Delighting clients and ensuring that they are consistently impressed with your business is the key to long-term client retention.
Recent years have seen a consumer shift toward longer-term fixed rate options. This means that over the course of your relationship with a client, there may not be as many natural touch points as there once were.
So how do you keep your clients thinking about your business and excited to work with you?
Read more: 5 Customer retention strategies for brokers
One of the best ways to keep clients happy is simply to be open and transparent with them and having those difficult conversations when necessary. The more that clients know and understand about the process they’re engaging in, the better they will feel. Keeping clients informed helps them feel more in control and helps to curb any unjustified concerns that may start brewing.
This is especially helpful during any process that requires waiting on their part!
Listen: The importance of getting your client onboarding experience right
Adding a personal touch is a great way to keep clients engaged. One of the best ways to do this is to keep track of important dates or card-appropriate holidays. If you have information like birthdays or relevant anniversaries (perhaps the date they completed on their home), it can be a welcome touch to send a personalised email or card.
These types of communications don’t have to take much time! If you have that information on your CRM (customer relationship manager), you can automate personalised messages. This enables you to keep in contact and appear thoughtful while still saving time and ensuring you don’t miss anything.
Another easy way to delight clients is to keep finding ways of delivering value to them. This can take many different forms, but offering relevant content is a good place to start. Consider your client’s journey and what obstacles they may face over time.
For clients who have recently bought a home, you may want to offer something like a guide on Things to do in your new build in the first year or a Moving house checklist. You can take a similar approach to frequently asked questions. Anticipating concerns and questions can help clients feel taken care of and builds trust.
Sending out client surveys is a sure fire way to better understand how clients feel about your business. That said, if you don’t take the feedback seriously, it may come across as a hollow gesture.
To ensure that your client feedback survey is well-received and worthwhile, make sure that you acknowledge what clients tell you - both the bad and the good! Taking advice on board is an important way to make clients feel like you are listening and that you care about the relationship you built with them.
It’s also a good idea to send a follow-up thank you email for those who complete the survey.
Many brokers work heavily through referrals. This means that ensuring your current clients are delighted with you and the work you do is very important! To keep the referrals coming and to generate multiple referrals from the same client, it can be helpful to reward clients in some way for providing them.
As a reward, you don’t have to provide anything costly, just a thoughtful message. Responding to a referral with sincere thanks is often enough to make clients feel seen and appreciated.
For clients that you are particularly interested in working with more, nothing beats a personal touch. Reach out to them directly, person-to-person, and remind them that you are available if they need you. This doesn’t have to be frequent or long-winded, but a quick, personal reminder that you are there for them can pay real dividends.
In all of these cases, but especially here, remember that an authentic approach is key. Be genuine in your conversations and messages.
Read more: How brokers can increase customer retention
Keeping your clients delighted to work with you doesn’t have to be complicated or costly. These six ideas can improve your client experience significantly, ensuring that clients will both want to work with you for the long-term and be happy referring you to their friends and family.