One of the best ways to run a good business as well as keep the clients which you currently have is to build a strong relationship with your clients. Everyone likes to feel appreciated and this is true for those who have a business relationship. The clients want to feel as if they matter to the business owner as they are part of the reason why the business is still in existence. There are a few ways for business owners to build a strong relationship with their customers as doing so will not only maintain their client base but possibly expand it as well through recommendations.

Know Your Clients by Name

One of the best ways for business owners to build a strong relationship with their clients is to know them by name and address them as such whenever they contact them. A business owner who knows their client by name will make the customer feel appreciated and give them their due recognition. This will show the client that they matter to the owner and are good customers overall. It is also a good idea for the employees of the business to familiarize themselves with the clients and acknowledge them by name as well since employees are an extension of the business owner and the business itself.

Make Conversation with Your Clients

Although it is important to discuss business matters at length with your clients it is also a wise idea to make small talk with them as well. Doing so will show them that you are interested in them as individuals and not just view them as income. Just be sure to keep the small talk light and not be too intrusive with your questions or conversations.

Offer Incentives to Your Regular Customers

Another way to build a strong relationship with your customers is to offer free incentives from time to time. For example, if you run a restaurant try to offer your regular clients a free dessert or beverage once in a while. Doing so will show them that you acknowledge their constant patronage and appreciate them choosing your establishment over others. Offering incentives can be as small or as great as you would like them to be. However, it is a good idea to not offer these incentives too often as the customers may come to expect them after a while. Just do so on an occasional basis.

Always Offer Top Notch Service

No matter how nice of a business owner you are or how many incentives you offer your clients, if you fail to offer top-notch services it can be the downfall to your business relationship. Therefore, another way to build a strong relationship is to ensure that the business offerings are always first rate.

Inquire About Customer Comments

Lastly, you should inquire with your customers from time to time with regard to how your business is doing overall. Ask your clients if there is anything you should consider changing to make your business more favorable to their needs. This is another way to really build a good relationship with your clients and keep them coming back for more time and time again.

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However there are a few factors that should be discussed:

1.If you were hired by a company where most of your work was related to a particular niche and you have sort of specialized in that field, then your primary step should be to find similar type of clients for the next projects. The main reason behind this aspect is that the specialists charge more for their expertise as compared to those who offer their services to a wider platform or across the board. Thus it is sensible to offer your services in the same niche and cash it. Hence choose clients which are providing similar work. This practice will not only improve your skills, it will make them come back to you all the time, because you are the “expert”. This approach will let you enjoy a higher margin of profit instead of the “jack of all trades” approach where you will keep marketing yourself all the time and get less clients.

2.Why have you chosen freelancing? Is it for part time basis or you enjoy a low living cost? If yes then you should not be bothered about the profits that much. This eases your problem of choosing the clients. You can work with any client who offers work at low rates.

3.In case freelancing is what your living depends on, then you need good financial returns. In the freelancers’ arena, most will tell you that it is easier to obtain business from the old clients. Actually it is true. You will have tough time converting the cold contacts into regular or paying clients. So, the other aspect of freelancing is that you train yourself in other skills. Especially the skills which are in demand so that you are more proficient in offering a variety of services to your new clients or industry where your skill will be able to boost the profitability of the client who is lacking in these in-house skills.

4.Next aspect is to get yourself marketed by the word of mouth. This kind of freelancing works well within markets which require special sets of skills. Do not always look for clients who are paying you high money. Try to gel with the clients who will pay you just $50 for a logo design but have a clear communication. You should actually enjoy working with them. On the other hand, clients who require careful handling may drain your enthusiasm and many work hours.

Now that you have chosen your client, communication is the next issue. How will you ensure that the next time your client thinks about work, he thinks about you? Do you know that 80% of your business comes from the 20% of your clients? So what is the key to such business? It is the regular communication which is most essential.

1.Always ask for the client’s feedback. It shows how much you value their opinion. Apart from that it also tells you about the problem areas so that you can improve your skills and do not deliver defective work in future. So a small questionnaire can be emailed to him and you can ask him to spend some time to complete that so as to evaluate your skills and work. This kind of communication will save you from any embarrassment that can be there during personal meetings.

2.Once you have finished with the project, follow up with your client so that this demonstrates your ongoing interest in doing business with him.

3.Keeping in touch with your clients is the golden rule of freelancing. A “Happy New Year” card, “good luck” card, “get well soon” card etc are some of the best ways.

The bottom line is that, choose a client and try to build a long lasting relationship with him that is mutually beneficial.

If you are a freelancer, be it any field, you will have to handle your clients by self always. It can be in matters of the price quote, quality of work, delivery date, and anything else related to the project. Quoting a price for the service you offer and making the client agree to it is hard at times. It becomes the more difficult when the client is new in the business and don’t know the various aspects of the service you provide. You may be an experienced professional in the domain and your services may not be like the others. In these situations, the clients may not quote a budget in the first instance, instead ask you to quote one.

If you feel that the business is really tempting, there are certain ways to convince your client to pay you more than what they agree for. You can reduce some additional services you provide in your usual work and simply just cater specifically to their needs alone and work for a lower price suiting you. Or instead of the overall estimate, you can go for an hourly pay. But before opting for this, work out a rough estimate of the time required to complete the work.

Never lose your professional ethics and go for a bargain. Tell them what your services are and stay fixed to your quote. If the client is really interested in quality work, they will fall in for your professional attitude and work. But you must be sure that your quote is realistic and in balance with the other service providers in the industry. Otherwise you can be sidelined as too expensive and they may seek new professionals.

If the client is not willing to pay you your price, spend a little more time with them. Show them a few of your works. Tell them how it has impacted the client’s business and the positive reviews received for the work. Give them time to browse through your work, see every aspect of it, and understand for themselves why you are expensive! By this they will have an opportunity to understand that you are not simply fluffing about your work. But you are indeed worth the price they pay.

Sometimes a promising client may agree that your works are superb and you are the one in demand, but may disagree with the dealing stating that the rate is too high for them. If you feel that the client is one probable of gaining you more good businesses, don’t turn down the offer. Take some time and think about it. You may be capable of doing some adjustments in your service. Lower your rate a bit. Be sure that you don’t go in completely with their offer. Maintain a stand that you are lowering it for the client’s sake. Discuss the work with the client and work out a schedule such that you do not spend time more than required, for this one project. That saved hours can be spend on other profitable projects.

There is another possible way of getting your clients agree to your rate. Apart from the regular services you provide for the mentioned quote, add in one or two more. For example, if you are a web designer and the client wants a website for their new product, make a combo deal for them. Offer to design the logo along with the website. Convince them on how is it profitable for them to make you design the logo than going for a new designer who may charge extra. Clubbing offers and services always work. But you must be good enough in the extra services you provide as well. Extending the services is also good at times. You can extend the service by signing up a contract for a period or so.

There are certain tips to add the professionalism to your services so that clients will not reject you for your expensive rate. Be an expert in what you do. Instead of doing too many things, concentrate on that one or two things you do. This can make your work highly sought after. Keep improving your skills by advancing with the technology and attending workshops in your field. Maintain some high profile clients in client list. This will automatically increase your market value. Follow professional ethics and guidelines in the work you do. If you follow these things in your profession, clients will certain agree to pay you what you charge. And always keep your rates offered to a specific client confidential. Never disclose rate matters to other clients.

You can also use a psychological approach to make your client pay the reasonable amount you demand. Never get into an argument with a client or get irritated when they say you are expensive. Stay calm. If you get irritated, you are spoiling the business. Give your best behaviour to them. Rather than talking strictly on the business lines, try to be a bit casual. Speak about the trends and advancements in the field and get a bit friendly. Finally make your quote. They would not be able to deny you.

Give them good ideas and tell them the different ways in which the idea can be expressed. But do not give them too much of detail. The client must get the idea clearly across that you are definitely capable of doing the job and has lots of ideas. This will make the client feel that paying a bit more than the budget is indeed worth. Sometimes, instead of saying a round figure in the first go, split the charges in your invoice. Tell them what each sub-service would cost them and make them understand the importance of each unit. If the client does not require a particular sub-service, just remove it. But in this method, identify those sub-services which are the most important and charge them accordingly. This way you can charge the client directly for each single work you do to complete the project.