What would your client listening programme's school report say?

Welcome to The Happy Client!

Written by our Director, Anna Lake, this monthly newsletter shares insights, ideas and inspiration to help you build stronger client relationships and create move value for your business. If you're not already subscribed, click here to never miss an issue!

Although it might seem a little early in the school year for a report card, this point in the calendar is a great time to take stock and reflect on your client listening and client experience programmes What would receive praise? Which areas could do better? And what should be the goal for your programme before Christmas - yes, I said the C word!

Thinking back to my own report cards, some predictions were spot on: I was good at pulling together information and identifying themes. Others were less accurate, including the suggestion that I showed early promise in hockey. I do still play, but not to any great standard! My reports also said I should talk less and listen more, so I guess some things do change.

Back to your programmes. We ran this exercise recently in one of our Insight Community calls, and it gave attendees a useful opportunity to step back, reflect and decide where to focus their efforts over the coming months.

So, with that in mind, here is a simple exercise you can use to give your programme its own report card and identify where the biggest opportunities for improvement might sit. You might do this on your own, or with colleagues.

Thinking about your client listening or client experience programme, score the following areas 0-5:

Coverage: Are we hearing from the right clients? Are we giving all clients a voice or just key/strategic clients? Are we being brave in who we choose to ask or do we just ask those clients who we know will have positive feedback?

Quality: Are conversations producing meaningful insight? Is your programme focussed on what your clients want to share, or what you want to learn? (The clue is in the name client listening/experience).

Action: Does feedback lead to change? Do you only tackle the quick wins, or are you prepared to address the issues that could have greater impact but feel more difficult to resolve?

Visibility: Do colleagues understand the value of the programme? Does everyone in the organisation understand their role in delivering an excellent experience for clients? Do people understand the impact client experience has on the firm in terms of revenue, relationships and reputation?

Client follow-up: Do you thank clients for sharing their views? Do clients hear what happened as a result of their feedback? Do you admit your shortcomings or only share the positive feedback?

How did you fare? What surprised you? What will you do as a result of this reflection?

If you are doing this with colleagues, compare your scores and look for the gaps. Where are you aligned? Where do you see things differently? Those differences can be just as useful as the scores themselves.

Although the ‘school report’ framing around this exercise is intentionally light hearted, the thinking behind it is serious. When competition for share of wallet is fierce, and firms are struggling to differentiate themselves, the client agenda becomes crucial. You need to understand how your clients are feeling, act on what they say, and help colleagues understand the role they play.

So find 10-15 minutes out of your day to work through the exercise. Write yourself a short report card, choose one or two priority actions, and set clear, realistic goals for what you want to improve by Christmas.

If you would value support, new ideas or a bit of accountability, then why not join our monthly insight calls. They are a safe space to share challenges and successes, learn from others, and give you a space for further reflection. You can sign up to be notified about the calls here.

Until next month!