Four Tips For Building Great Client Relationships

Imagine…you’re a furniture store owner running a 30% off sale, but nobody knows.

You’re a dental practice owner looking for new patients, but you don’t know how to reach them.

You’re a handyman looking to build your local brand awareness but have no idea where to begin.

You need help, but who you gonna call?

Probably not Ghostbusters. If you’re a business owner with a marketing agency, you’ll be picking up the phone to call your main point of contact – your Account Manager.

The Account Manager role can be action-packed and very demanding, but most importantly, it can be extremely rewarding. While it’s crucial to be hitting those performance KPI’s – digital growth is not the sole determinant of client satisfaction. When it comes to keeping your clients truly happy, the quality of the relationship you have with them is often just as important.

There are many factors that go into building great client relationships, and if you’re just getting started in a client-facing role, it can be hard to know where to begin. Fortunately, we’re here to pass on our top four tips for building great client relationships. Let’s get stuck in!

Tip #1 – Proximity is Power

Tip number one is proximity is power. Basically, this means that you should never feel out of reach for your client. There’s a popular misconception that a quiet client is a happy client, but this is definitely not the case.

You should be in regular contact with your clients, so be sure to check in and see what’s new on their end. To build a strong relationship, they’ll need to know that you’re more than just a name behind an email, so don’t be shy to pick up the phone!

Tip #2 – Keep Things Black & White

Put simply, this tip means communicating very clearly. Each of your clients will likely have a lot on the go, so it’s important to always have things in writing. As an Account Manager, there’s nothing better than having a great client meeting with lots of action items that come out of it, but if there’s no recap email with those action items clearly identified, things can slip through the cracks.

It’s also important to have regular progress updates with your client, which creates an opportunity for you to touch base on those action items and ensure that you’re both on the same page.

Tip #3 – Show That Your Care!

Don’t scrape by on vanity statistics. Even if it looks like results are going amazingly, you’ll want to touch base with your client and ensure that they are feeling that on their end.

Showing that you care also means actively listening. If you do receive feedback from your client, try not to make the same mistake twice. Implementing the feedback and ensuring that any future work reflects those changes can help show that you’re really taking your client’s feedback on board.

Showing that you care also involves taking initiative. In the Account Manager role, it’s important to always stay on the front foot when it comes to recommendations and finding new ways to grow your client’s business.

Tip #4 – Be Transparent

Trust is the most important part of any relationship. As an Account Manager, you want to make sure that you’re delivering on your promises, especially when it comes to performance, timelines and results.

If you’re in a meeting and you receive a question that you don’t have the answer to, try to avoid fumbling on the spot. Tell your client that you’ll come back to them once you’ve spoken to your specialist and circle back once you have reliable information to answer their question.

Final Thoughts

There you have it: four tips for building great client relationships. Now, it goes without saying that there’s a lot more that goes into client relationships – this is just the beginning. With that in mind, truly caring for your client and their business (and making that clear through your words and actions) is a great step in the right direction!