I’ve developed many great relationships with my clients over the years. I’ve always known how important client relationships are, but these days, this fact smacks me in the face, every single day. In a good way, that is.
When running a service-based business, your skills and talents are critical: you must be able to deliver what you promise, deliver what you sell.
But more importantly you must be willing to go the extra mile (or hundred miles) for your clients. Take the time to truly understand their needs, their motivations, what makes them tick, why they think they need what the ask for. Spend the extra 20 minutes on the phone, or squeeze in that brief meeting at the coffee shop down the road.
Your clients will love you for it. You will love you for it, even though rewards may not be immediate. And you’ll be far better prepared for the unpredictable future.
I’ve grown to enjoy spending time speaking with clients and exceeding their expectations, even more than I enjoy writing code or solving web-related problems.
Glancing at my temperament, I’d have never expected that I’d enjoy spending so much time speaking with clients, thoroughly exploring and truly understanding problems and identifying potential solutions. Life’s just full of surprises, isn’t it?
A great book on topic: The Go Giver by Bob Burg (thanks John!)