Without clients we don’t have a VA business. So we need to be sure we appreciate our clients – even on the difficult days!
Your clients are the people who pay you money to do what you love. We appreciate that, of course, because we need them to keep doing that so we can stay in business.
But it is important to nurture your client relationships to make our daily work more enjoyable too.
Whether your relationship is in the beginning stages, or has existed for a long time, focus on how valuable the client is.
When you first start working with someone there is always a learning curve as you get to know each other, and communication is really key.
After you have worked with them for a while, the comfort factor sets in and you may need to focus more on remembering that value.
So let’s talk about a few things that you can do in both situations to remind yourself and your client about how important your relationship is:
1. Set boundaries, but focus on the clients, not yourself.
One of the things I hear new VAs say, ‘I’ll be working until one today, and then I have to take Joanie to a play date.’ While it’s important to set the boundaries for client communication, and to keep them aware of when you will be unavailable, this implies that your home life is taking precedence over your business.
Your relationship with them is professional, and if you will be away from your office that’s all they want to know. You need to let them know that you value them … ‘I will be away from my office this afternoon, but I’ll take care of that first thing tomorrow morning.’ is a much better way to state that you will not be in available in the afternoon. It helps to make the client feel important while learning or reinforcing your boundaries.
2. Be proactive in their business.
Whatever it is you do for clients, be proactive in your approach. The client decided to work with you for your expertise, so find opportunities to remind them of that.
If you sit back all the time and wait for them to ask you to do something, they may feel that they are carrying the load, or that you are only working when they ask you to do something.
A great way to be proactive is to have a brief weekly production phone call to go over their plan for the coming week. Take charge of the call and let the client know what you need from them, and what you will do. Think ahead and help them to put big projects in perspective.
By doing some of the thinking for them, you place more value on them and they will think of your more as a partner, than an employee.
3. Be grateful to them.
This one is a pretty simple one, but is often overlooked. You may be grateful for them, but also be grateful to them. Thank them for working with you. Be sure that they know you appreciate their business.
If there is something that they ask of you that is not within your scope of work, be sure to communicate effectively to them. If it’s not within your service offerings, help them find someone who can do it for them. By respecting their needs and helping them to take care of them, you will build a valuable relationship.
These three ways to value your clients are so simple, and yet many VAs don’t realize they are not doing them.
Nurturing your business relationship, no matter what stage it is at, is a great way to build a solid and loyal clientele.
They will want to refer you to their colleagues when they need someone great to work with (everyone loves to gush about how great their VA is!).
So not only will you build a long term relationship with your own client, but you will also gain referrals if your client feels that you will take care of their colleagues in the same way that you take care of them.
Look at yourself and your clients.
Take the time to set and hold professional boundaries with your clients in mind. Help them by doing some of the thinking in their business. Say thank you! Pretty easy stuff when you think about it!
If you want to start finding great clients for your VA business, be sure to join me for the FREE 5 Day Get Clients Challenge for Virtual Assistants. For 5 days I will lead you through exercises (and homework!) that will help you prepare to get great clients. We start July 6th! Register here now: www.YourVAMentor.com/getclients