Commentary
How to keep clients in an industry known for turnover
November 22nd 2017
From Campaign US:
A client dies and St. Peter lets them visit heaven and hell to decide where to spend eternity. Their visit to hell was a party, with all kinds of fun and celebration. Their visit to heaven was pleasant, complete with harps and the like, but not as fun. After visiting both places, they tell St. Peter that they’d prefer hell. But when they go back, they are treated terribly. Fire, brimstone and oppression surround them. They ask the devil, "What happened since my visit yesterday?" He responds, "Yesterday, you were a prospect. Today, you are a client."
With the ever-shrinking life expectancy of clients and the significant swing toward project work, we now live in a world where there is less loyalty to agencies. Every client, every project is a jump ball, and the fact that we worked together yesterday and today is no indication that we will work together tomorrow.
This is the accepted landscape we find ourselves in. Our clients are not loyal and we mirror back that attitude, treating clients like fleeting acquaintances. Even though this scenario may be true, there are ways to make sure we get the most out of our client relationships, and there are many methods to keep a client (and the agency) happy:
