How to Build Strong Client Relationships
What can you do to help your clients? What are you doing to strengthen your client relationships? Look for opportunities to assist them.
Client Relationships
Examples of Going Above and Beyond
In this example, the defendant’s infectious disease doctor testified in his deposition that he had a cocaine issue. He turned himself in for treatment when his pusher was arrested. I had access to his deposition because I was a nursing expert witness on the case.
Not realizing the doctor’s history, Peter (name changed), one of my plaintiff attorney clients was about to hire this physician as an infectious disease expert witness.
When I realized the implications for Peter, who had no idea of this doctor’s problem, I wondered, “Can I tell him about the doctor without violating confidentiality? I was stuck in an ethical issue: I learned this information by reading the depositions. Was I free to warn Peter?”
I called the attorney on the plaintiff’s side in the previous case involving this doctor and asked, “Am I going to violate any ethical issues if I warn my client?” The attorney said, “Oh no, his drug use was in all the local newspapers. It’s not confidential information.”
Next, I called Peter and said, “I want to warn you about this doctor.” My client was sitting in his driveway, about ready to take the records to the infectious disease doctor’s office, when I intercepted him. He was so profoundly grateful. The defense firm in Peter’s case was the same one involved in this first case so that the defense attorneys would have known this doctor’s background.
My actions saved Peter a huge embarrassing problem because he was forewarned. He gave me cases for years after that and continued to recall what happened and how I saved him from a situation that could have been awful.
This incident was very effective in strengthening our client relationship.
Treat each customer as if you are about to lose him or her. If you don’t take care of your customers, someone else will.
Be Personable: A Key to Strengthening Your Client Relationships
Reveal yourself as the person behind your company name. Use your name and your photo on all promotional materials. Have you ever visited a legal nurse consultant’s website to learn more about the person? Have you ever found a site that does not list the name of the LNC or provide a picture? Doesn’t the site feel impersonal?
Being personable counts. I had a secretary who was extremely pleasant on the phone. Our business greatly benefited because she laughed easily; she joked; she kidded with people. I got so many compliments for her excellent assistance. After she left, I hired a woman who was reserved and depressed. All of the compliments stopped. She also made a big difference in my business.
The suggestion to smile when you answer the phone goes a long way to making you sound friendlier.
Be Friendly with the Staff: A Key to Strengthening Your Client Relationships
Become friendly with the attorney’s staff. Write down their names in your database. Note specific details about them and bring them up in subsequent conversations. Use his or her name to develop a relationship with that receptionist or gatekeeper.
In my LNC business, I had a practice that originated from a comment from a client who said he was always worried until he knew the LNC received medical records.
I developed a practice of sending a faxed acknowledgment to the law firm to let them know the material had come in. When I had a change in staff, a few cases came in which we didn’t acknowledge that we had received them. In both instances, we got two phone calls from law firms, saying, “I know you usually tell us when the case has come in. Did it arrive?” It made me realize that we had trained our customers to expect a particular service or touch point, and when it was missing, they noticed it.
Look for Ways You Can be Helpful to Your Clients
Send them information that might interest them about their cases. Make them feel special. Think about how you feel when, conversely, someone makes you unimportant. There is a sign in a jewelry store in my town: “If you are grumpy and irritable, a $10 charge will be added to your bill.” That says to me, “It’s your job to make us feel good when you come in our jewelry store,” instead of “It’s our job to make you happy and satisfied.”
Conclusion
Read Dale Carnegie: How to Win Friends and Influence People. Your client should be your friend. Friends treat each other in a friendly manner. We have to trust each other and develop that partnership with our customers. Part of that is being friendly.
Sometimes, you will make errors in your business. It is inevitable. Clients will be unhappy. The best way to preserve that relationship is an apology. When you make a mistake, acknowledge it and tell the client what you do to fix the issue so it will not recur.
Nurturing your client relationships will be your lifeline when mistakes arise.
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Pat Iyer is president of The Pat Iyer Group, which develops resources to assist LNCs in obtaining more clients, making more money, and achieving their business goals and dreams.
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