Do your clients need some training to work with you? Are your clients always asking for something that you have not available. It is time to train you.
Yes, I just said “It is time to train YOU.”
Recently I watched a few episodes of the “Dog Whisperer” and “Supernanny”. I know there are better things to do, but bare with me for a moment.
Who asks for these experts to come and help them out with their problem children or aggressively barking dog? The parents of the children or the dog owner.
They think the Dog Whisperer or SuperNanny will come and train the dog or the children. And they do. However, that is just a small part of what they do. Most of the time goes to the training of the parents or the dog owners.
So if you feel your Clients need a training in paying earlier, doing the things at the right time, doing the right thing…. start with You. How can we you train you to make these changes possible.
Are you a pact leader or are clients leading you?
5 tips to become the leader that your clients are looking for:
- Investigate – always investigate the situation. Find out what your client is used to. First you look at the situation of your client and let them get used to you, even though your method is always the same. You create the ‘feeling’ that you are adapting your method to their situation.
- Consistency – always use the same order and same process. The process of your company is very clear and consistent, you actually have it all written down in a Word document. Every time you start working with a new client you send them the personalized ‘Ideal Process for best results’ document.
This document will make it clear for the clients what you expect how, when and why. For your client this document also explains exactly what they can expect from you, how, when and why.This ‘Ideal Process for best results’ is just ONE sheet. If it is longer, you need to simplify the process. No wonder your clients don’t understand your process.
- Communicate all the time. Be clear about what you are doing or what you are waiting for. Include a call to action at the end. This way your client knows exactly what to do without feeling belittled. Use the 4 state of minds: be dominant, appreciative, emotional and waiting in your communication.
- Timely reaction – As the “Dog Whisperer” says “Correct before things go wrong.” When you correct at the moment things are already progressed to the next level it is difficult to be heard.
When you send a signal just before things tend to go wild you can get their attention easily. Sometimes this requires more than words, you may need to ‘touch’ them to get their attention.
When you do this you will prevent that they will move to the next level and become less sensitive for your input.
- Reward – when the client is doing what the both of you agreed upon it is time to reward your client. This has nothing to do with big gifts. You can thank your client when they pay the invoice on time. When they supplied you with an answer so you can move forward in time, send them a short message and thank them.
Let your client know that you appreciate what they did. Even though you think it went exactly how it should have, your client will feel good about your compliment. This will stimulate similar actions in the future.
Bonus:
Trust – now you have to let go and trust that you have given your clients all the materials and attention so they can do it on their own. After a few weeks or months you go back and do the last fine tuning. Explain what happened and show how this can go even better with your final tips.
New Client
Yes, you will need to train your client. They are used to doing things in a certain way. This may not be the way for the best results when working with you.
But it all starts with you. When you have a clear process and a consistent way of doing things, your clients will experience the best results when working with you.
This is a win-win situation. The client is happy because they get the best results and you are happy because the client was easy to work with.
Although your client does not experience it that way but you have made sure that the client was easy to work with from the beginning.
You can do this with existing clients, however it takes a lot longer than training dogs according to the Dog Whisperer. 🙂
Credit: Image Class dismissed
