So I’ve got a couple of friends who are emotional vampires. Take “Sherry” for example. We started out as great friends! We’d laugh together, shop together, support each other and just hang out. Something started changing though. Sherry started having drama in her life. Serious drama. This happened, that happened and “it’s so terrible.” Over the course of a year, it dawned on me that we always talked about her, her issues and her needs. I realized that after our conversations, I felt drained, frustrated and a little depressed.
I had another friend who established an annoying pattern – every time she called me, she wanted something. What’s worse is that she pretended that she “just wanted to talk.” But after asking courtesy questions “How are you?” “How’s your family?” “How is Sanera going?” she always steered the conversations to what she wanted from me. First of all, that’s not a friendship. Second of all, if you want something, please just ask. Don’t dance around it, or pretend you have ulterior motives. Be real with it!
What happened with these friends? I stopped taking their phone calls. I stopped answering their emails and our “friendships” phased out of existence.
What If Your Clients Were Your Friends?
Hmm… When do your clients hear from you? Is it when you want to sell them something? Is it to inform them of a new product? Is it when they receive your bill or invoice in the mail? Don’t be a business vampire.
Be the vendor, boss, attorney, recruiter, financial planner, IT technician, coach, engineer that knows your clients. Consistently reach out to them when you don’t need or want something. Contact them to say hello. Send them thank-you notes (yes hand-written, not email). Ask them if they are satisfied with their purchase. Send them a thank you gift when it’s not Thanksgiving or Christmas. Ask about their families. Ask them about their projects. Be the one person in their professional lives that they look forward to hearing from. Be that person.
Sales will come.
Photo courtesy of carniphage.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Great post Alicia. The buzzword “sustainability” is an important + interesting topic with a wide variety of connotations . In this case, it’s called Relationship Sustainability. It’s more productive + fulfilling + lasting as a two-way street.
Happy Halloween
“Relationship Sustainability” That is a fantastic term Meghan. I completely agree, if a business can’t sustain relationships with their clients, how can they win long-term? Happy Halloween!
Alicia, you give great advise. The best friendships are those that are sustainable. People enjoy each others’ company rather than have expectations on what you can do for each other. Good for you for letting go of those who do not have the emotional intelligence to give and take. Also, keeping in touch with people just to check in is a great practice as well as sending written thank you notes.