Client Retention 33
Why client retention matters now, more than ever before. In the past 2 years we have seen some big changes in the industry One of the biggest (and possibly most threatening) changes is the service offering for SMEs from 3 of the Big 4 accountancy firms: Another threat comes from the emergence of fast-growth innovative practices offering accounting solutions for as little as 29.50 a month. These practices are leveraging the growth of cloud accounting and outsourcing in order to minimise their costs and offer affordable pricing. Sure you can try to compete on price with both of these threats in the short-term, but this race to the bottom will see you greatly damage your profitability and practice growth in the long-term. KPMG launches 40M enterprise offering for SMEs 21st October 2014 PWC to target global SME market with Sage tie-up 17th September 2015 Deloitte propels into SME market with 2.5M accounting services investment 22nd June 2016 These big players are coming for your best SME clients, and with large investment backing, they aren t messing around. So what can you do? You have every chance of successfully competing with both of these threats if you actively find additional ways to retain your clients. This guide contains 33 ways to increase your client retention rate. I m not saying that you have to go and implement all 33 methods The truth is even if you picked 3-5 from this list and implemented them in your practice, you would already be much further ahead than your competition.
Annual client surveys Clients like to be heard, and client surveys are a great way to find out there s any room for improvement in the service that you offer. Make sure that somebody contacts each client personally once responses are in to let them know how you plan to act based on their feedback. Birthday cards / Other cards Little touches like this can go a long way with clients. Make sure to send them birthday cards (and even birthday presents for your A+ clients). But it doesn t have to end there. Make sure to send cards for lots of different occasions (One of my BlackBelt clients, a 5 partner practice in London, even send their clients Valentine s Day cards!) Ask more questions Similar to the previous point, but can be done all year round. If you don t ask, then you don t know. Ask more questions about what the client s needs/ wants are, and then offer additional services or advice to help them. Benchmarking It might sound obvious but lots of accountants fail to do this. Benchmark your clients performance when they first sign-up, and keep benchmarking it throughout the year. Regularly show them how/ where they are improving to remind them of the value you provide. Case studies of other clients' wins Many practices fall into the trap of only using case studies/testimonials with prospects when in fact, case studies can be used to add value to your existing clients. Had a great win with a client? Send a case study to all your other clients to let them know. It also serves as a great reminder of additional services you provide that clients may not be using at that point in time.
Critical non-essentials (CNE s) CNE s are about systemising the little things in your practice that deliver a WOW factor customer experience. Dr. Paddi Lund, a Dental Practice owner in Australia coined this term when he revamped his dental practice. All patients are immediately served tea in fine china cups, fresh flowers are put in the reception room each day, names and photos of each client are on a board in the lobby for when they arrive - it s the little things! Create an online community for clients People like to be part of groups and communities, so why not provide one for your clients? A simple Facebook group can be a great place for you to provide content, and for your clients to network with each other. Create a remarkable experience Similar to above point, but much more. You want to create an experience for your clients that will leave them smiling for days and telling all their friends and family about what happened. This is a great opportunity for you to differentiate yourselves from others. Document best practice retention strategy Probably something you should consider doing once you finish this guide. Sit down and pick which strategies you will implement in your practice. Document it as a best practice system and share it with the rest of your team so that they know what to do. Educate clients on services It still shocks me the number of practices that only sell 1 or 2 services to each client. Educate your clients about all of the different services that you provide via email, your website, case studies, meetings etc. They might not need it right now, but 12 months down the line when they do, who do you want them to call?
Email, phone, web support Make your clients feel extra special with dedicated email, phone and web support. Have a special client hotline number on your website that clients can call in case of any emergencies. Formalised exit interview When clients choose to leave (which sometimes they do) it s important to know the exact reasoning behind their decision so that you can use this information to make changes and avoid any future clients leaving. Follow through on promises This might sound obvious but I m sure you ve broken a promise or two over time. Make sure that any promises to clients are met. E.g. if you promise to have a report submitted to them by next Tuesday, make sure it arrives in their hands next Tuesday. Find client WHY If you understand the WHY of every client, then everything that you do can be connected back to it. Ask questions and get an understanding of what motivates them to do what they do, and why they love doing it so much. Go out and visit clients This one might not be so practical for all of your clients, but especially for your higher grade clients this is a great way of building your relationship with them by visiting them at their place of work.
Hold client events As well as creating a community for your clients, you can also hold client events as an extra way for them to meet and network with each other. Christmas parties in December, and office BBQ s in the summer months are great informal ways to get your clients together. Promote clients Are you using social media/other media channels to promote your own practice? Why not use them to promote your clients' businesses as well. If they re busy promoting an event that they re holding and they need to sell tickets, promote it through your own channels as well in order to help them out. I was thinking of you notes This doesn t have to be done manually. Find the right mixture of people and technology to automate a system that sends I was thinking of you notes to clients that you might not have seen for a while. You can use this as an excuse for a meeting where you can discuss additional services. Newsletters/E-newsletters Online or offline, it doesn t really matter. Keep your prospects and your clients up to date with all the goings on in your practice, the industry, any legislative changes that might affect them as well. Loyalty program Reward clients for staying with you over longer periods of time. Let them know that you are grateful for their continued support and business and want to reward them with something as a way to say thanks.
Office makeover I can t tell you how many accountancy practice offices I ve seen that are in serious need of a makeover. Turn your office into a space that you would be proud to welcome your clients in. This all adds to the WOW factor client experience that you re trying to create. Performance standards All of the work you complete for your clients is done to the highest standard, and you need to make sure that everybody else in your team follows suit. Create performance standards for all types of work and review these regularly with your team to identify areas for improvement. Fire D class clients D class clients are going to be the ones that cost you the most time and money. Make the decision to fire them early on so that you can invest your time and money more wisely in retaining your higher grade clients. Proactive phone calls This one can work really well. One of my BlackBelt clients has his account managers phone a minimum of 5 clients each week as a courtesy call just to check in on how they re doing. More often than not the clients are fine, but sometimes it can identify problems they may not have told you about. Refer to strategic partners Does your client have a problem that you can t help them with, but you know someone who can? Build up a network of strategic partners that you can refer your clients to for specific problems. You might just get some referrals back
Relationship nurturing program A culmination of a number of these points. Have a program in place in your practice to nurture new and existing client relationships over time. Differentiate these programs for your different client grades so that they are serviced accordingly. Socialise with clients outside of work Especially useful for your A+ clients. Meet them for informal food and drinks. Take them to sporting events. Make sure that you don t discuss work though, connect with them personally. Seminars/workshops These don t just have to be used for prospects. Add value to your existing clients by running seminars and workshops on different topics. One of my BlackBelt clients successfully runs motivational workshops for his clients on a quarterly basis. Set up the next appointment Always make sure that you have at least 1 next appointment booked in to the diary. Depending on client grade, you also want to measure the time between each of these appointments and make sure that it fits their service level. Superior customer service It s been touched on in a number of different points but it deserves a point of its own. Superior customer service is paramount to increasing client retention. You need to make sure that your practice and your team create the WOW factor.
Team incentives Sometimes customer service might not be your team's #1 priority (even though it should be). Incentivise them to meet certain goals and targets regarding customer service to make sure that they always do it. Unexpected gifts As well as sending cards, look in to sending unexpected gifts to clients throughout the year. This could be tied in to the I was thinking of you notes strategy. Use cloud tools to keep in contact - social media, ecards Send them messages in different ways so that you stand out. Record them a video, send them a tweet etc. 1 Annual client surveys 2 Ask more questions 3 Benchmarking 4 Birthday cards/other cards 5 Case studies of other clients wins 6 Critical non-essentials (CNE s) 7 Create a remarkable experience 8 Create an online community for clients 9 Document best practice retention strategy 10 Educate clients on services 11 Email, phone, web support 12 Formalised exit interview 13 Find client WHY 14 Follow through on promises 15 Go out and visit clients 16 Hold client events 17 I was thinking of you notes 18 Loyalty program 19 Promote clients 20 Newsletters/E-newsletters 21 Office makeover 22 Fire D class clients 23 Performance standards 24 Proactive phone calls 25 Refer to strategic partners 26 Relationship nurturing program 27 Seminars/workshops 28 Set up the next appointment 29 Socialise with clients outside of work 30 Superior customer service 31 Team incentives 32 Unexpected gifts 33 Use cloud tools to keep in contact
Want some help? Growing a practice today is not an easy task - especially with all the changes going on in the industry. Many of the partners in practice I meet are frustrated with where they are currently at, and often ask for help on growing their practice. It s hard for me to get back to each individual question (although I do try my best). Which is why I ve created an online training session that I think will truly be of value to you. It s called... How to increase your profits, work less hours and create a hands-free practice that gives you freedom. In this online training session you will learn: The 3 keys to predictable practice growth & how to leverage them to increase your profits year on year The EXACT process for finding and developing a self-reliant A+ team meaning you work less hours in your practice The step-by-step blueprint for creating scalable systems in your practice that enables you to go hands-free and gives you freedom After you've registered, you will receive a copy of my BlackBelt Practice Growth Blueprint priced at 179 completely free of charge. This blueprint is the exact system my BlackBelt clients follow to grow their practices and become hands-free. Reserve your seat here www.accoa.co.uk/freedomwebinar I look forward to helping you and answering any questions you might have in the online training session. To your success, Rudi Jansen The Accountant s Coach