HOW TO TALK TO A CLIENT
What a funny subject! Visual communicators don't understand how to communicate with the most basic form of communication: by talking.
Someone
once said that visual communicators became visual communicators because
they are incapable of communicating otherwise, and in fact, there is
some truth in this. Unlike many other professions where you are trained
in how to use talking as a tool, designers throughout the world don't
understand that talking is a tool at all.
I would like to
give you a very short introduction in the skill of using language as a
functional tool. I have 30 minutes. The aim of this introduction is to
enable you to:
a) satisfy clients;
b) sell ideas successfully;
c) make more money;
d) become more efficient.
It's
a lot for such a short time. By the way, setting up the aim before
going into any conversation with the client is lesson number one. Set
up your aims before you talk (or, switch on your brain before you open
your mouth).
Don't waste your time or your client's time by
not knowing what to say and why to say it. Once you are well prepared
you should know:
a) what type of conversation you are going to have;
b) how much time you have for it;
c) what result you expect to get.
Once you have got what you want, or if you see that you're not going to get it, finish and leave.
It
is very difficult and frustrating to regard talking purely as a
function. Where is the intellectual and human exchange of fascinating
points of view, the thrill of feelings, the satisfaction of having come
to know someone else's mind, and - last but not least - escaping the
solitude and loneliness of the studio?
Forget it. We are talking business. If you want to talk feelings and friendship, it's the wrong time and the wrong place.
Attention:
there are some very professional business talkers who talk business
after 5 whiskeys in front of a warm, romantic fire; with them you will
have this feeling of finally having met a good friend. Of course we are
all emotional. Business is a tough game.
I don't want you to
start talking like machines or like the staff of some big international
companies. We should try to keep the advantage of being sensitive human
beings and visual artists.
I feel sorry for some of the
people I have to meet in my profession who have been overtrained in
functional talking. People who repeat without thinking what the sales
trainers tell them.
It's sometimes funny to see two
businessmen talking with each other and you know that person A has just
passed the killer-argument-seminar while person B successfully attended
the how-to-kill-killer-arguments-crash-course. Like everything in the
world, the importance of functional talking can be exaggerated.
But
we definitely need some more skills in how to talk. We need to talk
with our clients during the design process and even more, talking is a
professional necessity and completes our professional abilities.
The
design process has many more stages which influence the overall result
and not just the design stage. We should be aware of our professional
responsibility and use professional ways of communicating for better
results throughout the whole design process.
It already
starts at the sales prospect stage, which, let's be honest, is usually
the result of a recommendation from someone else or a satisfied client
rather than the result of systematic prospecting.
The
briefing stage follows. To continue, with honesty, how often do you get
a sufficient and problem-oriented briefing with all of the parameters
you need to come to a good solution? Don't answer. I work in Europe,
which is presumably very professional; in 20 years I have had maybe a
handful of good briefings.
Stage three is not, as you might
assume, creation or the creative process of designing. We all forget to
pass the business stage and the organization stage before we start the
creation stage.
In the creation stage you don't have to talk.
But as soon as you make the presentation, you again need words. How you
manage to get along in the modification stage can be very important for
the final result.
Finally, you also have to talk within the
production stage. This is very often the famous "deadline" talking. The
client is nervous and every mistake he makes will be held against you.
At
the end of the project, the project often continues. I'm talking about
the complaint stage. There are complaints about the quality, the
reliability, the timing and the costs.
Don't take complaints
as embarrassing faults or as mistakes which must be avoided. Nobody is
perfect and mistakes are likely, as we are all human. To deal with
complaints is an art.
If you act well in this stage, you can gain a lot of business. Some say that behind every complaint there is a new project.
I
recommend that you add another stage: the after-sales stage. It is very
successful in relation to the prospecting and helps a lot in building
up your business. It's very simple: just call your client from time to
time, not when you just have thought of them; follow a clear schedule.
Ask him how he is, if his little son is better again after the flu, if
he is happy with his new car, and if he is happy with the design and
the result it shows on the market. Yes, and if there's anything you can
do for him now? Not pushing, but caring for his well-being.
Each
different stage of talking needs a different approach. If you want to
use talking as a tool, you have to be aware of the different types of
conversations.
Do not mix up these different types of talking and, more important, do not allow others to get you mixed up.
When,
for example, you explain the refined and sophisticated design you have
created, don't allow and definitely don't answer questions like, "and
how much does this cost?" or "do you think we can get this in time?"
In these cases you simply say "I'll come back to this later." Believe me, it helps.
Let's have a closer look at the following types of talks:
1) the sales prospecting talk;
2) the introduction talk;
3) the briefing talk;
4) the money talk;
5) the design talk;
6) the complaint talk.
I
will not go into detail about the different types of conversation
partners, which would easily take another thirty minutes. But it's
surely important whether you are male or female, whether the person you
talk to is male or female, whether you are talking to one person or to
a group, whether you are talking to decision-makers or to
decision-influencers, what educational background the persons you are
talking with have, and so on.
It is also very important how
you feel and how well you are. It's a fact that functional talks are
games with winners and losers. You are unlikely to win when you are
weak. So, take good care of yourself.
In functional talks you have to open three more windows of the talking menu:
Talk
+ Listen;
+ Watch;
+ Analyze.
Actually, you have to talk, listen, watch and analyze all at the same time, and with the same intensity.
Now let's go into a little detail.
1. Sales Prospecting Talk
Many colleagues ask me how to get clients. It's a good question and I
often ask it myself. It's undoubtedly a question of instinct and a
certain talent. I think a design education should include much more of
those kinds of things. All I can tell you is that you should not wait
for a client like a rabbit for a snake, but choose your clients
yourself. I always hear from new clients that they have had bad
experiences with amateurs and they are afraid of getting disappointed
again, but that they did not actually know that I existed.
To
me this sounds like real life. How many lovers have not gotten together
because they did not dare tell the other? We are so afraid of getting
rejected and hurt.
But again, that is feelings. We are
talking business here. Choose a client, find out as much about him or
her as you can, and imagine what benefit you can provide. This benefit
must be greater than the benefit you get from the client: money and
reputation.
Once you know that there is something really good
that you have to offer, call the client and be very precise in telling
him that you think you have something to offer and that you need half
an hour of his precious time. Offer two options for a meeting: "Let's
say this month or next month?"
He will say next month.
First or second half?
Second.
First half of the week or second?
Second.
Thursday or Friday?
Thursday.
Morning or Afternoon?
Afternoon.
Earlier or later?
Earlier.
So I'll see you at 2:00 p.m. Thanks for the appointment.
Don't give the client a chance to say "No." He will say No! Did you analyze this conversation?
2. The Introduction Talk
You never get a second chance to make a first impression.
Be very brief in saying who you are, what you do, and what benefits clients get from your work.
Try
to learn as much as you can from the client. This is the big moment
where you get plenty of information if you ask the right questions. Let
people talk about themselves. Everyone likes to talk about themselves.
Take time to look around in his office. What's his hobby? Everybody
shows his hobby somewhere around his desk. Make him talk about his
hobby. He will talk for hours and he will like you.
People
like to talk to new conversation partners because the old ones normally
don't listen, and now, here is a chance to impress.
"What an
interesting person," said a man about his conversation partner, who had
not said a word during the entire conversation.
Don't tell how successful you are. Successful people are jealous about others' successes. Don't talk too much about yourself.
You
all know this one: "Sorry darling, I been talking about myself for
hours. Now let's talk about you: How do you like my new dress?"
There is one rule for all types of talks; the one who asks, leads. Or, if you want a hint: ask, don't answer!
What
was your aim before you went into this conversation? To get to know
someone you would never want to have a drink with if you met him in a
pub? To find someone to impress? No.
What you want is to be
able to make a next step, to get a briefing, a project and, as we are
all honest, to get the other person's money. Yes, it's true, we all
love our jobs and we do everything for an interesting and satisfying
project. But that is beside the point. The point is money. And if we
have fun, that's even better. But, no money, no fun. Businessmen don't
understand the fun of making good design anyway. To them it's fun to
deal with money.
So, finish the conversation by formulating
your aim in a diplomatic way. Don't say, "Thanks for all the rubbish
you told me, but what I want is your money!" Say, "Thank you very much
for the conversation. If you ever have a suitable briefing I would be
very pleased to hear from you again."
Give the client the
impression that you don't really need him and his money but that you
are an expert in solving his visual communication problems. Remember,
you have something to offer!
The client believes that he is
in a strong situation, having the power of money. But in fact, he needs
what you offer. Otherwise he would not invest his money in a project or
even talk to you. It's part of his functional game to put down your
value or even your self-confidence to get a lower price.
And, how easy is it to impress designers!
Young
designers often come up to me and say that they don't have references
and that they have no experience. Excuse me for comparing business with
normal life again: I recommend to every man who wants to make love with
a girl to NOT try to impress her by recounting the number of girls he
has had before and by showing her the portraits of the best looking
past lovers.
You get the job when you have built up the
confidence that you can solve the problem; experience and a nice
portfolio is neither the only nor the best way.
3. The Briefing Talk
What's the aim when you go into a briefing talk? To get as much
information as possible. And, in a competitive situation, to get more
information than your competitors. So ask, ask, ask and listen
carefully. The way you ask and the better structured your questions
are, the bigger your chance is to build up your confidence.
Don't
talk about the ideas you have that can solve the client's problems. You
don't even understand the problems, unless you take a few days to
analyze and consider.
Keep the customer hungry until he chooses from the menu.
I
recommend making short reports or memos of every contact and
conversation you have with the client. For example, send a thank you
note for the chance to meet the client, a written summary of the
briefing, etc. Keeping written records "proves" your professionalism.
4. The Money Talk
Money talk should not start earlier than at the end of the briefing.
"How much do you charge?" Do you know the answer in 90% of all cases?
The answer is "...um, er,...???"
But it should be, "How much do you intend to spend?" Ask, don't answer!
Take this simple case: a client offers a project. You dream about something like $1,000 US.
You
are clever enough not to answer the question of how much you charge but
ask the client in return. In many cases the answer is higher than you
hoped, so let's say $1,250 US.
Don't jump up, shouting "Yeah, great, man! I'd have done it for $1,000 US."
Smile affably and say, dead cool, "You are joking, aren't you? Double that."
Tough businessmen answer in this moment "OK, so we don't come together."
Get up, shake hands and say "It was nice meeting you."
Go
firmly to the door, prepared to leave. Either the client really has no
money - then why bother wasting time working for peanuts - or he has
the money but wants to bargain. Get what you can get in this moment.
Don't try to be a nice, polite and gracious person. It's not the
moment.
This business talk ends with $2,000 US and your
client still has the feeling of having saved a lot of money. And, you
will find out that it was still too little.
5. The Design Talk
By now, you should know your client well enough to know how to make the presentation.
Put
yourself into the position of your client. He has certain expectations
which you will not fulfill. He is nervous, insecure and the only
criteria he has is his own little bit of taste. In 95% of all
presentations I hear, "I like it," or, "I don't like it."
If he doesn't like it, it does not help to say "The worm must taste good to the fish, not to the fisherman."
But
if you have said this BEFORE the client has seen the design, he might
think before opening his mouth. In order to avoid taste as the only
criteria you have to build up trust and understanding. The best way is
by making the process visible.
Many clients today are a
little strange because they believe that they can make design
themselves by using a Mac or a PC. That's partly the fault of our
colleagues who kept the design process as a secret and made the client
believe that it's all in the skill of drawing. Now that they can "draw
with Corel," they consider themselves designers.
I tell my
clients exactly what I am doing and why I am doing it, before they see
the design. And I tell them this in writing. I always begin every
presentation by repeating the brief to remind the client of what he
asked me to do.
No briefing has the criteria of pleasing the taste of the boss's spouse or secretary.
The
next step I take is to explain to the client what I have considered,
what criteria have been considered important and how I structured the
design process. I build up the image of the design in his imagination.
I'm always fascinated when this works. Sometimes the client draws the
result on his writing pad before I even show it to him.
You
have to build up more than confidence in the solution. The client must
become excited and feel like part of the creative team. "It's not my
idea, it's our idea."
If the client, after all that, still
doesn't like what you have done, listen carefully to his criticism.
Sometimes "No" really means "Yes, but." Sometimes "Yes, but" simply
means "No." Listen. Don't be offended. Don't feel rejected. But don't
be too eager to do what the client wants. Don't forget, we had him up
to $2,000 US. He wants real value for his money.
Let me give
you an example of how I once sold a corporate design for a small
client. I knew from the briefing that he had very strange ideas. I made
a series of 10 different approaches - I normally present only one - but
this time I had a different strategy.
The client liked one version very much. "Very beautiful."
Without even looking at it I said: "That's the worst of them all."
He was destabilized.
"What about this one?"
"Second worst."
To make a long story short, at the end he wanted to have number ten.
I said "No."
"But why do you do all this?" he said, nearly lamenting.
"In order to train your taste," I said.
Two weeks later, I presented the one and only design I wanted him to have. He did not dare reject it.
6. The Complaint Talk
I love complaints. Most of them happen early in the morning.
You
just enter the studio when your secretary comes up to you, pale and
slightly shaking: "There is something wrong with project A for client
B."
Before I collect all the facts, I call the client.
Complaint talks are very important. Just listen to the client. Half of
the complaints have got nothing to do with you, but with the fact that
the poor chap has had one of those horrible arguments with his wife the
evening before. Or his boss had a bad night.
Listen for 20
minutes to the screaming and shouting at the other end and when you get
the impression that he has said what he needs to say, be very short,
precise and gracious: "Sir, I'll take care of it."
Don't say,
"I'm sorry for the mistake," or, defend yourself, or, even worse, tell
the client that he is wrong. Check the complaint and make a report.
Immediately. If it was someone else's fault, recommend reducing the
bill. If it was only a bad night, the client will turn down this
recommendation, having calmed down after 20 minutes of screaming. If it
was a real mistake, he is very pleased that he is working together with
you, such an efficient and loyal partner.
If it turns out to
be a mistake provoked by the client, I send him a bill for "having
called the fire brigade in false alarm." This is a good way to keep him
from wasting my time again.
If it turns out to be our
mistake, I apologize and ask for the bills to repair the mistake. Do
this with a very heroic voice, "Sir, it turned out to be our mistake. I
apologize. There is no excuse. Something like this should not happen.
Please send me all related bills. They will be paid without argument."
I
hate spending money on mistakes. But I always like the client's
reaction. Clients love partners who admit their own mistakes. No
arguments. No saying, "Yes, I made the mistake, but it was your fault."
But sometimes it's hard to distinguish others' mistakes from your own.
God,
give me the patience to bear what I have to bear, the power to change
what must be changed and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the
other.
Let's get back to the subject: how to talk to a client.
Working
in marketing, I've had the pleasure of taking several sales-training
courses, and I have to say, it helps. I gave you an extract of what I
think is essential. It's psychology, and concentrating on what's
important at the moment.
Good old Zen, the Buddhist, once was
asked why he was so efficient and at the same time so quiet and strong.
He said, "When I sit, I sit. When I stand up, I stand up. When I walk,
I walk. When I arrive, I arrive."
"But Master, that's exactly what we do."
"No," he replied. "When You sit, you get up, when you get up, you walk, and when you walk, you arrive."
I confess, sometimes I make all the mistakes I just told you not to do.
I talk about design when I should talk about money.
I talk about feelings when I should talk about business.
I answer instead of asking.
I talk about myself, when I should listen to the other.
That's when I lose.
I want you to win, and I hope I did not waste your precious time.
Thanks for listening.
About this article
This article, submitted by German designer Michael Hardt, is based on a presentation he made at the 1997 Icograda Congress in Punta del Este, Uruguay. It has previously appeared in "Fresh," the Bulletin of Design South Africa, and in Australia on the AGDA website. It is featured here with his permission. Michael Hardt is a past Vice President of Icograda. © 1997, Michael Hardt.