Building Deep, Lasting Client Friendships

Spike at Brains On Fire writes about the differences in relationships online and offline as it relates to brands and social network sites. He's pointing to a report from England that shows that personal interaction, face-to-face, is the way to develop real friendships.

"Although the numbers of friends people have on these sites can be massive, the actual number of close friends is approximately the same in the face to face real world," said Will Reader at Sheffield Hallam University.

From my experience this is correct.  It is difficult to manage more than a hand-full of close relationships. At some point, the relationship becomes an acquaintance focused on one area of intense interest and multiple side ones.

Spike has a couple points to make that are worth hearing.

Now let me take it one step further and apply this to brands getting involved in online social networking sites. For a lot of them, it’s a numbers game. “How many people can we get to be “fans” on our Facebook page or friends on our MySpace page?” But these are mere acquaintances with the hope of maybe, somehow driving transactions. There’s no intent for a real, deep, relationship.
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Now I’m not saying in any way that you shouldn’t be concerned with an online strategy. But what you should be concerned with is how that online strategy can drive OFFline conversations. OFFline gatherings. OFFline relationships with employees and fans. Online fundamentally needs to support OFFline and offline needs to support online. They work together. And any company that tells you to put all your eggs in the online basket will get you plenty of acquaintances. But not many meaningful relationships.

I totally agree. However, let's put this in the context that I'm hearing about everyday.

How does this matter when the economy is in the tank and no one is doing business? 

Everyday I'm hearing people talk to me about how their business is off, way off in some cases. One friend told me he knows he'll get through, but what about his team?  How can he hold onto them if there is so little work?

What we will find during this recession is that the strength of our client base is determined by the strength of our client relationships.

Today, we have to make a clear commitment to our clients. It has to be demonstrated in action, not simply in words or comments on Facebook.

Here's a simple example.  Yesterday, over lunch I learned that a program at a university in another state where I've done some work is facing, like the rest of the institution, the possibility of a very serious round of budget cuts.  I decided listening to my friend that I had to demonstrate my commitment to the program, its director, to the community board that works with her, and to the university by sending them a financial donation. Do I have a lot of discretionary cash lying around? No. And the contribution wasn't large, either. But I am committed to this program, and this is one way I can demonstrate it.

How do we demonstrate our commitment to clients and customers when things are hard for them?

Sacrificial commitment is a core element of every deep and lasting friendship. There is virtually no sacrificial commitment that happens online. It is more than a question of trust.  It is a question of commitment.

Do my clients, present and past, know that I'm committed to doing whatever I can to help them through difficult times. Or, do they think I'm there just to deliver services and pick up a check?

Spike writes,

A real relationship is about personal investment and sacrifice. To you, the individual, I ask how many companies that you have a relationship with will really be there for you when you need them. And for you, the brands, I ask, how many fans do you have that will do the same?

Yes, this is what a real relationship is about. It isn't primarily about what you share in common, but rather what you are willing to give up in order to sustain the friendship.

Right now, today, is the best time I know to demonstrate the value of our products and services. We do it by demonstrating our commitment to them as their client or customer. If they see our actions as a sales tactic, then we've not shown them our genuine commitment. And it could well be because we are not really that committed to them.

Here's what you can do today. Prepare a list of your clients from the past two years.  As in my case, there are clients who have not heard from me in several months because our projects finished.  Get back in touch with them, just to see how they are doing. If they are local, take them to lunch. Talk about how each other are dealing with the current business climate. It can be an important first step toward deepening a client relationships that can last a long time.

Comments

[Spike Jones]

Great breakdown, Ed. Thanks for the shout out. There are a lot of great ideas and comments here, my favorite being "Sacrificial commitment is a core element of every deep and lasting friendship." How true. And I think the sooner that CMOs realize that, the sooner they'll be interested in relationships that go beyond the "transaction" stage.

Keep on keepin' on!