Last week I was in Colorado for a work/play trip. Monday was one of my play days and I attended a talk about client retention. I consider learning about business play for me. I can hear the judgment now “Joe, take a dose of your own medicine. Slow down, unplug, relax, take a day off.” Normally I’d say you are right and that I’m being a workaholic, but I’m not.
Why?
Because it really is fun and exciting for me to learn about business, especially in a live setting with others to ask questions, make comments, share case studies ect. I enjoy seeing people present and speak to business owners. I get excited to learn ways that I can help my clients attain the change/outcomes they want, while I grow my personal income, well being and sense of value and values. It’s in my blood…or maybe just in my head. Bottom line…
Learning this shit is fun for me! So now, I’ll keep making it fun for me by passing it on to you.
The presenter was Joey Coleman and the talk was titled after his book “Never Lose A Customer Again”.
Joey has held all kinds of positions in all kinds of industries and at very high levels. He’s walked away with this bottom line message;
“No matter the position or industry, it’s about the human condition.” — Joey Coleman
His focus is on the most basic of principle in business. The most profitable thing you can do is to retain a client and continue to create business income from delivering them value.
In his research he learned that 20% to 70% of new clients will stop working with a business within the first 100 days. Below are his “8 A’s” to Never Lose A Customer Again.
1. Assess– This is marketing and sales. This is the first of 8 phases but it’s the phase that most businesses focus all of their efforts on. One thing that he has uncovered to be extraordinarily effective is to give clients a taste of what it is like to work with you, rather than to focus on selling. I’ve found that strategy to be vital for my coaching business.
2. Admit– This is when the client admits “I’ve got a challenge and I want your help.” Usually this is the phase that a client begins to work with you or starts moving towards a client agreement. Essentially it’s a “yes I want to buy your product/service.”
3. Affirm– You want to help them affirm their choice to work with you. After spending 15 years in some version of high-end client focused sales; I’ve learned that this is often what separates great business results from mediocre results. If you are in business, it’s your job to assume that a client will have last minute concerns and objections. It’s your job to assume buyers remorse. It’s not about your product or service, it’s simply an element of human psychology. Joey recommends that we expect this and even build it into our client sales process. This is something I have learned is vital as a coach. Before I have a client sign an agreement I always invite them into a conversation about this. “I hear that you are a 100% yes to this. After you sign this agreement, what concerns and fears might come up?” It takes guts to call attention to a client potentially backing out of the agreement. It’s worth it.
4. Activate– Energize the relationship. Show appreciation and enthusiasm to work with them. As a coach I do a couple of things to make sure this happens. First I slow them down and help them celebrate the choice to move forward. I often say something like, “Congratulations. Everyone you know wants something in his or her life to change. You are one of the few who is willing to take the risk of putting time, energy and money into creating the life/business you want. I don’t take that lightly.” Then I send them a gift or two that is relevant to our work, often a nice notebook and a self-help or business book. I let them know that “The work starts now” and start them on an assignment or exercise before the first official session.
5. Acclimate– Give clear directions and make sure a client understands. Often people have a product or service that can meet every single one of their needs and more…but they don’t know how to get the most out of their purchase. I used to see this every single day when I managed Bose Stores. The most common reason a client returned a product is because they either had an unrealistic expectation or they simply did not know how to get the desired benefit out of the product. Frequently, even if you can show them how to enjoy the product, ego or pride takes over and they would return the product anyway. In my coaching practice I handle this by sending very clear instructions in my “Next Steps” email. I provide written “how to get the most out of coaching” into my written agreements and then I spend the whole first session going over expectations vs agreements, making firm verbal agreements with the client and sharing what I call “mindset primers for successful change”. It’s tedious, we both just want to get down to work…but it’s necessary.
6. Accomplish- Now it’s time to help the client get what they wanted out of the product or service. Without this, there are very few reasons people will continue to purchase from or work with you. This is where your actual skill of service or quality of product matters. Let’s take a deeper look at this one. In a coaching or consulting service, it’s possible that re-establishing what the primary goal is will matter. For example, I’ve had lots of people hire me for “weight loss” and then even if they didn’t lose much weight, they hire me again. Why? It’s simple. I’m more committed to the quality of their life or business than I am to their perceived goal. A client of mine wants to lose over 100 lbs. After a year he only lost 30 lbs but he signed up for another year at a 30% price increase. In his own words, “I’m much healthier, I’m happier, I’m a better person, and I feel I’m on a sustainable trajectory with my health and professionally. I didn’t know you would help me so much in my leadership at work either.” Stay committed to helping your clients accomplish the goal and stay conscious in knowing when the real benefit is being gained, even if the initial goal is not. Be willing to help your client pivot the expected result.
7. Adopt– Help the client take responsibility for the relationship and outcomes. Get them involved in the solutions. Get them completely engaged in the process. One way to do this is to have frequent “check ins” and or client surveys. Help them tell you what is working, not working and what they want more of. I start to do this in my first session with a client. They make a verbal commitment to taking 100% ownership over maintaining their power in the relationship. I also do this by slowly transitioning from sessions that I take the full lead on, early in the engagement, to eventually having the client take more and more of the steering direction in session. It’s beautiful and is what truly empowers the client.
8. Advocate– This is the phase that all businesses want. When I worked for Bose we had an end stage goal that every client that walked into our store left as an owner, an advocate or both. We knew that people out in the community who would speak up for us and sell for us was the most powerful thing that could happen. We knew that creating an advocate is bigger than any one sale. Advocates create referral business. Once you’ve created enough advocates, your business will flourish. For this reason, I create content and experiences for people who may or may not ever work with me as a coach. I also do my best to connect my happy clients with people in the community who might work with me in the future. Now let’s take a step back on this one. Yes, creating an advocate for your business can have a powerful effect on your bottom line. And the most powerful thing about having advocates is that it means that your business is impacting people’s life in such a profound way, that they are willing to stick their neck out for you, recommend you to others and pass your value on. That is deep and profound impact. Income keeps your business fed on a tangible level but impact keeps your business fed on a soul level.
I refuse to believe that we are in business simply to make a buck. After spending 15 years running stores for an industry leader, and 3 years as an entrepreneur, I’m convinced that we are all in business because we want certain things. Money is mostly a symbol for attaining those.
We want freedom, security, peace, aliveness, significance and love. Some of us don’t even realize this and it is what is driving us whether we realize it or not.
Yes, when it comes to business, some of us have weird (or even toxic and abusive) ways to create freedom, security, peace, aliveness, significance and love. That is one of the reasons I coach. When we are unhappy with our career, our relationship or our business it’s often because we don’t know what is driving our behavior and our internal responses to external circumstances. Coaching can be the penetrative force that lovingly nudges a human to take a deeper look.
The less you are “selling” and chasing new clients…the more you are serving the clients you have.
What Joey Coleman outlines in his “Eight As” is a sure fire way to serve your clients in a powerful enough way that they stay with you for 10 years, not just 100 days. Ultimately that happens when they feel freedom, security, significance or love because of the work you do.
If it’s time for you to take a more conscious look at how you create value for your clients, how you maintain value oriented client relationships or it’s simply time to create some long overdue change in your personal or professional life, learn more about working with me by clicking the link below.