Client Communication: The Key to Connection
October is always a busy month. Between Thanksgiving, birthdays, and the settling back in of routines, I find my calendar usually booked with personal stuff. Being a social media manager means I always need to find time for clients though. And as much as I sometimes wonder if they really always need me, I get enough reminders to keep me coming back to my desk. It’s all found in communication.
Client Communication
As much as I sometimes bemoan that I don’t hear from clients as often as I would like, that isn’t strictly true. Despite taking a few down days recently to visit with out-of-province relatives, I was still on. I got text messages, emails, and in-person visits with several of my clients last week. They wanted to touch base, share news, and confirm details about their business’s online presence. The nature of my business means that I have to take note and make time for them so that those changes can be implemented as quickly as possible. Especially as many of those clients are sometimes hard to track down on a good day. When someone reaches out, I am here.
So if a client calls to check in with me, I respond. If they want to know how my life is going or comment on my escapades from something I posted online, I make time for chitchat. Because usually, there is a small or large request destined for the conversation as well.
“Could you nominate C for… ?”
“Do you have enough pics for… ?”
“I’m shipping product to Y. Can you share… ?”
I love these phone calls, emails, and text messages. My clients care about me personally, but more importantly, they know that I am there for them. The open lines of communication build our rapport, but also let me know what my clients are doing and their what is important to them. It helps me get to know them and their priorities better. Whether I can immediately attend to their needs or not, I scribble myself notes in order to make the necessary adjustments as soon as possible.
My newest client is no exception. Last week, we made some adjustments and engaged in plenty of communication over her Facebook page. While she is an expert in her field, social media is not her strongest suit. She can talk industry lingo for her line of work, but when I mention jpeg images, scheduling posts, tagging, or, God forbid, html, I can see her glaze over with fear. I forget that not everyone understands hashtags, image sizing, or even best timing practices, not to mention the myriad other intricacies of social media marketing. Hence why I have this job.
K: “I tapped something and my pictures disappeared!”
Me: “No, they were just unpinned. I’ll fix it.”
With house guests gone, I am back into the swing of things again. My fingers are tapping, ideas are firing, and availability is back up once more. Plus, the time spent connecting with people I love has made me appreciate my job flexibility even more so. Ultimately, that communication is key to it all.
Care to talk about it?
