I have worked with people for many years and in many different settings; retail, hospitality, health care, office work, agency, studio, firm, corporate. In all of those environments, I have found a commonality: People enjoy working with people that they enjoy and people skills have held more weight in my career than my design skills.
Talking to my clients as if they are humans has been so essential to not only securing them, but has (many times) led to me being referred over & over again.
SOME THINGS THAT HAVE HELPED ME :
Being vocal - disclosing my thoughts, ideas, excitement, and experience with similar projects. Also, relaying my knowledge of the possible approaches to the execution of the project from start to finish.
Laughter - it eases the client up to feel comfortable with me and allows them to realize that this is one human speaking with another. It’s an un-robotic conversation and great relationship-builder. Wit and a touch of sarcasm can be a very beneficial tool. Be careful to not get too comfy as you are not speaking with a friend. This is business.
Prioritize your clients - you can’t get everything done for everyone in one day or even one week, sometimes. Being openly communicative about my schedule, divulging a deadline/timeline for the clients’ needs, and responding to emails & calls in a timely manner.
Boundaries:
• I usually respond to emails within 1-2 hours, but 24 hours is not an abnormal timeframe (we are all busy).
• I typically do not take calls nor answer emails after 6pm and on the weekends, but working myself can sometimes mean later nights to meet a deadline.
• Getting “too chummy” with clients has worked against me. Cussing, being a jokester, regularly not meeting deadlines/not letting a client know that it may take longer than my proposed deadline(s), etc.
• Address stressful client conversations with calmness and be willing to stand up for yourself.
For example: ”I hear what you are saying and understand where you are coming from, I do not appreciate and don’t respect being yelled at.”