We all want it now, now, now!
- Instant messaging,
- Instant movie downloads on Netflix or Amazon,
- Same day delivery, even
- Instant oatmeal
We have become impatient with everything.
If your website takes too long to load, people will abandon it.
If the article looks too long, we will skim it first to decide whether we will take the time to read.
If the YouTube video has an ad, we will hit the “skip” button to get to the video we wanted to see.
Have you ever waited for a response to an email? How long before you start to wonder whether your original email got caught in the recipient’s spam folder? Have you ever called someone and left a message? How long did you wait for a call back before you either called again or sent an email?
Now (no pun intended), turn this around and think about how your clients feel.
They have the same impatience as you. They want a response immediately. Not in an hour, not in a day, not in a week. But NOW!
This isn’t always feasible. You may be in court, seeing other clients, working on a deadline or even on vacation (and you are entitled to take vacations).
But you can give them instant gratification. All clients want is to be acknowledged when they contact you.
- Set up a daily, automatic response on your email which says: “Thank you for your email. I have received it and will get back to you shortly.”
- Have an assistant answer your phone at all times to acknowledge the client and to provide them with a time you will call them back. (If the assistant said you would call them back after 3 pm, then call them back after 3 pm)
- If you are a true solo, consider having a daily voice mail message
One of my favorite people in the world does this. She has made it a habit to change her voicemail to explain where she is at that time and when she can call you back. For example, she may say “Hi, this is Jane Smith (name changed) today is ________ (date). I am in the office today but probably on the phone. As soon as I can, I will call you back today.”
Or she may say: “Hi, this is Jane Smith. Today is _________(date), I am in and out of the office in meetings all day. If this is an emergency, please call (add name and phone/extension). I will try as hard as I can to call you back as soon as my meeting is over or when we take a break. However, I will be in the office tomorrow and will definitely do so then.”
These ideas allow the client to feel acknowledged instantaneously . . . and that’s really what they want.
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