Help Your Clients Help You - Client Communication Secrets

Hey, folks, it's Kimberly Hobscheid with Entrepreneurs Rocket Fuel. I know sometimes some of us have had clients that we're trying to help, and they're not helping us help them. So I wanted to share with you a little story of a conversation that I had that ended up with a really positive result that I thought might be beneficial for this particular group in Entrepreneurs Rocketfield, because I know that a lot of us struggle sometimes with that where we're really trying to help somebody with our product or service, and they just are getting in their own way of getting help. Well, these conversations come up all the time. Particular conversation, the entrepreneur that I was chatting with was having difficulty getting his client to give him information on the process they wanted to make happen, right? And they were trying to dig the information out of them, and they kept sending emails saying, hey, I need this in order to get moving, to get you your solution that you're looking for or calls or whatever it was. And they were just getting stopped. Like, the person, the client was ending up getting frustrated. Like, I don't have time for this. Right? And that can be very frustrating because you have the solution, you have the magic, you have the elixir that can help them, and yet the people aren't even able to help themselves get the information to you. So in chatting that out, it came down to sort of a. In this case, and in often cases, it is where there's a communication mismatch where one person is trying to say, hey, I need this information from you, and they're focused on what they need, and the other person is focused on what they need, which is they just need the solution done without having to transfer information back, right? So it was sort of this disconnect from how they could help each other. So I suggested that since they are the client, they're always right, right? You gotta just take that approach that you approach the client, just letting them off the hook in that right off the bat. So what you need to do is if you're serving the client, you need to start with, like, what's in their head, what's going through their mind, and just give them the reassurance that you fully understand that. So. So rather than saying, hey, I need this information in order to get you what you want, what you want to start with is what they want, right? So I understand your frustration. I know that you want a solution. I know that you want it as quickly as possible, and I know that you really don't have time to slow down and do the things that need to get done in order to do that. Trust me, you're in good hands. I have everything you need in order to make this happen for you. And you've made a great decision by working with me, and I'm here to help you. So that's the first message that you need to give, and you need to give it loud and clear right out of the gate. Right. I'm here to help you with your frustration. And I know what it is. The more you can be descriptive about their frustration, the better. So you could say, for example, your funnels are not working as quickly as you want. You want solutions immediately. You want this to be. You want your website to be as functional as possible, and you want it to start driving revenue. If you can identify the things that are happening from their perspective, like, yes, finally he gets what I'm looking for. Then after you do that, they will relax and they'll realize that you do in fact know what they're really looking for, and then they can move forward to the next step. Now, in this particular case, the entrepreneur was dealing with an executive who was very busy and didn't want to slow down to get him the information. Right. Which is fine. Sometimes that does happen, and you've got to get the information in order to give them their solution. True. Right. So what I suggested to this entrepreneur is that they say, after they've clearly identified to the person, I understand your pain, I understand what you're going through, then let that register for a minute and get feedback. And as soon as they do, then switch it to making it be not their problem and not their fault. So, for example, it could go something like this. Kimberly, I know you're frustrated that your website isn't working and that you want it to go as quickly as possible into the category of a website that's going to generate you money and income with as little time invested as your as possible for you. Is that right? Yes. Okay, great. And I know you want it done as quickly as possible at the least expense possible, and have it be as efficient as possible and start driving revenue. Is that correct? Yes. Okay, great. And I know that you are really busy and you don't have time to slow down and give me everything that you need in order to make this happen. Is that correct? Yes. Okay, great. Now you've identified their pain. Now you switch and you say, great news, you're in really good hands. I have everything that I, I have all of the skills that you need in order to make this happen. I. We're going to Turn your website into something that's going to generate money. We're going to turn your sales process into something that's going to generate money, and we're going to turn this entire thing around so that it's going to be as quick and painless for you as possible. Hopefully. That sounds good to you. In order to do that, I just need a little bit of information, but I understand that you are really busy and you won't have time to give it necessarily in the timeframe that I need it, and that's okay. I want to put the ball in your court. So we can do a couple of different things. If you have an assistant that I can work with, I would love to work with them and get them the information. If you want to just make that introduction, that would be great. I'm happy to work after hours or on the weekends in order to get the information from you then. Or if you just want to assign this to somebody completely different who can get this information themselves and then give it to me, that would be fine. So any of those three options will definitely work for me, but I want to put the ball in your court. So you don't think I'm holding up the process at all. What that effectively does is that lets them know that, okay, great. Now I know that I have a responsibility to get something done and he can work in multiple different ways in order to get it done for me. So you're shifting the mentality a little bit from, he's asking me for stuff which I don't have time to give to he's trying to help me, and he's willing to do it a variety of different ways. That works for my style and he has the solution for my problem. So if you are having struggles working with a client who's not giving you what you need, I would encourage you to first acknowledge their pain. Secondly, let them know that you are the solution. And thirdly, offer multiple ways to be able to get them the solution that they need to get you the information so that you can give them the solution that they need. Don't forget to put the ball back in their courts so that they know that they're the next one to make the move. And then if you have any other questions on that, let me know. Hopefully this was helpful for you. If it was helpful for you, put some comments in the link below. I'm Kimberly Hobscheid with Entrepreneurs Rocket Fuel. Hey, if you don't already have a mentor or a guide, or if you have one that's not working out for you so well in a particular area and you'd love to work with somebody who can get your business to the next level. I'd love to chat with you. Click on the link below and or go to entrepreneursrocketfuel.com apply and you can fill out a simple couple question form and you and I will get on the phone and find out if one of my mentorship programs would be right for you, which one would be best, and then we'll go from there because we want to get your business to the next level. I'm Kimberly Hobscheid and I look forward to working with you. Cheers.