Keeping clients happy and satisfied is essential to any business, but retaining them is more important. To keep your customers as partners, you need to invest time, energy, and resources into their continued success with your company. You can’t just expect that once they buy from you, they’ll keep coming back again and again. Here are tips to help you improve your retention rate with clients.
Communicate Your Process
One of the best ways to gain customer trust is by being transparent about your services. Let clients know you have a process for handling their financial needs and goals. If you have a good process, you’ll be more successful. Share your process with clients by having a highly visible timeline for making progress toward their needs. You can educate them about new trends such as custodial financial services and how they can benefit their financial life. Create timelines for the steps you’ll take to meet those goals—from your initial meeting to implementation and ongoing service. If clients know when you’ll be doing what and how it will impact them, they’ll feel more comfortable. They’ll also feel more willing to get in touch with questions and concerns because they’ll know when to expect responses.
Provide Ongoing Education and Training
Providing ongoing education and training for your clients is one of the best things you can do to increase their productivity and keep them close. There are many ways that you can educate your clients. You could provide a manual or guidebook with step-by-step instructions on how everything works. You could also provide online resources to help them learn the skills they need to succeed at their financial projections. If your clients have access to the information they need, they will always be happy to maintain a long-term working relationship with you.
Keep Updating Platforms and Tools
As technology changes and improves, so should you. If you have online-based tools for clients, keep them current. If there’s a new feature that makes things easier for folks using those platforms, add it. Everyone appreciates being updated, and your clients are no different. If you have a system that clients can use to log into their accounts or share information with their team members, keep it updated. Those features aren’t a one-time thing you create; they need to be maintained. Keep the information on your website current, too. If you offer a certain product that’s been discontinued or you’ve changed some of your rates, let clients know immediately.
Don’t Assume You Understand What They Want
There’s a common misconception that financial advisors know what their clients want. While you should have an idea of what they want, you also want to get their feedback. If you have clients using your digital platforms, be sure to ask for their input on how those systems work for them. If you have clients using paper-based systems, ask what those systems work for them. If you have clients using other financial services, be sure to ask them what they like and don’t like about those services. You can also ask your clients directly about what they’re looking for in financial services. Create surveys and polls that you can share online or in your office. Ask for your client’s feedback on your services, too. Whether you’re meeting with them in person or over the phone, ask them how you can improve their experience.
Offer Meaningful Rewards
Financial advisors often reward new clients, but what about those who have been with you for years? It would be best if you offered rewards for those who have been with you throughout your growth process. By giving your clients tangible rewards for staying with you, you can keep them returning for more. Vary rewards based on the types of clients you have. If you have high-net-worth clients, offer more substantial rewards. If you have middle-net-worth clients and lower-net-worth clients, offer more meaningful rewards. Finally, you can offer rewards for referrals. It is particularly effective when combined with other incentives and programs.
Conclusion
When you have a client, they are not your customer but your partner. Client retention is a dream for every business person. Following these tips diligently will help you achieve the dream of your client retention and keep them close as partners.
