In the past, business was done face to face. This means that a relationship is a must between the client and the service provider. Today, it is possible to build a business and provide the necessary services without getting to know your clients.
It’s no surprise, then, that there are huge gaps in client relationship management — despite everyone talking about CRM — that often leaves clients feeling neglected. Is it any wonder that so many people prefer working with small organizations to large corporations?
Yes, the truth is that the long-term success of your business depends solely on building satisfying business relationships with your employees, clients and partners. And why is that?
Good Work Environment Drives Productivity
For that, there must be a good relationship between management and employees. A cohesive workplace is largely born of good working relationships.
Some amount of discourse or even politics is to be expected but overall, the feeling that an employee is part of a team ultimately leads them to go the extra mile to deliver excellent results.
Fortunately, there are many tools that can help increase productivity among team members while limiting friction. For example, a task management tool like Score Software can help make collaboration, project monitoring, and delegation easier and more effective.
The Customer Has Become Entitled
No, we didn’t mean that in the wrong way. What we mean is that customers are used to getting excellent personalized service. That is the reason why many clients leave fast-growing or expanding companies for smaller, local service providers.
We are all for rapid expansion and growth. But in the process of growing, do the smart thing by staying in touch with your current clients — it’s easy to get carried away with all the new business you get.
Know this one thing: it’s still possible for a fast-growing company to deliver the community-minded feeling that many people love and expect if the organization is committed to it.
Your Relationship Will Keep Your Customers
Do you know how innovative companies develop? In most cases, they do so by simply listening to their customers and understanding their wants and needs.
In case you didn’t know, it costs at least five times more to acquire a new customer than it does to maintain your current one. As far as we’re concerned, this alone is reason enough to build a lasting relationship with your client. It’s simple economics.
In fact, business owners and operators who work to build strong relationships with their clients are likely to drive more sales, revenue and profits in this digital age. Despite all the data collection and analysis, personalized services are increasingly rare and sometimes the purpose of the technology available to help manage these relationships is lost during the adoption process.
That’s Smart
Now more than ever, business is becoming impersonal.
Think about it: when was the last time your company called or emailed its clients and customers to ask what they thought you could do to provide better service?
How many times have you called your client just to show gratitude for bringing their business to you? Many organizations only contact their client base when they have more offers and products to sell.
While many people might not mind that, imagine what would happen if you made constant, client-centric communication a part of your business. Imagine what it would be like to contact them to ask what problems they had with your service and how you could be better.
So spend more time and devote some company resources to building and maintaining your business relationships. Use the benefits of the digital age to drive closer customer relationships and strategic partnerships. It’s worth more than a simple advertising campaign and really, it forms the foundation of your success.
