Most of my recent posts have been about how to deal when the world changes practically overnight. I think I was doing some processing with all of you but I hope it helped! This week we’re coming back to that business content you’ve all been craving. I want to talk about communication. Communicating with your clients! Next week, with your staff.
When things change, big or small, many of us wait for someone to tell us what to do, or what it means. We listen to podcasts, watch or read the news, talk to people we trust and eventually we form our own, albeit influenced, opinions. Your clients are the same way. When schools closed and most businesses went into lock down I knew my clients were worried. The ones that needed us were worried we wouldn’t be there or that it wasn’t safe. The ones that didn’t need us anymore worried if we’d still be here when they went back to work. It was so important for me to reach out and remind them that we’re here. I did the research and found we were allowed to continue operating. I did further research and found what practices I could take to protect my staff and clients. Then I sent an email. This all happened in about a day. Maybe two. I wanted them to know that we were taking this seriously, and that we were still here for them. The response was almost immediate. People asked how they could help us, both the company and their individual walkers. They thanked us for continuing to help them as we all navigated new challenges. They stepped up. It all started with an email. I didn’t ask for them to keep using our services or to over tip their dog walkers, but they did. I continued to keep them updated due to changes in the requirements and in our own policies as we learned more about what was effective and what wasn’t.
I hope that we never have a moment where so much changes for all of us, all at once, again. Even with small changes though, communication is key. Telling clients about a policy change in clear, brief emails with a small explanation on how it’s meant to make things better for everyone, is so important. People don’t like to be blindsided and it’s so simple to keep everyone informed. One email will save so much time in the long run.