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by Samantha Simons
WHITE Glove Service and Client RETENTION
How to retain top clients and achieve excellence
August, 2016
This article has been approved to be published as an exemplary article for the ‘Panel of Influencers’ for the National Association of Sales Professionals — An Invitational Panel that Ms. Simons is an Elite Member of since 2011. As an Elite Member on the Panel of Influencers Simons’ judges the work of others and is a Certified Invitational Member of the Panel. National Association of Sales Professionals (NASP) — An organization that consists of outstanding Leading Professionals who rank in the top 10% of their respective field or industry in terms of outstanding Executive Performance on a National scale.
Marked by special care or attention is the definition of “white glove service” in the Merriam Webster Dictionary. It takes decades of industry experience, surrounding yourself with fellow leaders and providing ultimate care and attention to Clients to get to the ‘club of excellence’ in being able to attract and retain top Clients in the billion dollar category.
White Glove service is the philosophy of not just servicing the Client’s wants and needs but exceeding their expectations and going the extra mile or two. Simply put ‘raising the bar’ and separating yourself from the rest of the pack.
What are some of the key drivers of excellence to retain top Clients
Is One More Mile Enough?: Going the extra mile is NOT a one-time awesome experience for the Client. It’s a daily exercise. There is something to be said for going above and beyond the Client’s expectations. It’s called reciprocity. It must be part of your corporate culture. It needs to ruminate to the Client in your daily energy and passion. You need to show them that you are always delivering the best experience on each and every task and that you care about them more than just the average.
In Real Estate, for example, it is not just about servicing the Client’s acquisition needs and acting as a Broker to conduct the ‘routine’ tasks that will close the deal, This doesn’t set you apart and make the Client feel valued or extra special. It’s about researching the asset and providing a detailed business plan and evaluation of where the current and future value lies in the asset for the Client. Unlocking the true investment potential of the Asset and provisioning an engaging, ‘outside the box’, value-added business plan with the alignment of an outstanding team of professionals who will accompany you and the Client to take the acquisition to a new heightened level of appreciation and investment return. This distinguished and resourceful approach takes acquisition to a dynamic, sustainable and profitable overall investment opportunity for the Client and set’s you apart from the “competition”.
The Art of Listening: Being tuned into the Client and listening to their wants and needs will result in a more communicative and impactful long-term relationship. Listening increases trust and inspires a higher level of commitment in the Clients you service. When trying to attract and retain VIP Clients it is of paramount importance to tune into the Client and understand how they ‘tic’ and operate. Additionally, understanding the fears and ‘stuff’ that Clients are not comfortable with on projects can be distilled by intuitive listening, answering questions and providing practical solutions that pinpoint problems and produce satisfactory results so Clients feel a strong sense of comfort.. Being extremely attentive and listening to the Client’s needs will help articulate the best ‘win win’ strategy that will drive Clients’ to reach their respective goals and beyond.
Can you do it Faster and Better?: A key ingredient to keeping Clients happy and satisfied is excellence and timely delivery of promised services. It is always better to under promise and over deliver and exceed the Clients expectations. Leaving a customer just satisfied is synonymous with average. There is no lasting impression. Getting a product or service to your Client ahead of schedule, provides a more lasting impression and delivers a WOW emotion to the Client. When a Client receives unexpected quality and performance standards this creates loyalty and perceived value that drives the task you just completed ‘up a notch’ in customer satisfaction and puts you ahead of the ‘competition’.
How is your Service Etiquette?: One of the most important and effective business etiquettes with attracting and retaining high profile Clients is to get to know the Client on a much more intimate level and provide a customized approach with personalized services that adjust to the Client’s preferences. Providing turnkey solutions with value-add optimization to the overall economics of the project, incorporating key drivers of dynamic and sustainable growth will enable you to service the Client above and beyond their ‘standard’ expectations. Providing exceptional deliverables and follow through which garner the competitive edge over larger Firms will establish why the Client chooses to retain you to service them.
Why Project Management Matters: In attracting top Clients in today’s chaotic economy it is intrinsically important to consistently deliver outstanding business results. Disciplined project management with execution at every level of the deliverable, adds value to the overall strategic investment program and provides for measureable success of projects and organizational excellence for the Client. The agility and practiced ability to move smoothly from big idea to big idea with opacity, framework, resources, greater efficiencies, lower costs and ultimate stakeholder satisfaction — all dictates increased value contributors amongst Clients’ project satisfaction and are often the chief determining factors on whether you will get retained for the next job.
Who is your Company?: You are only as good as who you surround yourself with. Accompanying yourself with people who are positive, successful leaders in their respective industry and profession will set you apart as you define your Company’s expertise to your Client and your ability to get the job done. You are a product of your environment and if you interact with like-minded people who are established and equally as passionate as you are and share the same drive to achieve excellence and go the extra mile for the Client – Then the TEAM will be engaged to work together with their respective skills and talents and will divide and conquer through the strategic project path, results will shine through and excellence will be achieved for the Client and your Company will be rewarded for its productivity.
Consistency is key: One of the key drivers that ‘checks the boxes’ of a Client’s satisfaction is consistency. One of the most powerful triggers that emits a measurement of overall trust, satisfaction and loyalty as Clients’ embark on their relationship journey is Consistency. It is the emotional connection and differentiator for the Client to select you vs A.N.OTHER for the job at hand. Superior consistency in your deliverables and execution, engages trust and credibility with respect to how Clients’ feel about you. It is important for Clients to feel that they are in safe hands and this is represented with your consistent ability to organize project tasks with ease, attention to details and to be error free. Knowing how to think before you do the task will distinguish you from the ‘others’ and showcase your ability to focus not only on the task at hand but also to critically think about the scope of work. A Client may be asking you for cost savings, but first understand why and how this can be critical to the immediate task, as well as the overall business plan. Thinking things through this way will help develop consistent, insightful solutions for your clients without jumping the gun and making mistakes along the way. Top Clients have less patience than the ‘average’ and don’t want to see variability in delivery. Consistency not only maximizes customer satisfaction but gets the Client to spend more money with you as they believe in you and are ultimately happy.
Entrepreneurial Content: Focusing on being a “Generation X” leader will enable you to flourish with your Client, discover invaluable opportunities, and stay focused on what matters most. How you can ‘stand-alone’ in the crowd and make a difference in your engaged deliverables will be key in Client retention. Taking on a project that embraces ‘outside the box’ opportunities for the Client will open you up in the playing field of innovation, open-mindedness and cutting-edge entrepreneurial spirit. Being hands-on with the Client, staying focused with the respective tasks at hand, while surrounding yourself with like-minded leaders on your Team, will provide the Client with confidence that performance goals are being met and projects are staying on point to meet deadlines and exceed expectations.
There are many elements to offering “White Glove Services” to retain top Clients and enable you to be a trusted source and advisor to your Client. It is ultimately important not only provide all the tools in the customer service box but to deliver a consistent experience at a very high level of engagement so that your Client trusts you to be an integral part of their business and Team that will lead each and every project to be a success.
About the author