Relationship Partner Communications
We feel compelled to write about the importance of the relationship partner paying attention to their client relationship, and to their relationship with its service team. Over twelve months, Silvia worked with six lawyers who had each lost a client worth $2 million to $10 million annually. How does this happen? These were important clients to them, and to their firms. In some instances Silvia called the clients to find out what happened in order to help the firms learn how to never let this happen again. The feedback was “check in with us on a regular basis, ask us how your fellow colleagues are doing. We communicate with them, so check in with your own team servicing us as well.” Seriously? It is that simple and that complicated? Yes.
This dovetails with a prior post warning that clients are firing advisors due to poor verbal communication through the pandemic. We all know the importance of assigning work to others and introducing colleagues across other practices and services. Clients communicate with these individuals about good news, bad news, preferences, goals, and other relevant business needs. Clients assume that information is being shared across the group of people who service them. The unfortunate reality is that information is often not shared across the service team; working timekeepers don’t always like to share negative news or anything but stellar feedback that they’ve received. Further, some work and colleagues are so siloed that service team members are unaware, or not incentivized, to share tidbits relevant to managing the overall relationship between the two firms. This creates a divide between the firm and its important, strategic clients. The opportunity to build a strong relationship with important clients is simple; communicate with them, and your internal colleagues often.
The reality is that members of your service team are the eyes and ears of the client. Teaching them to learn more about a client’s goals, growth strategies, and other business needs, is the responsibility of the lead client relationship partner with help from the business development team. Training the service team to listen to the client, and listen for new opportunities, can bring your service team and firm closer to the client, become more of a trusted advisor, foster team inclusion and retention, and result in more revenue.
Follow these simple steps to retain important clients, foster a collaborative internal team, and to earn the highest levels of trust from clients:
Ensure that the client knows everyone on their service team whose names may appear on invoices and/or with whom the client speaks or emails. If there will be a change to the team, call the client beforehand and let them know.
Map out current client touchpoints, and identify other client contacts that the team should know.
Educate your service team about the client’s business. Encourage that they follow the client, and its competitors, on LinkedIn and in other newsfeeds.
Arrange monthly (mandatory) internal meetings with the client service team to provide updates about the client, discuss client interactions, feedback and client news (including reviewing the client website and its press room). Anyone who touches this client should be empowered to provide feedback. Encourage and embrace ideas from the service team to identify opportunities to retain and grow client revenue.
Ask the client quarterly for input about the service team. It’s important to seek client input as it genuinely helps to build strong relationships. Ask how the team is doing, ask for feedback about specific associates (this information is also useful for deciding promotions).
Most clients report that these client and internal communication activities are not often followed by lead partners, yet these are best practices in client retention and development.
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Nancy Brooks and Silvia Coulter help firms with client retention, client development and in building strong cultures and leaders. For information contact info@bizdevgals.com.