By Karen Post, on February 14, 2012

In the spirit of love and affection as many celebrate Valentine’s Day, the day of awesome relationships, frisky friendships, risky affairs and just plain gushy lust, I thought it would be appropriate to mention the everyday occurrence of unavailable brands. You know the kind, the not so healthy, lots of issues, not worth the time and certainly not worth the loyalty—when company brands get so chilly, so unconnected and just straight up are not available to their paying customers who truly want to love them.

The sad fact is there are many brands who behave like this and then wonder why their customers cheat and defect to a younger or more loving competitor.

Here are the red flags to know when it may be time to start dating- I mean shopping around:

• You’ve got a problem and there is no phone number on their website.
• Or it takes way too long and way too much work to find it.
• Or a “contact us” form with no reply or at best a form reply that says: “we are very busy, we’ll try to get to you some day”.
• Or you call them and after 20 minutes in the phone tree jungle, you speak with a customer service rep by the name of Carol, who you can’t understand, and you know darn well no Carols’ live in that country.

It’s unfortunate there are not horse-mounted brand police that would issue costly citations when companies play like this. But then again, unhappy customers now have a voice with social media, word of mouth and on high traffic blogs, just ask Dell, Bank of America and Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Tonight at tennis I asked my buds who they thought were some of the worst offenders, the not available brands, here’s what I heard. Tazo Tea, the Starbuck’s company, Sam’s club, the Walmart Company, Skype and the Microsoft Company. I’m sure you’ve got your list too. It is a shame that these big brands would be so clueless to the basic concept that open communication is essential to keep a relationship red hot.

Smart brands who value relationships with their customers make it easy for them to talk and they listen.

A big kiss and hug to Apple, American Express and Southwest airlines.

How easy is it for your brand to be loved?

To learn about more brand bumps and how the got back on the saddle, view: Brand Turnaround.

By Karen Post, on February 28, 2011

You bet my pearly veneers it can.

I’ve never been a big fan of going to the dentist. Maybe it’s because my parents were such sticklers and sent us so often as kids. And as an adult I’m very grateful for that, my teeth are in good shape.

Or maybe it’s because I still remember exactly what it felt like the day the orthodontist yanked my braces off. I thought all my teeth were coming off too.

Or maybe it’s because my last dentist always acted like a Nazi commando and if I didn’t follow everyone of her every recommendations, she would send me a threatening letter stating that my failing to spend $3,000 on something she believed was needed could cause brain damage and other deathly ailments. Beyond the scare tactics, she and her staff hard pushed products and services like used car salesman. And when I don’t floss, they don’t pour the guilt trip on me, like “Karen, you know this is a team thing, I’m doing my part, you’ve got to do yours.” I don’t remember signing up for the dental team. Bad experience. Bad memories. Bad brand. I don’t go there any more.

My new dentist Dr. Gregory Jacobs is not a pain at all and neither is the experience. In fact, I enjoy going there. They have current magazines that I enjoy, nothing against Golf Pro. The environment is relaxed. There is no tacky, bold faced policy signage posted everywhere. No glass wall implying I’m am disturbing them. The office looks like an interior design studio, not a stinky medical clinic for lab rats. The restrooms are equally as cool and the staff is always nice.

I feel a whole lot less pain, stress and anxiety when I go to the dentist these days. And always tell my friends about my great dentist. All the touch points are thoughtfully provided (music, scent, decor, staff, lighting, restrooms, parking) and geared to my comfort, not the efficiency of the practice.

I always wonder why 95% of health care providers don’t get this powerful connection to the customer experience and their bottom line. And this concept is not restricted to only health care providers, anything that is not organically enjoyable and tilts toward painful, like: buying tires, repairing your AC unit or purchasing insurance can benefit from a really pleasant and memorable experience.

Is there anything you can do to improve the experience you deliver to your customers? Remember, the brand is what the customer thinks, feels and expects about the sum of all you do.

OK, I do schedule my dental appointments right after lunch and usually have a glass wine with my salad too.

For more on strong brand concepts, view: Want to be a standout brand? Avoid these 5 costly mistakes.

By Karen Post, on December 27, 2010

Is my timing good or what? NYC got hit with a major snow storm today. I left 24 hours ago.

Have you ever wondered why a business opens up in the center of lots of direct competition. Are they crazy or smart? I think they are smart if they play their cards right. Brick and mortar ventures understand that physically locating your business surrounded by like businesses has many advantages – it makes it easy for customers to find your category (restaurants, art galleries etc.) and they can easily stumble upon you, you can jointly promote the area with a common theme of offerings and you can network and refer business to each other.

That’s what I experienced in NYC last week. I was in the market for a new coat. I had two old ones that I enjoyed for years, but was ready to trade up. I headed to 29th and Broadway, the fur district in the city. I started with the place I purchased the older coats, since I had done business with them in the past. They suggested I go to Madison Avenue Furs, sell my old coats and then come back and shop. Apparently, this shop they were referring was known for paying a fair price for coats. I headed to the cash opportunity store, stopped in four other stores to do a little more research and see if they would give me any thing for my old coats. Two of them also suggested selling my old ones and coming back.
It was really cold and windy in New York and I was ready to get a warmer, new coat and couldn’t find the place that everyone was speaking about. Yikes, so I popped back in one of the stores and asked for more directions. They were so nice and walked me down to the store; knowing that they could potentially lose a sale to this store they were taking me to.

I entered the store and was greeted by a friendly sales associate. I explained what I was looking to do. She said no problem. I needed to see the owner and in the mean time, was I interest their collection? I said “sure”. She showed me all kinds, price points and different styles. I never felt pressure to select one or did I feel intimidated, which I have felt when I was making a purchase of this magnitude in the past.

Larry the owner of the store came over and introduced himself. He toured me through the store explaining that he was a third generation furrier. Most of the merchants in this cluster of retailers were all family businesses that have been around for decades. Again, no pressure from Larry, he was knowledgeable and helpful. After finding a coat that I really loved, Larry gave me the options, the amount of straight cash I could get and go, and what the trade in amount was that he would take off the coat that I liked. I thought about it, consulted with my shopping buddy, Jill and decided to take the money off and buy the coat from Larry’s store.

After a morning of shopping, Larry had a new customer. Why? I really loved the coat, I trusted him, we had chemistry, I related to him as he was my age, not my grandfather’s, I believed the price was fair for the purchase and I was buying what I wanted and was not being hard sold.

So how can this swarm of competition theory work for your business?

1) Be confident in your business and embrace an attitude that there is plenty of business for all.

2) Develop relationship with your competitors, let them know of any special services or products that you offer that can help them look good in the eyes of their customers.

3) When you can’t help a customer, send them the referral to your network of competitors.

This concept is not limited to retail or brick and mortar businesses. If you have an online business and write a blog, compliment your competition, share links and even consider bundling an offer with some of your competition. And if you have a strong feeling of trust with one of your competitors explore a joint venture opportunity. I realize this will not work for every business model, but it will for many.

By Karen Post, on December 22, 2010

It’s freezing in New York, but fun and stimulating!

First thing, check into my hotel. I am staying at a small boutique property on upper West Side (I’ll share the details on this property at the end of my trip). Are you traveling to a big city and want a great deal on cool hotels? I always use Hotwire.com. You can pick the number of stars and which part of the city you want to stay in. You get a choice of many, showing prices and star rankings. I’ve never been disappointed and sometimes save 50% off rack rate.

Worried about bedbugs? Go to Bedbug registry and make sure your chosen hotel won’t have uninvited guests in your bed. My hotel is awesome – it was not listed, WHEW!

Our first adventure: A food tour of the Lower East side via City Food Tours. This is a great way to taste and learn some history about New York’s fabulous food. Most tours are a couple hours long and range from 40-90 bucks per person. They include a knowledgeable guide, outside exercise and samplings of 5-6 culinary bites along the way. We discovered: The Essex Food market, a gem, which houses Roni-Sue chocolates, an artisan spot with truffles and to die for chocolates in every variety. The Pickle Guys, one of the few pickle places around. Economy Candy, a massive store that feels like a mall of a million sweets. The Roasting Plant, a great coffee cafe founded by a former Starbucks  staffer who turned a vacuum into a Javabot® coffee roasting system and lastly, one of the best slices of pizza from San Marzano Brick Oven Pizzeria.

A great afternoon! More marketing commentary coming. Packed agenda.

Robert’s at the Museum of Design.

Prohibition a neighborhood spot for live music acts. Rachel Platton performed and was an amazing, fresh and entertaining sound. She’s a New Yorker who is hitting the world tour scene. Check out her schedule, and check her out.

Tues. night
Went to Jimmy Fallon Live with Jack Black, recap coming, was tooooo much fun and got to hang and dance with the Roots. I’m now the proud owner of an official drum stick too.

Weds.
Got to run, sorry for the short hand, promise to fill in. Headed to Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. Review coming too with lots more street stuff.

By Karen Post, on November 16, 2010

In January, I decided to make 2010 my fittest year ever. So far, so good. I made a plan, stuck to it and have seen results. I have been hitting the gym, running, logging one hundred plus miles on my bike every week and I have been participating in road races. I will be thinking about goals for 2011 soon. A scenario that played out during my fitness quest made me think about marketing planning for the coming year.

I recently won a $100 gift certificate to a local merchant who sponsored one of the events I’d entered. I had frequented this establishment once or twice, but, I was loyal to a competitor. I was looking forward to picking up some new workout gear and, perhaps, being convinced to change my loyalty. If I had a good buying experience, I might have been swayed since this store is walking distance from my house and my “favorite” store is a twenty minute drive. Here’s what happened.

I walked into the store and started to browse. An employee, or was it the owner? approached and asked if I needed any help. I smiled and said, “no thanks. I am just looking. I came by to use the $100 certificate I won in the raffle at the race that you sponsored!” He looked at me with an expression of disdain, groaned and went back to another part of the store.

Did I feel compelled to spend more than the $100? No. Did I feel welcomed? No. Did I want to grab a bunch of stuff and leave as quickly as possible and tell a bunch of people how obnoxious I though the salespeople were? Yes.

I collected my $97 worth of merchandise, checked out and left wondering why they bothered to offer the gift certificate. Clearly, they did not want to gain a new customer, or they would have acted like it once they got the new customer in the door. Perhaps they hoped that most would not be cashed in since the bulk of participants for this race came from out of town, but they would get some name recognition as a sponsor? Only they know.

Anyone who is in business would always like more customers, and there are lots of ways to achieve that goal. The last quarter of the year is usually the time when we review how we did this year and start thinking about our marketing plan for next year. While you are putting together your strategies and tactics, ask yourself the following questions.

1.      Do I really know my brand? If you were to describe your brand to a complete stranger, would you be able to express the core of your business in a sentence? Would it be memorable and unique or would it sound like you were describing one of your competitors? You need to have a laser focused, crystal clear vision of your brand before you can engage in any marketing activity.

2.     Do I know my customers? Do you have a good customer database? Do you know who your best customers are and why they decide to buy from you? Do you know their buying habits? Do you know enough about them to be able to provide them with a solution to a problem before they come to you with it? The only way to build deep relationships and a solid repeat customer base is to be able to have answers to these questions.

3.     Do I know what I am selling? This is similar to your overarching brand strategy, but specifically, what are you offering to the market place. Do you know the practical, as well as emotional benefits of your product or service?

4.     Do I know what my customers are buying? Similar to the preceding question. Do you know both the practical and emotional benefits your customers are seeking? Are they aligned, or is there a gap? Make sure that they are one in the same before you start any marketing communications. This will require some customer research which you can conduct on your own. You can have conversations with your customers, you can use free polling software on your website or you can start a discussion on your blog or your Facebook page. You can also monitor conversations on line, search Twitter and find out what people are saying. Be creative in your data collection. Also, be transparent. People will be willing to talk to you if you tell them why you are seeking information.

5.     Do I know my customers buying habits? Where do they interact with your company? At a store? At your store? Online? You need to know the where they are and how they buy in order to get the most impact from your marketing efforts.

6.     Do I know who my competition is? Once you know thyself, you need to be aware of all the other firms that will be vying for your customers’ attention and dollars. You should be aware of their market positioning and marketing and sales strategies, as well as how they are perceived in the marketplace. Knowing this will help you differentiate yourself. See number 1.

7.     Am I aware of my growth? Are you keeping tabs on things such as sales and market share so that you can measure results? You can’t measure that which you don’t track. It doesn’t require sophisticated software. You can build a simple excel worksheet and keep track of a few metrics. If you have a website, Google Analytics has a heap of free tools that you can use to track traffic, referrals, time spent by visitors, and which pages are the most captivating.

8.      Do all of my employees know what our brand is? You can do all the brilliant marketing in the world, but if one of your touchpoints is off, you’ve lost credibility. Marketing may be a department, but everyone in the organization needs to know, live and breathe the brand.

9.     What are my goals for marketing dollars spent? As in the example I cited above, the sporting goods shop might not have thought through their promotion. Did they just want their name on an event? Were they interested in new customers? They got a new customer in the store, but they certainly didn’t retain them. They should have had some sort of informal plan as to how to treat that new customer, or any new customer. Essentially, it all goes back to branding. If that company had made customer service a core brand value, I would likely still be shopping there. Do you know the difference between actions that will cause a splash or temporary spike versus those that will create customer retention and loyalty?

10.  Do I know what it costs to get a new customer? To retain an old one? Every marketing text book will tell you that it is cheaper to retain customers than to get new ones. Do you know the costs? Do you do things to retain the group that is cheaper to keep? There are some banks and other businesses that offer discounted rates to new customers. As an established customer, those kinds of tactics irk me since all I seem to get are mystery charges every month that I have to spend time on the phone getting resolved and removed from my bill.

11.  Have I kept track of what works? Looking back over the year(s), do you know what has worked? Do you know what has been a real stink bomb. Can you build off successful tactics in the past while developing new, creative strategies?

12.  Am I willing to take some risks? That answer has to be yes. Carve out part of your marketing budget and your brain space to allow yourself to try something new and different.  The only thing you are allowed to do if it doesn’t work is say, “that didn’t work, we won’t do that again, but we will take another risk.”

If you need help nailing down #1 on this list, you might find the Differentiate Your Product or Service Ta-Do List helpful. http://tools.oddpodz.com/ebooks-and-downloadable-tools/ta-do-lists/differentiate-your-business-product-or-services/

By Karen Post, on November 15, 2010

So this past week in our weekly training session, we were discussing the topic of “mindset” as it relates to conversational selling with prospects.  To illustrate this concept, I placed one of our new client’s sales representative, who considers himself a very good sales person, into a role-play at the start of class.  The set up was this…pretend you’ve just sat down with a new prospect that is really interested in your services and just run the first 10 minutes of your sales call.  Simple huh?  As the rep began to work his way through the role play, it was evident that he was uncomfortable and really was not sure what he was trying to accomplish on the call.  Before too long, he was committing P.P.S. symptoms, Premature Presentation Syndrome!

After about 10 minutes, I stopped the role play and we debriefed the good, and not so good.  Then, I instructed him to perform the exact same role play only this time, act like you are the prospects “friend and trusted advisor” and that he has millions of dollars in the bank and does not need this sale.  Almost instantly his tone and body language immediately changed and he started to be more genuine and authentic in both his questions and his answers.  Before long, he had the prospect selling him on why he needed to use his company and services.  The light bulb went off from everyone in the class about how much pressure we place on ourselves and our prospects during a sale call.  We spent the next 15 minutes talking about personal presence and what you are exuding during our first 10 minutes of meeting someone, especially a prospect for the first time.

Clint Babcock, Partner with the Sandler Training, is an interactive and engaging trainer that has trained thousands of sales people and sales managers.  Clint works with Business Owners and companies that are struggling in the areas of sales Strategy, Structure, Staff, and Skills.  Through ongoing reinforcement coaching and training, Clint has been able to help companies grow revenues and greatly increase their closing percentages.  Clint often is called on to speak at national sales meetings and various associations. Clint can be reached at cbabcock@sandler.com.

By Karen Post, on October 19, 2010

According to a recent survey by Pew Research, the commercial use of the Internet among Americans continues to grow: 58% of US adults say they conduct research online about products and services, up from the 49% who said so in 2004, while roughly one-quarter (24%) have posted comments or reviews online about products they buy. (thanks to MarketingProfs for posting)

I am one of the 58%. I am a research nut who conducts online searches for both personal and professional products and services several times a day. I came across two companies yesterday while conducting online research. One of them is now a contender for my business. The other, sadly, lost terribly.

Here is some background. I am looking for a new washing machine since mine has decided that it no longer wants to clean my clothes. At this point, I don’t want to search by features, colors or price. I need to know which ones will fit into the predetermined and unalterable spot for the washing machine. All the major and local appliance stores’ websites offered the same search parameters: color, price, most popular, highest rated.

I went to Google and typed in “appliance by size.” The results listed, among others, a site that “aims to make it as easy as possible to find the products that fit your space – be it furniture, home electronics or even large appliances. You can find all the products you need for your new apartment in a size-friendly search environment.”

Great! I thought, that’s exactly what I’m looking for, so I went to the site and entered “washing machine” in the search box. The auto-fill suggested the following: combination microwave & wall ovens, convertible dishwashers, countertop microwave ovens, double wall ovens, waffle irons (aside: how big do they get?), and wall air conditioners.

When I typed in “washing machine,” I received the reply “no entries found.” What I did find was that I was annoyed that the site didn’t work. I would have been happy to spend lots of time on the site looking for what I needed. This might have provided them some ad revenue and perhaps some affiliate income if I purchased on line. I likely would have highly recommended the site if it worked. Instead, I went back to the google search results and found www.ajmadison.com. Kudos to them on a website well done! Not only is the site super easy to navigate and search, (they allowed me to search by appliance size!) but they have also embraced social media. The highly informative and engaging social medial channels are FREE and cost them only their time to assemble and post content. Under the AJ Madison Community umbrella, they have the following channels and descriptions listed. From the AJ Madison site:

Facebook: The AJ Madison Facebook Fan Page is updated every day with the latest deals and product specials. The AJ Madison Experience (found under the “Boxes” tab) presents a simple, ever-changing interface with deals and links to the site, while Shop AJ Madison allows you to browse and buy from our entire site, all while logged into Facebook. Become a fan today!

Twitter: For information about promotions, as well as general appliance news (and some surprises), follow us on the official AJ Madison Twitter page (@AJMadison). On average, we tweet several times a day, and deals are normally announced in the morning.

YouTube: We periodically update our YouTube channel with new informative product videos. In the near future, we’ll have a steady stream of content and new videos to keep you apprised of the latest appliances and how to use and maintain them.

Tumblr: Every weekday, we update our Tumblr page with information on a new “just-in” product. This is a supplement to the New Products RSS Feed, with our own views on the featured appliance thrown in for good measure.

Flickr: Each week, we showcase a new product from the AJ Madison showroom on our Flickr page, giving you original images and in-depth looks at our newest appliances. Subscribe to our Flickr stream or follow us on Twitter for the latest updates.

Appliance Authority (blog): You’re on AJ Madison’s Appliance Authority blog right now! We update our blog several times a week with how-to guides, top rated product spotlights, buying tips and more. Check back here every weekday for a new post, or you can also follow it via this RSS Feed.

Google Buzz: We’re proud to be one of the first companies on Google’s new Buzz network. Though we’re currently experimenting with this brand-new platform, Buzz integrates all of our other profiles (Twitter, Flickr, YouTube and more), and we add daily deals, news and information right from our Brooklyn office. If you’re a Buzz or GMail user, or just generally curious, visit our Buzz profile and follow us today!

And, it gets better! I tweeted, “@AJMadison I love your website! So well done and informative. If I still lived in NYC, I’d be purchasing my new washing machine from y’all.”

In less than an hour, they responded, “Thank you, friend! We still deliver to your neck of the woods.”

By being on top of their social media channels, they created a direct, personal, immediate dialogue with a potential customer that lives 800 miles away. That kind of responsiveness makes them a top contender for my business.

Key takeaway points:

1. If you sell a product or service that people are likely to research, write rich content and reviews and create lots of search parameters that will attract researchers to your site.

2. Leverage social media channels. Distribute all that great content through Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, etc.

3. Monitor those channels. Read and respond to potential buyers. Read and contribute to discussion boards and forums in which your products and or services are the subject. Become a trusted authority.

4. Provide solutions. I tweeted that I would buy from them if I lived closer. They responded, “no problem, we can do that.” I went back to the site and saw that FREE DELIVERY was offered to my zip code on the item I was considering.

5. Read the bad stuff, too. You might find that unsatisfied customers posted their complaints online. If possible, try to reach out to them and resolve the problem. Research shows that customers who complain and are satisfied with how the complaint was resolved are up to 8% more loyal than if they had no complaint at all.

By Karen Post, on September 10, 2010

All annoying,  all unnecessary, even if you work on commission.

My good buddy, international sales guru Jeffrey Gitomer said it best, “People don’t likes to be sold, but, they like to buy.”

You know who I’m talking about, it’s likely one of your relatives, I know it’s one of mine. They are always pushing food on me, try this, eat this, have some of this. The more I say “no thank you”, the more they push, the less I want it.

Does it make me want to try the food? Heck no. It aggravates me, same goes for pushy sales people.

I understand in tough times, we all want the sale, but instead of pushing, try pleasing, providing value and supplying pure helpfulness.

4 pleasurable ways to get customers to want your stuff instead of running from it.

1. Share a tip or secret about your product or someone else’s.
2. Send an unexpected handwritten note with a special offer, personalized and just for them.
3. Randomly offer a free trial or sample of a service or product with no strings attached.
4. Add a bonus gift to a small purchase.

By Karen Post, on September 5, 2010

Jump in your customer’s shoes today, and you can.

If you have a marketing role as an entrepreneur or a professional, you’d better be able to get in those customer shoes or you are in big trouble.

Today’s marketers of the most successful companies have a special skill.  Call it enterprising empathy—an astute ability to walk in the shoes of customers, see the world like they do, own their values and feel their most important needs, desires and pain.

This week, I’m in Aspen CO, a very elite mountain town and resort community. I’m staying at a several million dollar condo, surrounded by wealthy guests who sport everything from designer Prada garb, to Rolex bling, to Gap brand distressed jeans and no name flip flops. Nothing is inexpensive. There are masses of fit and attractive people every where and you experience an extreme attitude of quality and thoughtful service.

Businesses that do well here, even in the recent tough economic times understand the values of their market and know what makes them tick. They put on the Cole Haan and Jimmy Choo shoes, no matter how they personally see the world.

Is marketing to the affluent about entitlement, status, design, attention to detail? Or maybe a mix of all? Likely it depends on what they are selling to what affluent segment.

As a marketer or entrepreneur, especially if you are a successful one, it can be easy to put on the shoes that best represent and fit you. You are successful and affluent, you live a lux life, it’s a natural way to serve your customers the way you want to be treated.

But here’s the challenge, your customer or clients may be very different than you. They might be unemployed, have less disposable income, wouldn’t know great design, if it bit them in the butt or even be flat broke. They can also be older and have a very different set of values.

Yet many marketers and entrepreneurs try to push their values and preferences on their customers and wonder why sales are weak. DAAH!

Empathy is truly essential in effective marketing. Doing things just the way you like them can be the kiss of death, unless you are a mirror image of your customers, which often we are not.

On your next marketing challenge, try these strategies.

1) Loose all your beliefs
What matters is what your customer believes.

2) Don’t fall in love with your first idea.
First ideas often come from values you embrace.

3) Have an open mind to things that seem weird, stupid and crazy.
A Gen Yer views the planet, technology and TV advertising completely different than a 75-year old grandmother.

4) Shut up. Watch and listen to the target market.
Marketers tend to talk too much, often filling the heads of their research pools with their beliefs and then the market pool or research subjects will just agree with what you’ve thrown at them.  This will not produce gems of relevant marketing brilliance, but more of what you like.

When creating marketing plans for clients or your own business, think about what the buyer really wants and will respond to.  A Walmart fan may not even know who Frette is and most senior citizens are not digitally dominated. And don’t forget the importance of gender wiring. There is a huge gap in how women want their info and what men think and don’t think about.

For the most effective marketing ideas, jump into the buyers’ shoes. Leave your boots, heals and running shoes at home for your personal journey.

By Karen Post, on August 30, 2010

I have worked on both large and small marketing and branding strategy projects. As one would expect, the larger ones, by nature of their size, require lots of time and energy. Not always. Here’s some lessons I’ve learned about managing projects, clients and expectations.

I am not sure if this is an anomaly, or something that others have experienced, but on more than one occasion, I’ve had small clients who were paying smaller fees but who were more demanding than the larger clients. I found that if I broke down my fee for the project by the hours spent on the assignment, I was making much less hourly than on the larger project. I also felt beaten up, overworked and under appreciated by some of my smaller clients. They were getting a lot more out of me than they paid for.

So, how do you manage your time and your clients’ expectations? I always aim to provide outstanding service, but on a few occasions, I’ve felt like I’ve given my services away. Has this ever happened to you?

Here’s the scenario that caused me to develop some guidelines for future clients. I should have seen it coming. The beginning of the relationship started with me crossing the 50 yard line. The client balked at the price of the project. I said I couldn’t do it for less and they said, “well, if you find that you can, give us a call.” It had been a slow month and the project pipeline was less than full, so I reapproached the potential client and discounted my price. But, I offered the same services. I felt like I was on call 24/7 and each communication from the client included phrases such as, “can we also do X,Y and Z.” Email by email the project scope was becoming gargantuan. I was harboring resentment against said client and wanted to, on several occasions, let them know that they were getting high quality work at a bargain basement price. Thankfully, I was able to contain my composure and project a cheerful attitude toward the client through the duration of the assignment. My trusted canine office companion dutifully listened to my colorful venting.

The client was delighted, but I decided that I did not want to experience that again.  So, I sat down and put pen to paper to create some rules.

Have an initial meeting to discuss their needs to that you can create a document that will outline the scope of the project. Have your client be candid about their budget so that you can work with them to best allocate their funds. Perhaps you can do things in phases to work with the timing of their cash flow. This is a wonderful way to provide value and to become a trusted partner. You are working in their best interest and not ripping them off.

Allow the client to review the document and make any changes before you start so that you can price the project properly. Make sure everyone is on the same page before said document is signed, even if you have to discuss it five times. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

As part of the planning, establish who will be responsible for what and make sure that this is crystal clear.

Establish a routine for communication. Promise to return calls in a timely fashion, for example, within 24 hours. Also, establish the best way to contact you (phone, email, etc.). Do not disappear; radio silence will kill a relationship.

Have the client agree to send organized communication daily whether it is one voicemail with a list of questions or one email as opposed to a constant stream of one-off questions. Try to avoid having them track you down via every available communication portal (IM, text, facebook, linkedin, email, Skype, fax, carrier pigeon). Establish one main line of communication and one back up.

Unfortunately, extra items cannot just be “tacked on” to the original proposal. I have been on the other side of a signed agreement SOW and was annoyed by “change orders,” but I can see why they are necessary. This goes back to points 1 and 2, careful advanced planning will, hopefully, avoid this.

Create a timeline with reasonable, achievable deadlines and establish how you will review progress with your clients. In person meeting, conference call, Gotomeeting. Deliver everything on time and keep excellent records. Get good feedback at each checkpoint and make sure that expectations of each party are being met.  Organization is your friend. Create a separate inbox in your email for correspondence with the client, document phone calls, send follow up email with notes from phone calls to confirm what was discussed.

Hey, stuff happens. If you screw up, or there is a delay, inform the client IMMEDIATELY. Don’t cover it up. The truth will out. Hopefully, you will be able to find a solution and prevent it and your client will understand. Try to encourage your client to be upfront if they experience any delays or setbacks on their end, too. And, when stuff happens, don’t make it personal. Even if your client is being a bird brain and you are tempted to pull a Steven Slater, remember this “focus on the problem, not the person.” If you solve the problem, you will likely improve your client’s mood and be able to get back on track.

As the project is coming to a close, create a final checklist to make sure that all deliverables are on track. Try to find something to exceed the expectations: an earlier than promised completion date, a roadmap for phase II, an extra mock up in addition to what was promised, a winning lottery ticket.

Follow up after the project and make sure that the client was (at a minimum) satisfied. Dig for constructive criticism. If there is something you can fix that will leave the client happy and perhaps put you first in line for future projects, do it.

I learned that communicating expectations before any work got started and learning how to communicate the value I would be contributing, as opposed to what dollar amount the client would be handing over, vastly improved the experience for all parties involved in future assignments.

Other resources that can help
Creating your own consulting practice Ta-Do list