Obviously clients expect great service from hired consultants, but what is the best way to provide this? You can add tremendous value to client relationships by making them more personal and taking a more proactive approach. By taking some time to meet with clients and get feedback, you can demonstrate personal interest in the client and get feedback on what is working and what needs improvement. This kind of feedback is invaluable to you and should be sought at all times.

The intention of this guide is to lay out general strategies for initiating and carrying out client visits. Every client is different, and as such should be treated differently. The perfect strategy for one client may not be right for another. Because no boilerplate strategy can be used, a specific plan for each client visit or each client should be developed.

Using the following guide to plan and prepare for a site visit will ensure that goals are met and success is achieved.

Pre Visit Planning

1. You must be clear on the purpose of the site visit and your specific goals and objectives, which may include:
    a. Thanking the client for existing work
    b. Develop a stronger relationship with the client
    c. Learning more about the client’s needs and city
    d. Discussing ways you can improve current service
    e. Resolving problems and keeping project on track
    f. Discovering opportunities for new business
    g. Learning about other firms the client uses
2. Determine the person to meet. Consider politics, both within your company and at the client’s, to ensure the proper person is being targeted for a meeting.
3. Determine where and when the meeting should occur, and how long the meeting shall last. This will be dependent on the client and purpose of the meeting.
4. Ask for the meeting through a short email and follow-up telephone call.
5. Do necessary background research:
    a. Look up past billing and client history.
    b. Research the client in the local newspaper, their website, etc.
    c. Discuss your visit with other staff that may have insight to provide.
6. Develop a list of specific questions you want to ask and make notes so the meeting can stay on track.

Client Visit

1. Start the meeting with 5-10 minutes of introductions and small talk.
    a. It is important to establish a friendly tone before diving into questions.
2. Begin asking your pre-determined questions and try to keep the client talking by asking follow-up questions that arise.
    a. Be sensitive to non-verbal communication and change subjects when needed.
    b. You may need to skip some questions if you feel the client will not be receptive to them.
3. Keep in mind your overall goals during the meeting. Show interest in their objectives and discuss how you can add value to their city.
4. Keep in mind that the meeting is not a sales pitch. Sales/leads will happen naturally and should not be the focal point of conversation.
5. Keep the meeting on track and be aware of how long you have been talking. It is important to wrap up the meeting at the end of the allotted time or the client will not want to meet again.
6. Be sure to thank the client for their time and recap any issues that you plan to follow up about.

Post Visit Recap

The post visit strategy will depend on the type of meeting and what was discussed, but follow up is mandatory.

1. Send a brief “thank you” email after the meeting (do this within 24 hours).
2. Include in the thank you email a deadline to follow up with a telephone call, another meeting or whatever makes sense based on the visit.
3. Check with your marketing staff to ensure the contact is included in company mailing lists and email newsletters.
4. Develop a specific action plan based on anything learned during the meeting.
    a. This may involve informing your marketing staff of important bid release dates to watch for, follow-up visits, preparing a list of recommended services, preparing a scope/estimate, etc.
5. Explore ways to keep in touch with the client.
    a. For example, you may wish to send interesting articles or an occasional email. It may be a good idea to set specific dates in your calendar to remind you to casually contact the client. The main goal here is to stay fresh in their mind and show interest in their company.

How have you used client visits to foster a more personal relationship and develop new business? Do you have anything to add to this article? Let me know in the comments section below.