Keeping the Connection Strong

Building a relationship with your clients is an important task and business strategy. Who would you rather deal with: Someone you like or a cold and distant stranger?

Given the choice, there are few people who would choose to deal with those they dislike. Yet many companies treat relationship building as a passive task: a by-product of doing business.

By taking relationship building seriously, and working on it strategically and actively, you will be able to better manage your efforts and have more success. That means stronger relationships, less time to build trust, and a deeper connection between your clients and your company.

Here’s how to make relationship a priority in your business

Step 1: Get Organized

Create a file that will contain the relevant client details. Consider their employment, their children’s ages, their hobbies, or favorite vacation spots.

Review this information before making a business call. This enables you to add personal inquiries to the conversation, letting your client know that you care about them as more than just a source of revenue.

Keep this file and review and update it regularly. This will allow you to continue to build and strengthen your relationship with your customers by keeping up-to-date with them about life changes.

Step 2: Keep Regular Contact and Offer Value

Absence may make the heart grow fonder, but it makes the customer grow apathetic. If you don’t have a business matter that requires regular discussion, consider finding common a ground with your client on which to connect.

It definitely benefits you to stay in regular contact with you clients, but what are they getting out of the relationship? Make sure that every effort you make benefits them as much as you.

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Offering Value When You Connect

If you and the client both enjoy fishing, send them a review of the fishing lodge you recently visited.
Send the avid skier tickets to an upcoming trade show.
Introduce one client to another; or better still, host a networking event for all of your clients.
Let your client know about new software or products that have benefited your business and could do the same for them.

Step 3: Ask Meaningful Questions

“How’s business?” is a dull question. Worse still, it puts the burden on the one being asked to come up with something interesting. Instead, keep informed about your clients’ industries and ask meaningful questions.

“I head about the new legislation; will your company feel any effects from that?”
“With your competitor pulling out of the mid-west, does that open the market for you?”

The same strategy works for other questions as well. A quick review of the news headlines can tell you how their favorite team is doing, what is happening in their region, and if there have been any major events regarding their hobbies.

Meaningful questions show that you actually do care and are not asking out of formality. 

At RevBuilders, we understand that by making relationship building a priority, your company will create connections and secure loyalty. Talk to us about ways our integrated marketing team can help you in your relationship building efforts.