While winning clients may be your primary concern, keeping them is another story. Whilst some businesses are once-and-done in nature, most self-employed people will benefit from spending time keeping the relationship with existing clients going. Let’s have a look at the pros of client development, and some techniques to help.
Repeat business is cheaper than finding new clients
Client retention is cheaper and more cost effective than client acquisition for almost any business. Marketing to new clients tends to be more expensive in order to get on their radar in the first place, and it will often be a longer process with more obstacles to get through to win them over.
It’s much easier (and therefore cheaper!) to convince someone who already knows what you can do to hire you again, than it is to convince a stranger to hire you for the first time.
Even if the nature of your work means your client won’t need you for the same job again, there are other ways you might be able to extend the relationship. For instance, if you supply and install bespoke fitted wardrobes, are there other joinery projects you might be able to offer?
Encourage client referrals
Familiarity is a valuable thing to tap into. People trust recommendations and reviews – particularly from someone they trust because it’s an independent person and therefore an unbiased opinion. You might:
- Offer a referral incentive which rewards the client
- Give out a discount code for any friends and family they refer within a set time-frame
- Send a link for them to leave a review somewhere like Google or Trustpilot
Communicating well with your clients
Making the client relationship more enjoyable means there’s less stress on both sides. The easiest way to do this? Communicate well, and consider the language you use. You want every contact point to reinforce the value you provide – rather than the transactional nature of what you’re doing!
Keeping in touch throughout the duration of a project can be very reassuring for clients, and in turn helps them feel more positive about your work. For particularly long or ongoing projects, it might help to schedule some catch-up times at the beginning so you keep each other up to date.
Giving them a variety of contact options is also helpful. Some clients will prefer to talk to you on the phone, but others will want to use instant messaging. Clients will appreciate little things like this tailored to their needs, and make them more likely to choose you again in the future.
Ongoing pricing considerations
If you work in any business for long enough, you’ll eventually need to increase your prices.
Working out what to charge is tricky at the best of times, and you obviously might be reluctant to put any existing clients off. There’s always a chance that’s going to happen, but your current clients are also likely to be less price sensitive if they know that you provide value for what you charge.
The best thing to do above all else is to produce quality work on time as this will put you in the best position to ask for repeat business or help in return for your services.
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