4 REASONS YOU ARE LOSING CLIENTS AND 1 REASON YOU SHOULDN’T

It’s inevitable. You will undoubtedly lose clients over the course of your career. There are many reasons why we lose clients. Some aren’t a good fit, some aren’t ready to buy, some can’t afford to buy, etc. But there is one reason for losing clients that should never occur: poor communication.

Like I said, there are several reasons why we lose clients. Some people don’t work well together. Different personalities, values, and demographics can influence the way you work with certain people, and that is absolutely okay. Only you know the kind of clients you can and want to work with. If you don’t, you should start defining who those ideal clients are for you. (Pssst, I can help you with that!). Once you know the clients you want to work with, you will be able to align yourself with those clients and determine when someone isn’t a good fit for you. You also have the right to “fire” clients that are difficult to work with or treat you and your team poorly.

Other people will not be ready to engage with your business. Maybe they need to save more money for a down payment, or they have credit issues to work through. Maybe they are just trying to get an idea of what they need to plan for. While it is possible for you to nurture a relationship with someone who is a long-term client, you have to put in the work to ensure that client turns to you when they ARE ready to engage with your service.

In the first few years of your career, you can lose clients due to lack of experience or expertise. Clients want to work with professionals who are competent and can guide them through their transaction. This is why it is so important to find or hire a coach or mentor, someone you can turn to for advice and training, throughout your career to ensure you are always able to meet the needs of your clients. If you are unable to help a client with their specific situation, the client may lose confidence and look for someone who can.

Another reason you lose clients, and perhaps the most irritating reason, is that your competitors simply offer a better deal. If you are a lender, this can be a faster closing time, a lower and cheaper interest rate, or maybe they are offering large credits to cover closing costs. If you are a realtor, it can be that your competitors offer a lower commission cost, or they don’t a have a transaction fee. Whatever the reason, there will always be those clients that are simply looking for the cheapest deal, even if it means the service and experience are poor. Let me remind you that these may not be the clients you want and need to work with.

While there are plenty of other reasons why you might lose clients, there is one reason that is completely preventable and should never be the reason your client chooses a competitor over you: Communication.

Communication is your most powerful and most accessible tool for building your business. Poor communication is one of the main reasons why realtors and lenders lose clients. Failure to respond to emails or phone calls in a timely manner or failing to keep clients updated on the progress of their transaction can lead to frustration and ultimately cause clients to look elsewhere for help. Remember, we exist in a world of constant connection and instant gratification. The faster you can respond to people, the better chance you have of keeping them as your client without a competitor swooping in to steal them away.

This reason for client loss is totally preventable. With a simple communication strategy in place, ensuring you set expectations for your client up front, and then following through on your strategy and the expectations you set, you can ensure that poor communication will never be the reason your clients choose to work with your competitors instead of you. It is also a great way to prevent those other reasons listed above from causing your clients to go elsewhere. When you communicate clearly, thoroughly, and effectively, you can work through most of the other reasons why you might lose clients. Following your communication strategy helps increase your lead conversion and ensures you develop great relationships with your clients that will lead to repeat and referral business for years to come!

I would love to help you design, implement, and follow through with a simple and effective communication strategy to grow your business. To learn more and book a free 20-minute call, connect with me HERE!

Thanks for stopping by!

Ciao for now!