The Client Relationship Challenge

By Michael W. McLaughlin

If you’re like most professionals, you’d rather sell follow-on work to an existing client than chase after an entirely new sales opportunity. After all, you’re familiar with the client’s business issues, and you know how to work together. For the same reasons, extending the relationship makes sense for the client, too.

Your strategy for building those enduring client relationships probably includes at least these two basics: First, you align your practice with the right clients. And second, you have a relationship plan, which guides your activities as you (hopefully) extend your influence within the client’s organization.

What Matters Most

But even if you identify the right clients and develop great relationship plans, that’s not enough. If I were to give you one piece of advice for building client loyalty it would be this: Remember that nothing impacts the quality of your client relationships more than how you deliver every part of your service.

Sadly, many service providers do a masterful job of selling, only to flame out when the actual work begins. I know one consultant whose team was charged with helping a client kick off a major initiative. After opening remarks by the client CEO, the audience broke into seven “affinity” groups, each assigned to a consultant-facilitator.

The seven groups formed their circles and waited for direction. Unfortunately, four of the seven consultant leaders had arrived just in time for the meeting, and they stared blankly at their affinity groups. The clueless leaders checked their preparatory material, only to realize that their instructions consisted of four bullet points outlining the general objectives of the meeting.

Several hours of chaos ensued. Three weeks later, the client re-launched the project with another firm. If the consultants’ execution of the project had matched the quality of the work they did during the sales process, it’s likely that they would still be working with the client.

Obviously, you need a workable plan and the right skills to tackle any client project. But here are four other ideas to help you make sure your projects build the lasting client relationships you want.

Get Real about Expectations

Many service providers boast that they will “exceed client expectations.” Few clients believe the claim, but it’s a sales phrase that they see and hear way too often. The first problem with this claim is that client expectations are hard to define and even harder to measure. Asserting that you will exceed your client’s expectations presupposes that you know what those are, which you probably don’t. The client may not even know, so how will either party figure out if you succeeded?

Instead of promising the moon, define a baseline of value you plan to deliver and then meet that expectation. If, in the end, you do exceed the client’s expectations, let the client tell you. It’s not for you to say in any event. You risk disappointing clients and damaging relationships if you tell them that you’ll exceed expectations and then fail to live up to that (or any other) promise.

Embrace Dull

You should apply the old carpenter’s axiom “measure twice, cut once” to your plans for every client project. Your want to have such a well-conceived plan that everyone knows just what to do and when to do it. When it comes to client work, “never a dull moment” is not what you are aiming for.

Naturally, there will be unwanted excitement, as much of what happens over the course of a project is unpredictable. Your job is to try to predict as many of those events as possible before the project gets rolling.

At the very least, you should devise a “Plan B” for dealing with potential uncertainties, such as project delays or executive turnover. But take your planning further. Think about Plans C, D, and E (up to and including a “doomsday” scenario if you are so inclined).

Ask yourself five to ten “what-if” questions for each plan you devise. What would you do if your project sponsor was fired, or the client project manager was out sick for a month? How would you manage if the client cut the team size in half part way through the project? What if your assumptions about your project approach turn out to be wrong?

The questions you ask will vary with each project, but you get the idea. Focus on your plan early, and then work that plan efficiently from the beginning to the end of the assignment.

Manage Surprises

Every now and then, a project works without a hitch. Usually, though, you’ll have bumps along the way. Try to anticipate these detours, but don’t be shaken if something unanticipated crops up.

How you manage surprises has enormous impact on the success of any project and client relationship. You have two choices for how you communicate surprises to clients. Think of it as a Band-Aid you need to remove: You can rip it off quickly, enduring all the pain at once; or you can tug it off slowly, prolonging the agony.

It’s best to give clients bad news as soon as you know about it. If you have a budget overrun, for instance, get all of the issues and implications out at one time. Show your client the whole picture and explain what you need.

No one likes bad news, but the way you handle adversity is vital to your client relationships. As the I Ching (the Chinese Book of Changes) puts it, “The event is not important, but the response to the event is everything.”

Understand Your Impact on Others

For a project to be successful, you must create a positive impact throughout the client’s organization, not just with the project sponsors. As an outsider, expect some people to welcome your presence and others to be wary. Don’t take it personally in either case.

You’ve probably heard stories of service providers who alienate clients by behaving badly. One former consultant was notorious for her condescending attitude toward everyone in the client’s organization–except those in positions of power. Eventually, that behavior led this individual right out of the consulting business.

Even with a perfect plan, your behavior towards others will always drive your overall success. Of course, you must get your work done with the pressure of deadlines. But your client relationships won’t get off the ground if clients think you are a jerk. Sometimes, it’s hard to know the impact we have on others, so be sure to ask your colleagues and clients for guidance.

The Key to a Relationship Strategy

Establishing a mutually productive relationship with a client demands that you pay attention to many complex activities, including bringing useful ideas to your client, building a network of supporters, and maintaining your visibility. No matter how well you perform these activities, none of it will matter if you cannot execute your work with finesse and develop the client relationship along the way.

You may bring the best ideas to your clients, but if you’re unable to deliver on those ideas, expect them to find someone who can. That’s why superior service delivery is the essential ingredient in a successful client relationship strategy.