Building Trust in the Winds of Change

Susan Clements

Executive Director, E-Myth Benchmark

"If you don't trust the pilot, don't go.”
              –Denzel Washington

Trust is like a vaporous shroud that wraps itself around the relationship you have with a client. Since trust lives in the mind of your client, you can’t see it, hold it, demand it, or manifest it. You can only create a calm, stable, predictable climate that allows trust to be built and to prevent it from being blown away. 

Building Trust in the Winds of Change

As the winds of change swirl around your client relationships you will begin to find the small…or perhaps not so small holes in your client fulfillment strategy. If you’re paying attention to the structure you’ve built to fulfill your clients, you can plug these holes and create the climate that allows trust to build and grow.

When your client fulfillment strategies are built on a solid caring relationship arising from collaboration, communication, and consistent service, the shroud of trust will protect your client relationship from the winds of change. Let’s look at each in more detail:

Building Trust through the Three C’s

Collaboration:

Collaboration is the skill of engaging with your clients to define their vision of the future and then agreeing on what your role is in helping them towards that vision.  Mitch Anthony writes in his book; Your Clients for Life, “Your clients will develop trust in you when you bring value to your relationship with them.” In order to bring value, you must understand what your client finds valuable. Collaborate with your client in defining what they value in your relationship.

Communication:

In the beginning, clients do not always know what they value in a relationship or what they should expect from you. Your ability to clearly communicate the value you bring to the relationship and your communication strategies for checking in with your clients along the way will create a foundation for you to build upon as you earn their trust. You should have a documented client communication strategy that defines the client “touches” you will use to consistently, creatively, and confidently touch your client with information and communications that show you care and showcase your value. 

If you don’t have a client “touch” strategy, create an annual timeline that shows all of the ways and times your client will be “touched” by you and your office throughout the year. These touches can consist of cards, letters, e-mails, visits, phone calls, newsletters, webinars, predetermined planning sessions, or an invite to share a cup of coffee. With a well-conceived communication strategy, many of your client touches can happen without you being involved––and each should continue to build the environment of trust with your client.  

Consistent service:

Every person in your office needs to know the delicate nature of client trust and understand their role in and the importance of being consistent in delivering services and meeting the expectations of your clients. 

Consistency creates trust. Consistently exceeding client expectation creates advocates who enthusiastically draw others into your business! As you become clear on what your clients see as valuable, you can create a strategy that delivers on and––when possible––exceeds their expectations. 

Clients stay because they trust in your ability to care for them and about them. If you’re experiencing the cool breeze of clients leaving, then you’re getting a clear signal the relationships you built were designed to evaporate. Be open to discovering how economic trends, natural disasters, world conflicts, and personal crisis can impact what your clients need from you. Implement strategies for collaboration, communication, and consistent service and work with the intention to create a climate in which trust will be protected from the winds of change.

Susan Clements is Executive Director and co-owner of E-Myth Benchmark, a business coaching company serving businesses in the United States, the Caribbean, Canada, and the UK.  As a business coach Susan has steered client businesses through growth initiatives, sales and marketing strategies, management restructuring, personnel issues, customer service challenges, and action plans for growth and change. Leveraging a personal and professional experience platform of business ownership and management of businesses in both the private and public sector, Susan has designed a revolutionary coach training and delivery system that tools E-Myth Benchmark coaches to actively engage in results based coaching with business owners, leaders and managers leading to greater freedom and flexibility.  E-Myth Benchmark provides E-Myth Mastery Impact™ business coaching, business management and leadership workshops, trainings and seminars.  Contact Susan at www.e-mythcoaching.com or sclements@e-mythcoaching.com.