Do Relationships Really Need Work?

Absolutely! We’ve all heard it said that we need to work on our relationships with our spouses, our kids, and our friends. That we need to make a continued effort, or else differences can arise that we didn’t even know were there. This basic insight also clearly applies to our business relationships (maybe even more so since there are fewer personal bonds). And when we tie in the fact that most of our revenues come from existing clients and customers, let’s face it, this becomes a no-brainer!

So just how do we “work” at these relationships? Well, we all know the basics: a good contact management system, follow-up calls, in-person visits, invitations to events, etc. In addition to these, there are others that I’ve suggested in past articles (see “It Doesn’t Take A Big Red Suit” at www.coachnick.com). But there’s a tool you can use that you only need to do once a year, but can be very powerful for growing revenues through existing clients: Client Reviews.

“Say, what exactly is a Client Review, Coach Nick?” Think of it this way. Client reviews work in the same way that a leadership team meets off-site to plan their new year. In this case, you and your client are the "leadership team" and you are taking a step back to review the past, discuss the options of the present and look ahead to the next twelve months. But the key to getting the most out of a Client Review is to plan it well. First, let’s be perfectly clear what you want to get out of these gatherings. Your objectives are as follows:
 

• Meet more people within your account so that you have more leverage if your primary contact leaves.

• Find out about any issues that exist that are not raised during day-to-day interactions.

• Introduce your client to new ideas, applications and services.

• Find out which competitors that are calling on your client.

• Solicit referrals for new contacts internally and externally.

Now that we know what we want…but how do we do it? OK, now let’s talk nuts and bolts. Below is Coach Nick’s outline for a Client Review that I’ve developed over years doing sales work of my own.

Step 1: Setting It Up

• Schedule an off-site meeting (preferably at your corporate office, record center, etc.) using a formal invite process. Get your contacts off-site for a planning session.

• Invite your day-today contact, the users of the product, the influencers and the individuals that your product/service has an impacted on.

• Invite all the necessary people on your side - e.g. your sales and customer service staff, your 3rd party vendor (if applicable) on the account, your operations manager, etc.

Step 2: Conducting the Client Review

Remember the communication thing? Well, both sides (you and the client) should take turns discussing each of the sections below - past, present & future.
 

Past = Results

• projects & move-in's completed

• results from all projects & move-in's

• contract & agreement

• level of satisfaction & service levels

• the communication process

• the people involved in the process

• pricing, outstanding invoices, payment methods

Present = Options

• new projects and budgets that are approved right now and ready to move ahead

• new products and services that you offer now

• new business ideas that they may want your customer to consider

• find out if any of the "players" on either side have changed or left

• who will continue to be the day to day contact

• review the competitive landscape and market (trends, competitors they are looking at)

• new payment methods, status of current contract

• on-line options

Future = Opportunities

• clients records management plans for the remainder of the year and next

• potential M & A activity for either side

• discuss signing a new contract for the next 6 to 12 months

• discuss the expectations that both sides have of each other and the services we are providing

• Solicit referrals into new contacts - internally/externally

Step 3: The Follow-Up

A well executed follow-up is critical to ensuring that you translate all you efforts in setting up and conducting the Client Review towards generating revenue growth. Clearly, it’s also very important that your client doesn’t feel they have wasted their time.

• Summarize everything you agreed upon in writing

• Schedule a conference call two weeks later in order to maintain the momentum

• Schedule your next Client Review

Following the above basic structure to will enable you - and your client - to fully maximize your time and efforts. However, definitely add and re-prioritize items that fit the current conditions of your relationship with your client and your client’s needs. (Also, if you’ve got any general suggestions, or questions, on how to make client reviews work better, I’d love to hear what you think:
coachnick@coachnick.com.)

Listen, we all know that there’s no substitute for growing revenues than existing client relationships. But the key here is not only frequency, but depth. I’m confident that Client Reviews will deepen your client relationships, enabling you to generate new revenue from existing clients, warding off threats from the competition, and even sourcing new revenue sources through client referrals. One last bit of advice. While Client Reviews are “work” in the strictest sense of the word, they can also be very great experiences. So enjoy yourself. Yep, just like with your family and friends, business relationship “work” can be fun!

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