How to Make Clients Feel Special

When it comes to your clients, you want to make sure that they know how appreciated they are. It’s a two-way street. Without each other, your businesses wouldn’t exist. Clients trust you more than anyone. In fact, they are putting their business in your hands and asking for advice. 

If you’re here, you may be asking, “How can I thank my client for their business?” This post has eleven great ideas to help make sure your client knows how valued they are to you.

In this article...

• Show Genuine Appreciation
• Remember Milestones and Birthdays
• Provide Support After Business is Complete 
• Make Notes on Client Calls
• Listen to Their Concerns and Provide Assistance
• Help Them Feel That You Are on Their Side
• Clients Value Honesty
• Small or Big, Clients Love Gifts
• Provide Value
• Get to Know Your Clients and Use Their Name
• Organize Client Appreciation Events
• The Importance of Making Clients Feel Valued

Show Genuine Appreciation

Any appreciation you show, you want to make sure that it is genuine. Clients spend lots of time and money using your services. This calls for authentic appreciation is necessary. They should not feel as if they are wasting their resources and not a priority.

There are so many ways to show genuine appreciation and it doesn’t always have to be a gift. If they reach a goal or do something big, you can write a note to compliment them on their hard work. This note doesn’t have to be long either. It can even be a short message that you tell them face-to-face during a meeting. Anything that lets them know you appreciate them. 

Genuine appreciation sends the message that you appreciate their business. You also are acknowledging the fact that they also complete your business. After all, what would your company be if you didn’t have any clients?

Remember Milestones and Birthdays

Milestones and birthdays are two of the most important dates to remember. They are meaningful to both an individual and to the team of employees that make up your client. 

When it comes to Birthdays, this can mean two things when it comes to clients. It can mean individual birthdays or the company’s "birthday." The company’s birthday would be the day they first opened or started the business. Both are occasions that deserve recognition.

As for milestones, this can be any important date that has happened within the company. Did they win an award? Have they been in business for 5, 10, or 15 years? Did they land an interview with a top publication? Whatever it is, it’s meaningful to the company and something you should recognize for them. Honoring milestones is a source of motivation for your clients. It reminds them to keep pushing forward and to be reflective of all their hard work.

Remembering the milestones and birthdays of your clients is a great way to show them you care and appreciate them! Pictured Love Letter Envelope Locket (Gold), Medium Fortune Cookie Locket (Gold), and Stardust Book Locket (Blush)

Provide Support After Business is Complete

Even after business is complete, you shouldn’t leave your client high and dry. You should always be there to support them and all the work that you helped them complete. When business is complete, you won't be in touch with your previous client as much. You may not be having weekly meetings with them anymore, but you should still allow them to reach out to you. You can still be a point of contact for them, even when everything is said and done.

A big part of client appreciation is how you communicate when business is done. You still want to be a point of contact for them. You want to make sure that you can always follow up on the work that they completed. They shouldn't be disregarded as a previous client. You still spent a good amount of time working with them and building a relationship. Make sure that you always offer help, even if it’s answering a few questions. If there are any questions on projects you worked on, you need to follow through with your work. Making sure clients are appreciated and satisfied sometimes goes beyond the end date.

Make Notes on Client Calls

Part of appreciating a client is letting them know that you are listening. A way to show that you are retaining their information and making note of it, is to actually be taking notes. When you are on a client call, you should be actively listening and writing down key components. 

Showing appreciation goes beyond material items and remembering big dates. If writing notes is something that you do automatically while on a call, good job. You’re already showing your client a form of appreciation. This is an indicator that you care about what they have to say and that their words matter. You are putting value to their wins, concerns, and thoughts, which makes them feel as if they matter. And that’s the whole point. You want your clients to matter and they deserve to know that they do.

Taking notes during client calls shows that you're listening and writing down important ideas.

Listen to Their Concerns and Provide Assistance 

If there’s a step one in that “How to Treat Your Clients” handbook, it would be to listen to your client’s concerns. You want to make sure that you can help them in any way you can. They decided to work with you since they trust your expertise. You should be able to provide them with assistance and advice. Even if it's something that seems like a small issue to you, they shouldn't have to struggle through it with no help.

You might not be able to come up with the “final solution" and that's ok. But you should still be actively helping them find a solution. Throughout this process, make sure that you are listening to their concerns. You’re there to help remind them that in the end it will be solved.  Providing as much assistance as possible in a timely manner shows your loyalty. Putting your client first gives them a sense of importance and appreciation. This should still be the case even if you have multiple clients. When you are working with one of them, they are the only ones who should matter.

Help Them Feel That You Are on Their Side

You always want to be on the same team as your client. You may have different ideas and opinions, but you should never be going “against” them. They are putting their trust in you to help them build their company, not tear it down. You should always give them the feeling that you are on their side. 

Whether it’s sticking up for them or congratulating their good work, being on their side is important. Your client wants to get the sense that you are both working toward the same goal. This increases their confidence in the work that they put forward. It never hurts to have someone on your side!

Even if you have different ideas, make sure that your client knows you're on their side and want them to succeed. Pictured Love Letter Envelope Locket (Silver)

Clients Value Honesty

Although it’s important to be on your client's side, you also need to be honest. Sometimes they need to hear your thoughts and opinions, even if it’s not what they want to hear. You should be able to guide them the right way as opposed to agreeing with what they want to do if you know it isn’t going to work. 

You also need to be honest about what you can provide your client with. You need to tell them upfront what they should expect from working with you. You don’t want to make empty promises in order to guarantee their business. 

This form of appreciation is the most respected. It shows that you care for those who you work with and want their business to do the best it possibly can. Don’t downplay this one.

Small or Big, Clients Love Gifts

Gifts are one of the best ways to show appreciation. It’s not always about the money spent or the present bought, but gifts are always appreciated. What you give will depend on your relationship with your client or how long you have been working with them. 

It doesn’t take an extravagant gift to make a client feel like they’re special. It can even be a small token of appreciation. Chances are, they will enjoy receiving a gift. Bonus points if it follows a theme/everyone who works at their office gets the same gift.

Even if it's a small token of appreciation, gifts show your clients that you're thankful for them. Pictured Stardust Book Locket (Blush)

Provide Value

Providing value is the top thing you can do for your client. They are paying money for your services, and you want to make sure that they are getting everything out of it. Without value, they would just be paying for what they can do for themselves. 

In order to provide value, you must be able to connect with your client and put them first. When working with them, there should only be one thing on your mind. How can you make their business the best it can be? By doing this, you're putting them as a priority and valuing their time and business. 

You also want to make sure that you are providing valuable information. Giving them your best advice and insight on how certain tasks should be completed. Placing value on a company is appreciated and your clients won’t overlook it.

Get to Know Your Clients and Use Their Name

Get to know your clients. Since you’re going to be working with them, you want to make sure that you know their names and who they are. If you don’t learn about them, it will never seem like you appreciate them or care about who they are. When you learn your clients' names and take the time to know the company, it shows you are genuinely interested.

Make sure that you treat your clients as people, not only as a business. People appreciate being seen as individuals and being valuable. If you’re going to be working with a team of people closely, you want to establish that relationship. During your first few meetings, get to know everyone's names. You can have everyone introduce themselves, and don’t let anyone go unnoticed. Make sure that the whole company is feeling included.

Organize Client Appreciation Events

In-person events are back and more appreciated than ever! After having to take some time off from seeing everyone in-person, nothing feels better than going to a non-virtual event. If you want to plan something fun, a client appreciation event is the right way to go. 

When planning, you want to make sure that the event is tailored to your clients. This should be all about them. Make sure the space where the event is welcoming for the client and puts the emphasis on them. You can decorate with their company colors or even have their logo placed around the event space. This event should be as personalized as possible.

During an appreciation event, make sure to take photos! You can use these photos to post about the event on LinkedIn or the company page.

The Importance of Making Clients Feel Valued

In order to make sure you keep a good relationship with clients, you need to make sure they are feeling valued. A good relationship is what allows you to keep business going with your client. If they aren’t feeling important, not as much work will get done and there won’t be as much motivation. 

When a company feels valued, they are more likely to succeed and put their best work forward. It will affect their relationship with you and how they view you also. They don’t want to be working with someone who dismisses them or does very little to help.

In order to have a good relationship with your client, it is important to show them that they are appreciated. Pictured Polygon Lariat Locket (Gold)

Conclusion

How you treat your clients should be your top priority. Make sure that they are being valued and appropriately thanked for their business. There are so many different ways to appreciate your clients. Some of the ways, such as taking notes and assisting your clients, should be done all the time. But parties and gifts can be a once or twice-a-year occurrence. Make sure your clients are feeling appreciated year round.