral business grow by leaps and bounds."

Here are four ways to keep in touch with your clients and grow your relationship.

Thank You Cards

Before any of your dismiss writing thank you cards as corny, consider that they may be the single most effective outreach tool at your disposal.

Looking back over the years, sincerely written "Thank You" cards have delivered more positive return than any other outreach.

Part of this may be because of their rarity in today's society. I can count on one hand the number of thank you cards I've received from salesmen I've bought things from in the last twenty years.

By diligently hand-writing and sending thank you cards on a regular basis, you're immediately differentiating yourself from 99 percent of your competitors.

By the way, I mean it when I say to hand write them. The computer-generated, typewritten thank you I get from the dealership every time I buy a new Toyota doesn't really count. If you do that, your clients won't count them either.

You don't have to write each client a novel, but just write a sincere and personalized thank you on a nice card, and mail them.

Phone Calls

While you might be tempted to file this under "duh," using the phone effectively depends on how you use it.

First off, it's always good to make pro-active follow-up calls. Do them on a regular basis to stay in your client's mind: Two weeks after the final install, six weeks after, and three months after.

One reason to follow up is that your client may be experiencing minor glitches, ones that are annoying but haven't driven them to call you yet. If you call them first, the conversation is often a lot more positive than if they waited until they were annoyed enough to call you. You get to be the hero.

Personally, I feel that the success of your phone contacts with clients hinges on you not trying to sell them something. No one likes telemarketers, and no one likes getting a call from someone they haven't heard from in six months trying to drum up some business.

"Selling by not selling" is kind of a Zen-like concept that I plan to address in a future column. In the meantime, simple pro-active calls to ensure that your clients are happy and satisfied is a more effective business tool than just trying to make a sale with a phone call.

Direct Mailing

This is one of my least favorite methods, if only because the total response rate can hover somewhere around 5 percent.

That's great if you're bulk mailing to 300,000 addresses, but boutique custom install shops don't necessarily have client lists that large.

However, some businesses think direct mail campaigns are worth it and commit to doing them. If you're going to do it, do it right.

Have an event that gives your clients a reason to visit you, and make sure the graphic design of your mailer makes a splash. Form letters that say "We're Having a Special Event" often get tossed without being read.

Newsletters and Blogs

Done well, e-mail newsletters and blog posts are an effective marketing exercise. Done poorly, they won't do anything at all.

If you're going to give a newsletter or a blog a crack, then be consistent. Ensure that you've got someone on the team who will own it, and maintain it.

An intermittent newsletter that comes out on the third Monday of Whenever won't really strengthen your brand.

The same is true of blogs. The last couple of years have seen the high water mark of blogs as a corporate fad. Too often, they're done in a haphazard, half-assed way, and end up being a blank page on the dealer's website.

Just last week, I was speaking with a dealer client about Web site upgrades. His initial enthusiasm for having a blog on his website was tempered by the reality that neither he nor his people are likely to find the time to keep it current.

By that same token, have something to say that's of interest to your clients. New technology, business news, whatever you think will make good reading for your clients.

You know them; so cater to them in what you write for your blog or newsletter. Become a resource that they'll read regularly, and that will grow your connection with them.

Just like you don't do design and installs in a hesitant, inconsistent manner, so too should you approach client outreach as a system.

Determine your best practices, and apply them consistently to your clientele. You'll have concrete evidence soon enough that it's working for you.

Lee Distad is a freelance CEDIA Certified Professional Designer who offers design and process consultation to firms in the Custom Installation industry, as well as copy writing and other professional writing services. Lee’s business and industry blog can be read at http://www.leedistad.com