Client Relationship Management Tools

From "𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐖𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠" to "𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗠𝗲": The Power of Open-Minded Asking And Five Steps To Conflict Resolution👇️ When disagreements flare up, our instincts often lead us to insults or attacks on not just the opposing viewpoint, but on the person as well. This never works. Vitriolic responses close more minds than they change, making enemies out of friends and rivals out of allies. Curiosity is more effective than verbal assault if you aim to genuinely convince others. The next time you lock horns with someone, try this approach to turn disagreement into open-minded dialogue: 𝟏) 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 Rather than impatiently waiting for your turn to retort, focus first on comprehending their perspective. Confirm what aspects you do agree with to build common ground. Suspend judgments as you ask clarifying questions to grasp why they came to this stance. 𝟐) 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐲 𝐈𝐧𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 Once you comprehend their position, drill down diplomatically: “I’m curious why you feel that way. What led you to these conclusions?” People want to feel heard before opening up, so don’t invalidate their logic. 𝟑) 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫𝐬 People are more open to hearing you after you've listened to them—without interrupting or arguing. Now, you can explain your reasoning in a non-confrontational way. Find threads of commonality between your perspectives as you clarify why you landed differently. The goal is elucidating, not conquering, the other viewpoint. 𝟒) 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐀𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 Having traded views, ask, “Where do we agree?’ Name shared values, interests, or outcomes you both see as important. This reminds you that you likely have some common ground, even in disagreements. Remember: Everyone wants the same basic things out of life. You'd be surprised how often you and your adversary agree once you get past the superficial presentation of the ideas. 𝟓) 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 With mutual understanding built, you can bridge perspectives by asking, “How can we work together to get the best both worldviews?” Rather than clinging to singular stances, brainstorm creative solutions that integrate your collective wisdom. Heated debates often generate more hostility than progress. But by replacing reactive arguments with open-minded curiosity, you can transform conflict into wisdom-generating collaboration. Next time things get tense, set egos aside long enough to ask, “Why?” You might be surprised by what you can learn. #communication #community #onlinecommunities #personaldevelopment #connections #networking #socialnetworking

You can't beat the impact of meeting face-to-face. I'm all about remote work, but I took it way too far earlier in my career. There was a time when I went multiple days in a row without leaving my apartment. And the quality of my professional relationships wasn't as strong as they should've been. Since COVID, I've made a concerted effort to meet more people in person. Yesterday, I got to meet up with Alex Kremer in person for the first time. And it was like meeting an old friend. We ate BBQ (you must do that if you're in Texas). And we talked about life, work, everything. It was awesome. I recommend you give Alex a follow if you're looking to level up your sales confidence in 2024. He's doing great work at Alluviance. I also recommend that you prioritize more face time in 2024: ✅ Do in-person visits with your biggest clients. They'll love you for it. You'll build a much stronger relationship. And you'll learn a lot about how they're using your solution. ✅ Meet with prospective clients in-person. This can oftentimes be the difference maker in winning a competitive deal. Sure, you could do a dinner. But go a step further and meet at their office. Or a coworking space with some of their time. Run a small workshop. Rub shoulders. ✅ Meet up with other sales reps you meet through LinkedIn. Melissa Gaglione✨🦕 is doing some cool things here. Don't underestimate the power of meetings peers at different companies. Could meet a new life-long friend or network to find a better job. ✅ Meet up with other reps at your company. Make time to meet other reps at your sales org. Especially if they're close by. ✅ Leaders: Set aside budget for your teams to do in-person meetups (especially if you're only doing virtual SKOs). Hot take: I know big companies love their in-person SKOs, but you know what you could do instead of getting 500-1000 reps and leaders together? Give search region a budget to in-person meetups or QBRs a few times every year. Make the executives travel instead of spending all that money flying a globally distributed team into Vegas for the week. =============== Are you making more of an effort to meet peers, prospects, and clients in person this year? Why or why not? Let me know in the comments. #sales #b2bsales

Proximity through IRL meetups is the best way to nurture relationships and partnerships. It was a no-brainer for me to make plans for an in person meetup when Marcela Celorrio and I connected and quickly discovered great synergy existed between us. Marcela’s role as a Senior Business Development Consultant with Nika White Consulting made a meet up IRL imperative before solidifying a formal partnership. In today's interconnected world, digital communication has become the norm for maintaining professional relationships. However, the importance of in-person meetings cannot be overstated, especially in cultivating strong #connections and fruitful collaborations. Real-life meetups have the potential to be game-changers and when possible should be prioritized to achieve these outcomes: ✔️ Build #Trust and Rapport: Through IRL meetups, colleagues can better understand each other's personalities, leading to increased rapport and camaraderie. ✔️ Strengthened Communication: While digital tools facilitate communication, they often lack the depth and richness of face-to-face interaction. In-person meetings provide an opportunity for spontaneous conversations, brainstorming sessions, and immediate feedback. These exchanges allow for a deeper understanding of ideas and can lead to more impactful collaborations. ✔️ Collaboration and Creativity: IRL meetups offer a conducive environment for creative thinking and problem-solving. Being physically present with colleagues enables a free flow of ideas, encourages active participation, and sparks #innovation. By sharing experiences and exchanging perspectives, individuals can discover new possibilities and uncover synergies that might not have emerged through virtual discussions alone. ✔️ Establish Stronger Partnerships: In-person meetings are instrumental in developing partnerships with external collaborators, as it fosters a sense of credibility and likability. These personal connections enhance trust, loyalty, and the likelihood of future collaborations, even when working remotely. While digital communication undoubtedly offers convenience and efficiency, the true power of cultivating relationships and #partnerships lies in the realm of in-person interactions. So, the next time you are considering collaboration or partnership, prioritize arranging a real-life meetup. Embrace the potential game-changer that these meetings represent, and pave the way for meaningful and prosperous #relationships with your colleagues and collaborators. Marcela, I am honored to be in community with you. Tag folx in the chat that you have had IRL meetups with as a result of being in community online.

There’s something you only learn when you meet people face-to-face. For the remainder of this week, I am in NYC, personally meeting prospects and customers. I get it—virtual meetings save time and money. But after years in eCommerce and tech, I can say the most valuable insights always came from being in the same room. You notice what someone doesn’t say. You pick up on the real vibe of the room. You catch a glance or a tone that changes what you thought you knew. On a call, everyone plays their part. On a Zoom, it’s easier to hide. But in person, everything is just a little bit more real. The best partnerships I’ve built? They started after a handshake. The trickiest problems I’ve solved? Came from a side conversation over coffee, not an agenda slide. You can’t replace that. Not really. I’m not saying go old-school for everything. Remote is great for a lot of things. But if you want the real story—or want to spot that one subtle thing that changes the whole deal—show up in person. In my experience, you’ll learn something you never would have on a screen.

A Short Success Plan for B2B Sales and Enterprise-Level Clients: 1. Nurturing Customer Relationships in Sales Environments: In a world where sales strategies lean towards transactions, fostering strong customer connections sets you apart. Your triumph hinges on these relationships. In an era dominated by digital screens, the profound advantage of investing time with your contacts cannot be overstated. As artificial intelligence reshapes industries, prioritizing relationships reigns supreme. 2. Understanding Client Needs: Beyond the surface, clients seek solutions, not just products. By probing to uncover their true requirements, you position yourself for success in securing their business. Understanding the strategic outcomes they desire allows you to address their genuine needs. While I specialized in staffing solutions, my true offering lay in reducing labor costs, facilitating full-time hires, and providing flexible staffing solutions. 3. Engaging with Enterprise Clients: There was a time when my presence within a company prompted questions about my tenure. By engaging with decision-makers and managers, I deepened relationships while gaining invaluable insights into their operations. 4. Participation in Planning Sessions: Several clients extended invitations for me to attend their planning meetings, granting me access to key leaders and pertinent documents. Following these experiences, I proactively sought involvement in planning sessions with other companies. 5. Regular Client Visits: Recently, one of my sales team members proposed visiting a prospect at their office. The gesture surprised the contact, highlighting the value of personal engagement. Consistent client visits foster loyalty and growth. 6. Addressing Challenges: In my sales journey, each day presented unique challenges for my team and clients. Regardless of your industry, tackling client issues head-on is imperative. Allowing problems to persist creates opportunities for competitors to step in and offer solutions. 7. Effective Follow-Up: By maintaining regular communication, you instill confidence in your clients. Whether addressing concerns or honoring commitments, consistent follow-up demonstrates your dedication to meeting their needs. 8. Proactive Approach: Setting yourself apart means being proactive and preempting issues before they escalate. Investing time upfront to prevent problems proves more advantageous than resolving them later. 9. Offering Future Insights: Providing clients with a forward-looking perspective is essential. As their guide, it's your responsibility to navigate potential pitfalls and chart a course towards future success. Found this useful ♻️ Repost it to your network and follow Anthony Iannarino for more sales strategies.

Effective client management begins with proactive engagement, anticipating needs and potential hurdles. Mastering the art of listening plays a crucial role in this approach, allowing us to gain deep insights into our clients' operations and strategic objectives. Imagine setting the stage at the beginning of a project by discussing with your client: Dependency Exploration: 'Can we discuss any dependencies your team has on this project’s milestones? Understanding these can help us ensure alignment and timely delivery.' Impact Assessment Question: 'Should unforeseen delays occur, what impacts would be most critical to your operations? This will help us prioritize our project management and contingency strategies.' Preventive Planning Query: 'What preemptive steps can we take together to minimize potential disruptions to critical milestones?' Success Criteria Definition: 'How do you define success for this project? Understanding your criteria for success will guide our efforts and help us focus on achieving the specific outcomes you expect.' These discussions are essential for building a roadmap that not only aligns with the client’s expectations but also prepares both sides for potential challenges, reinforcing trust through transparency and commitment. By adopting a listening approach that seeks comprehensive understanding from the onset, we can better manage projects and enhance client satisfaction. Let’s encourage our teams to integrate these listening strategies into their initial client engagements. How have proactive discussions influenced your project outcomes? Share your experiences and insights. #ClientRelationships #AdvancedListening #BusinessStrategy #ProfessionalGrowth

Customer fit matters, and I won't try to sell someone FERMÀT if we aren't a good fit. Whether it's an investor, employee, or customer, my first question isn't how do I sell them but are we actually aligned? If the answer is no, I'd rather discover that in the first conversation than after months of wasted effort. I remember meeting someone from an apparel company who explained their inventory strategy. They were so brand-obsessed that they deliberately chose approaches that made profitability nearly impossible, all to maintain brand perception. I told her straight up FERMÀT isn't a fit for you. You shouldn't use it. She was shocked. Here's why I said it if you're making every decision based on brand over unit economics, including inventory management, then a performance optimization tool like FERMÀT isn't what you need. We're built for experimentation, driving performance, creating better customer experiences. We're not a brand-first tool. I could have spent months trying to convince her, taking meetings, building custom demos. Instead, I acknowledged the reality we weren't aligned on fundamental priorities. My Framework for Customer Qualification: • Understand their actual priorities • Assess genuine alignment with our capabilities • Be direct about fit or lack thereof The best relationships start with honest assessment of mutual fit. If you're spending energy trying to force alignment where none exists, you're probably solving the wrong problem.

Mallory, a bookkeeper, shared this exchange: Client: “I want my monthly financial reports by the 5th of the month.” Mallory: “You’re not paying enough for me to do that.” A standoff ensued. The client begrudgingly agreed to wait and threatened that he’d find another bookkeeper. Mallory, my client, was furious that he wanted premium services for a non-premium fee. I see and hear this kind of standoff often. What was going on here? It is the confrontation between two opposite <positions.> Practioners of negotiating and conflict resolution understand the difference between interests and positions. Positions are where you stand/what you want. You’re firm. If asked to compromise or negotiate, you feel you’ve lost. Interests are the impacts that are important to you. You’ll try to protect your interests without digging your heels in to any specific position. You feel you’ve won with options that protect your interests. In this example, both sides had positions and stuck to them. It was up to Mallory to talk about interests instead. When the client requested the financials by the 5th of the month, she could have asked “What’s important to you about that?” (note: What not why reduces the emotions.) The client might have said “I have decisions to make each month and having my numbers from the previous month will help me.” Mallory could have explored this answer more. By learning more about the owner’s interests, she could have come up with a different answer. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Understanding positions vs interests helps your firm. The better you appeal to the prospect or client’s <<interests>> the more money you will make. Highlighting interests helps prospects see themselves in those interests. For example, write: “we’re interested in helping your firm”… --Increase revenue --Increase profit --Reduce turnover --Reduce workplace conflict --Increase safety --Receive the payments your buyers have committed to. --Retain existing clients --Lower costs --Make numbers-based decisions --Prepare for an exit or sale --Build a retirement safety net. When the provider talks in terms of interests they’ll uncover client interests such as wanting more free time, or saving money, or fear of getting into something they don’t really understand. When the provider talks in terms of interests, they have a much better chance that the owner will become a client. The Choice Framework The Choice Framework works perfectly here. Instead of giving a single offer, they offer IMPACT PLUS, IMPACT and IMPACT Light offers. Each offers to deliver in ways that meet the client’s interests. The client sees those interests clearly and chooses accordingly. If you’re stinging from too many standoffs, it may be time to become fluent in the language of interests. DM me to talk about that. #professionalservices #fractionalexecutives #impactbasedpricing #conflictresolution

I just read this post about working by referral in an industry newsletter from an author I respect, but it made me want to barf. Here's what got me... "One way to do this [get referrals] is to invite the client to a Dedicated Introduction Meeting (DIM) where the advisor and client can review the client's personal or professional networks and pinpoint contacts who might align with the advisor's firm and benefit from working with the advisor." I'm sure this works. I'm sure it's a great strategy for a lot of advisors. And I'm sure there are clients who would respond well to this kind of thing, but I could NEVER imagine doing it. And it's not because my firm doesn't grow by referral - we grow almost exclusively by referral. But something about sitting down with a client for the sole purpose of asking them to go through their phone or LinkedIn network to try and grow my business... I just can't even fathom it. So here's how we grow by referral: 1. Take kick ass care of our clients. This is 90% of why we grow. 2. Show up in integrity everywhere - personal life, professional life, everywhere. This is the other 10%. And here's some other stuff that I think helps, too, but not nearly as important as #1 and #2: - We work with a specific niche and make it clear on our website. And since virtually all of our clients are in our niche, it's easy for them to know who we might be a good fit for. - We share our pricing clearly on our website. I think this helps those that refer know that their referral isn't going to get quoted some exorbitant fee. - We promise our clients, in writing, every year, that we will never grow at the expense of their experience (in our annual client letter). We go on a waiting list as needed to moderate the pace of our growth and to protect the experience for both current and new clients. And it's written in our firm's core values, too: "Our clients deserve an excellent client experience and we will make decisions to prioritize the quality of our client experience above growth when needed." - When we meet with potential clients, we spend 45 minutes getting to know them, learning where they are financially, what they're working towards, and what they're looking for in a financial planner, and then if we think our firm is a good fit, we explain what it looks like to work together, how we can help, and pricing. And we encourage every potential client to take the time they need to decide whether they'd like to work with us. No pressure, no sales tactics, none of that nonsense. I guess you gotta find what works for you, right?

I'm always looking to improve my client interactions and provide exceptional service. My personal experience has shown me that asking the right questions can make a huge difference in understanding my clients' needs and delivering the best solutions. Here are 7 key questions that can help foster better client communication: 1️⃣ How did you find me? This can offer valuable insights into your marketing strategies and help you focus on the most effective channels. 2️⃣ What are your specific use cases? Understanding how clients intend to use your products or services enables you to tailor your offerings to their unique needs. 3️⃣ What's your budget? Discussing budget early on ensures that both parties are aligned and allows you to propose suitable solutions that fit within their financial constraints. 4️⃣ What's your desired timeline? This helps you manage expectations, prioritize tasks, and deliver results within their expected deadlines. 5️⃣ Are there any metrics we should focus on? Knowing this helps you measure and track progress, provide data-driven insights and quantify the potential return on investment (ROI). 6️⃣ How can we quantify potential ROI or potential losses from delaying action? By evaluating the potential gains or losses resulting from not addressing the problem immediately, you can effectively communicate the urgency of your solution. 7️⃣ When should I follow up with you next? Establishing clear follow-up intervals ensures that you maintain consistent communication and address any further queries or concerns promptly. By actively listening to your clients' responses and adapting your approach accordingly, you'll be able to provide customized solutions that meet their needs effectively. Follow me for more sales & marketing tips. #clientcommunication #businesssuccess #buildingrelationships