When it comes to your client experience, you want to be memorable, elicit a feeling from your clients, and make them feel special through your time together. The benefits that come from an exceptional client experience include getting more referrals, retaining clients for longer, and becoming known for your client experience. There’s virtually no downside.
What is the Client Experience?
The client experience is an essential part of your business. It begins from the moment you grab their attention and lasts long after their final payment, and you can use it to establish a long-lasting relationship with your clients that will keep your business running for years.
Your client experience is how you treat your clients for the duration of their time with you, and the happier the clients are, the more likely they are to remain loyal to your brand.
Still, even the best client experiences can use a boost, and I know it can be hard to find ways to make them feel appreciated.
Here are three ways you can improve your client experience for FREE.
Birthday Wishes
Many people enjoy getting noticed on their birthday, so a personalized birthday wish is the perfect way to make your clients feel appreciated.
You may have to do some discreet digging if you don’t have their birthday on record, but I recommend asking for their birthday as part of the onboarding process.
Then, you can send them a personalized card, email, voice message, text, or social media message. It doesn’t have to be elaborate, either. Just something to let them know you’re thinking about them on their special day.
They’ll love it!
Social Media Sharing and Referrals
I love it when businesses promote each other, and that’s something you can do to boost your client experience.
If your client has an online presence, ask if they’re comfortable with you sharing a win that they’ve had or promoting them for a service they offer. If they are and they’ve hit a milestone worth celebrating, it’s time to share it.
Not only will it help get their business in front of new eyes, but you’ll also open yourself up to their clients. It truly is a win-win for everyone involved.
Another thing you can do online is refer your client to someone in need. For example, say you’re in a Facebook group, and someone needs a service. If you have a client that provides that service, you refer them and tag them in the comments.
Not only will your client thank you for spreading their business around, but they’ll also be extremely honored that you thought so highly about them.
Unfortunately, social sharing and referrals won’t work for every client or business situation, so be sure to ask before you start spreading their name around.
Shared Folders
You’d be surprised at how many clients don’t have a dedicated workspace for their client’s projects. By offering them a shared folder or other organized space, you’re essentially setting aside a sacred space for them.
That’s HUGE in the client experience world, and your clients will feel more confident in their decision to hire you.
In that shared folder, you can place all your client documents, project files, recorded calls, and anything else related to the client. In turn, your clients can provide feedback, offer criticism (within reason), and keep up-to-date on your progress at all times.
It can be as simple as a folder on your Google Drive or as complicated as giving them a workspace, but the implication is there- you want to work with them and plan to make their experience the best.
Final Thoughts
These are three ways you can boost your client experience without spending money, and I’m sure there are some other ways you can think of that may be more in line with your business.
Think about your client experience process. Is there anything there that you could add to make their experience even better? I’ve created another article titled Why Your Poor Client Experience is Costing You Money (and how to fix it) to get even more ideas about how to improve your client experience.
When you boost your client experience like this, you’re telling your clients that you care about them- not their money- and you want to continue building a relationship with them.
And that will create loyal, long-term clients that will fuel your business for years to come.
