A strong business is all about building lasting relationships. It’s more than just selling a service to your clients. If you want clients with you in the long haul, you should nurture your relationships and build trust.
And as a remote worker or freelancer, you should treat your career the same way as a business. After all, if you take care of your clients, they will take care of you.
But how do you do that when your clients are online? Here are 6 practical ways to build trust and nurture strong relationships with your remote clients.
Render Quality Service
First things first! As a remote worker, you are a service provider for your clients. It’s a given that you render quality service that meets their needs.
Quality output is subjective, though. Just ask yourself, are you submitting the agreed-upon deliverables? Is it based on your client’s specifications? Did you pass it on the deadline?
Acquiring a client for one job is just the first step. The question is, how do you make them go back again? You must render quality service first before taking the next steps.
Genuinely Care For Your Client
Genuine people are hard to find. Some are just there to get your money. Or take advantage of you. So to nurture your remote clients, genuinely care for your client. Get to know them and their business. And if possible, suggest ways that you think can help their business better.
In some cases, your pay might be lower because you might suggest a cheaper alternative from what they plan to with possibly better results.
For example, let’s say you are a marketing specialist. And they wanted to get you to manage a full-on marketing campaign with one macro influencer for a hefty amount.
But you think they will save more money and get more exposure if they get a handful of micro-influencers plus a social media campaign. Your pay might lessen but you suggested what can be best since you genuinely care for them. Ultimately, they have an informed decision.
It might be lower pay now. But who will they trust when they need another campaign in the future? Most likely, it will be you.
Contribution Mindset
On top of genuinely caring, you should also aim to contribute to your client’s business. Most remote workers think of dollar signs when they have a client and just milk them as much as they can with no reason.
You don’t want that mindset. You want to think of ways to contribute to them instead. Think about things that can improve their business more. Suggest ways on how you can HELP them and bring more VALUE.
With that, you might get more income from upselling the services that will be beneficial to them. And even if they don’t, they will appreciate that you care for their business as much as they do.
Manage Expectations But Exceed Them if Possible
A lot of freelancers or remote workers over-promise their work just to get clients. And if they don’t meet these high expectations, what will happen? You might end up losing them. You should manage your client’s expectations. After all, predictability earns trust.
So, for example, sometimes, they will ask you when you can deliver the output? Give yourself reasonable room for errors and allowances. If you can finish it in 2 days, you might add another day or two to the deadline.
In this way, you can adjust when you need more time. Or better yet, your clients will be happier if you pass the output ahead of time.
As for projects with longer deadlines, updates are essential to your clients. Give them a list of what has been accomplished and your projected dates of completion.
With this, you will assure them that you are working on their business needs, and they can expect results on the given timeline.
Set Up Zoom Face-to-face Catch Up Meetings
With the remote working setup, you don’t get to see your clients face-to-face. Even if you wanted to, you can’t due to the pandemic. If you’re comfortable enough, set up face-to-face catch-up meetings with your clients.
Face-to-face meetings can build trust with your clients. And Zoom is the next best thing during this time. You can round up all your updates. Or it can be a simple 10-15 minute chat with your client. It’s just a little bit of your time, but the connection you build through it is worth it.
But if there is a chance in the future, you may want to meet them face-to-face regardless, whether online or in-person
Simple Things Matter
Life is not all about work. It’s the same with you and with your clients. If you know some information about them like their birthday or any special occasion, why not greet them? Or better yet, send them a cake or a care package.
And it doesn’t have to be a special occasion. You can give out a simple gratitude message or gift whenever you like. It shows that you care for them. Because sometimes, it’s the simple things that matter.
Conclusion
Building a strong relationship is crucial in this online world. With the tips above, you are sure to strengthen your business relationships in the long run. Cheers!
