Out of all the things a professional business needs to be successful, one of the most important is brand trust.
In today’s substantially e-commerce world, consumers are wary of falling victim to scammers or choosing someone with a negative reputation, so their first step before selecting a product or service is to search for the company’s name online. This action is particularly true in legal, accounting, medical, and other professional industries. If your business appears legitimate and has enough positive testimonials, the person may contact you for their needs.
But from there, your work isn’t over. Earning and maintaining your clients’ trust is an ongoing responsibility. Client relationships are personal, and if those you work with are satisfied with the results, they’ll refer others to you, which is the best kind of marketing. To build and keep that trust, follow these tips, and you’ll build a reputation that brings your market straight to you.
1. Prioritize Client Communication
Think of the last time you tried to contact a company to get customer service. If you couldn’t get through to anyone, or the person you spoke with was of no help, you were likely frustrated and considering taking your business elsewhere.
This complaint is extremely common, but you don’t want it to be the reputation your business has with your clients. Studies show that 96% of people will leave you if they have poor customer service!
When you’re creating your company’s processes, take time to determine how you’ll integrate communication into them. On one hand, you don’t want to be at your client’s beck and call. It’s not professional, and it can seriously hinder the flow of productivity. But on the other hand, every client is a unique person, and they want to feel valued. This goal shows up most predominantly in your communication with them.
Having multiple avenues of contact is an advantageous way to prioritize client communication while still keeping control. Consider providing an umbrella system to your clients, giving them contact information for emails, chat, or phone numbers for team members who are in charge of different aspects of the project. Let them know when to expect you to touch base with them and update them on how everything is going.
Crucially, also provides a cushion for when they should expect a response. Many clients today are looking for instant replies, but that’s not always feasible. Your team is working hard. They shouldn’t have to drop everything to respond to a question or comment. However, there needs to be a consistent and reasonable timeframe in which they ensure they reply.
2. Be Flexible But Consistent
When your company handles client projects, everything is done on a tight, pre-agreed-upon timeline. Each piece depends on the previous work to be completed accurately, thoroughly, and timely.
But sometimes, outside factors or clients put a wrench in the progress. Your team members get sick. Clients request ad hoc changes. Supplies are not available or on backorder.
While these delays aren’t preferable, focusing on complaining about them or blaming others doesn’t help your progress. Be flexible, understand that challenges happen, and communicate the consequences to your team and client. Then, get back to work adjusting timelines and the project scope to account for these new expectations.
3. Always Provide the Best Quality Work
Meeting deadlines is vital, but never rush your best quality work simply because it’s due soon. This stress makes it tempting to cut corners and hope the client doesn’t notice. They might not at first, but eventually, the reduced quality of the finished output can reflect back poorly on your reputation.
Instead of chancing this last-minute rush, keep your finger on the pulse of the project at all times. If you notice that a backlog is beginning to present itself, you should have plenty of time to notice and address the possible late deliverable with the client. They can then choose to take a “rushed” but complete result or approve a delay.
4. Request and Listen to Feedback
Finally, building trust with your clients isn’t one-sided, and it doesn’t require a mind-reader on your team. All you need to do is add feedback requests into your process at key intervals and listen to your clients when they have a concern, complaint, or suggestion.
Although you don’t have to act on the feedback, it’s beneficial to monitor the responses you get. If you have multiple people saying the same thing, good business sense would say to take action to address the issue.
Keep records of your client retention, and if you seem to be losing more customers than you’re keeping and you have a product or service that is known for repeat work, try to find out what’s holding people back from returning to you. This article by Accelo shares some simple and effective ways to evaluate your customer retention rates.
Conclusion
Clients who trust you will stay loyal to your business — and bring their network of referrals with them. Of course, having a solid product or service is the first component in attracting your market. But once you have them connected to you, use these tips to build and keep their trust for the long run.
