The Site Shed | Systems, Strategy and Growth for Tradies and Contractors

How to Manage Client Expectations Like a Boss

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Description

We’ve all been there—the barrage of questions fired at you, the requests that go beyond what’s reasonable, the phone calls every now and then on project updates. One of the biggest problems we all face at the start and middle of a project is dealing with our client’s expectations. We just can’t seem to put their worries and queries to rest. However, since they are making the biggest investment in their lives, it’s unavoidable for them to want to hear feedback now and again. So what can you do to manage those expectations?

Overcoming the communication barrier between client and tradie and understanding that they don’t speak the same language that you do are key to handling your clients. And that’s what we’re here to discuss with Russ Stevens, Co-Founder of the Association of Professional Builders. From onboarding clients to doing milestone meetings, you’ll find so much value in this episode that it’s a crime not to watch.

Be a pro at handling your clients from start to finish by tuning in to this episode!

What’s Discussed in This Episode:

  1. What Russ and the Association of Professional Builders do for tradies [02:52]
  2. How to deal with client expectations from start to finish [03:39]
    • Be proactive, not reactive [06:05]
  3. Systemisation is a never-ending improvement [08:16]
  4. When you try to go the extra mile for the client, a scope creep is to be expected [09:05]
  5. Proper communications set proper client expectations [11:23]
    • Enabling the client to see the project’s progress using software [12:38]
  6. Business education may not have been taught at school, but it can be developed [13:49]
  7. How to improve and smoothen your client onboarding process [15:57]
    • Upon onboarding your client, do not rush, take your time [18:27]
    • When talking to your client, try to steer clear from the tradies jargon [19:13]
    • Automating and streamlining your client onboarding process [20:31]
    • Client offboarding is just as important as onboarding [22:17]
  8. Russ’ advice on doing milestone meetings [23:35]
    • Should you include possible project variations on milestone meetings? [25:24]
  9. Attracting the right type of customer from a marketing and sales perspective [26:46]
    • Asking the right questions to avoid disqualifying the right clients [28:49]
  10. Remaining proactive with a potential client to get a potential sale in the long run [30:35]
  11. The new way to attract quality leads [32:59]

About the Guest:

Russ Stephens is the co-founder of the Association of Professional Builders, a business coaching company dedicated to improving the residential construction industry for both builders and consumers. He helps builders systemise their building company, resulting in an improved client experience which leads to more demand. This allows an increase in margins and ultimately the ability to scale their businesses into desirable building companies that possess real value and can be sold as an asset.

He firmly believes that residential home builders deserve to be earning more money for the service they are providing and that consumers deserve a superior service than they currently receive.

Resources: 

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