By Lee. W. Frederiksen, Ph.D.
Some clients can be impossible to please. When you do exactly what they ask, they aren’t happy. When you offer your expert advice them, they ignore it. When you provide top quality work, they don’t appreciate it. What do clients really want?
That’s a question we’ve been pondering for some time. Now we have a clear answer.
Hinge is about to release a brand new study of professional services buyer behavior. In this study we conducted in-depth interviews with 137 professional services buyers. We looked at all aspects of the relationship, from firm selection to termination to referrals. While we heard a broad range of needs and preferences, we found a surprising amount of common ground.
Whether you are government buyer or an entrepreneurial CEO, you share a core of common priorities. This holds true whether you are purchasing engineering services or IT consulting, accounting or management consulting. Further, if you understand these priorities, some seemingly arbitrary client behavior suddenly makes more sense.
What did we find? Here are the three most important priorities a client wants out of a business relationship:
- Solve my problem.
A firm’s ability to address the problem is the basis for all professional services relationships and clearly the top priority. Clients have problems they need to solve. They must have engineering drawings to get the building permit. They must have accurate financials to submit to the board next Wednesday. They must figure out how to structure a bonus program. They must be able to upgrade their CRM system. They must file a specific form with Office of Management and Budget or their new budget cannot be approved. The list is as long and varied as the world of professional services.Sometimes the real problem is not the one the client presented at the outset. Sometimes the problem morphs over the course of an engagement. Sometimes the client is too close to an issue to be able to articulate it. Uncovering the real issue should be your top priority.
When a company or government agency resolves to select a professional service firm, the overwhelming bulk of their selection criteria are focused on finding out if the firms can solve their problem: Have you done this before? Do you understand my issue? Do you have relevant skills and expertise? If the buyer is not convinced that you can solve the problem, you will not be selected — no matter how much they like you.
- Make my life easier.
Will working with you make the buyer’s life easier or more difficult? This is the essence of customer service. It’s also where cost comes into play. If two vendors appear equally qualified to solve the buyer’s problem, which one is an easier choice? Convenience, cost, schedule, ease of coordination are all important at this level. However, these factors become insignificant if the first priority (solve my problem) isn’t met.
- Let’s be friends.
A good relationship can be important. Golf outings and long lunches are fine. Trust and friendship can help you get you preferential consideration for new work. Just keep in mind that in today’s business world friendship is no substitute for higher priority considerations.
In the best case scenario, you will be able to cover all three priorities. If you can understand and solve the problem, make your buyer’s life easier and be fun to work with, you will have clients galore.
Filed under: Government Contracting, Marketing, Professional Services | Leave a Comment
Tags: buyer behavior, Professional Services
No Responses Yet to “The Three Things Every Client Wants”