As a website designer, agency owner or a freelance developer, excelling at effective client communication is key to forging lasting client relationships that will take you beyond that initial project or service request.
Communication is a two-way street and if done correctly, can benefit you, your business and most importantly, your client.
I’m Mike Cottam and in this article, I’ll outline some client communication best practices that will help ensure effective client communication, eliminate communication headaches and strengthen your client relationships.
Client communication best practices for website projects
Clear, consistent, and proactive communication with your client not only promotes trust and creates a collaborative feel to a project, but also ensures that your client’s expectations are met or exceeded.
95% of people say it’s important they can find out where things are up to with their project – e.g. exact status and next deliverable.
Establish clear communication channels at the start of the project
From the very beginning, let your clients know how best to communicate with you during the website design and build project.
Clearly communicate which channels are preferred (and more importantly NOT preferred) for different types of communication. Whether it be email, phone or video call, let your clients know how to get in touch with you.
If you’re a multi-employee agency, ensure your client has just one point of contact for the project’s duration. There’s nothing worse than a client not knowing who they are dealing with at an agency.
Define realistic response times to enquiries
Provide clients with your standard response times for enquiries or update requests. By letting your clients know when they can expect a response from you, it ensures they are not going to expect an immediate reply to their email that they sent at 8:00pm on Sunday night!
In a survey from Superoffice, nearly half of all customers questioned (46%) expect companies to respond faster than 4 hours.
Actively listen to your clients
I’m not telling you something you don’t already know here – when communicating with your clients, actively listen to fully understand their needs or concerns. One exercise I practice is to repeat back to them what they have said, as that reinforces your understanding of what they said, and gives them the opportunity to correct you if you misunderstood what was said.
Provide your client with regular project updates
At the start of the project, let your clients know how often they will receive project updates and by what method, too. This will ensure your clients know when to expect updates and will promote effective communication ethics. It will also prevent them from requesting updates every day! 😊
It could be a weekly email, phone call or video walkthrough of the project; just make sure you stick to the schedule, even if there is little to report at the time.
Always be honest and transparent
Transparency is key to building trust with your clients. Be open and honest about any challenges or setbacks encountered during the project and provide realistic timelines for resolving them. If there are changes to the project scope or budget, communicate these changes promptly and explain the reasons behind them.
Show empathy and understanding
Demonstrating empathy and understanding when dealing with client concerns or frustrations will prove to your client that they are not just a number or statistic on your balance sheet.
An empathetic approach goes a long way towards forging better, longer-lasting client relationships and it will help you stand out from your competitors.
Ditch the tech jargon
Your clients will likely have no clue about building websites, so by using tech jargon, you’ll be alienating them and making them feel less than adequate – none of which is conducive to effective client communication or a positive customer experience.
Use simple, easy-to-understand words and explanations in all your communication.
Have an effective handover process
At the end of the project, ensure you have an effective handover process in place. Don’t just hit launch and leave; let your client know that you are there to provide support and to answer any questions once the website has been launched.
Client communication best practices for website maintenance and support service providers
For those of you who provide website care plans and support, effective client communication is even more important.
Not only does effective client communication improve your business processes, but it also empowers your client to feel supported and appreciated.
Have a clear, easy to understand website maintenance agreement in place
A clearly defined maintenance agreement or contract that outlines responsibilities, expectations, deliverables and costs will ensure both you and your client are aligned and will avoid any confusion or misunderstanding.
It will also ensure that you are covered should your client try to push the boundaries of what their maintenance plan includes.
Create a regular update and reporting process
Scheduling regular (and consistent) updates – such as weekly or monthly reports – will help keep your clients informed about the status of their website and any tasks that have been completed.
Make sure your reports are tech jargon free and provide the essential information your client will need. If your software allows, schedule your reports to be emailed to your clients automatically each week or month.
Provide accessible and responsive customer support
Establish clear processes and protocols for customer support and clearly communicate these to your clients. Include elements such as your expected response times for different types of issues and what methods of communication should be used when requesting support.
This will eliminate the 9:00pm WhatsApp message on a Sunday night!
Use a reliable system to track maintenance tasks and support requests
A support ticket system or project management tool to track reported issues and maintenance tasks will enable you to maintain order and respond to customer requests quickly and effectively.
Popular ticket systems include HelpDesk and task management can be handled really well using a tool such as ClickUp or Trello.
Provide clients with resources and information through blogging
Blogging can be an excellent way to provide clients with resources, tutorials, and training to help them understand their website and the maintenance process.
As well as establishing you as the go-to resource for all things website maintenance related, it will improve communication with your clients because you will be proactively providing them with the information they may be looking for.
It will also help you stand out from your competitors who may not be proactively doing this.
Invite feedback to continuously improve service and client satisfaction
Demonstrate your commitment to continuous improvement by requesting feedback from your clients. This can be done as a survey or a feedback form on your website.
Clients love to provide feedback, so provide them with the easiest methods in which to do this. Just be prepared for the good, bad and ugly kind of feedback 😊
Client communication best practices – Wrapping it up
By following the above client communication best practices, you’ll be equipped to deliver excellent communication to your clients.
This in turn will empower you to forge strong, trusting relationships with your clients, enhance the overall client experience, and differentiate yourself as a reliable and communicative service provider.