Deciding to conduct business with a new vendor can be a scary proposition. You don’t really know this business, per se. Sure, you have read the reviews and talked to current clients. But what if something goes wrong? What do you do then?
Client onboarding reduces that scary, anxious feeling that your prospect-turned-client experiences. You have built a level of trust with the prospect – enough for them to agree to do business with you. So it only makes sense that you keep that trust moving forward as you begin the business relationship. Here are three reasons why a Client onboarding SOP makes sense.
1. Everyone craves structure
Have you ever worked with Quickbooks or a similar accounting software? Bookkeeping is not my area of expertise. When I started using Quickbooks, I had to relearn it every month. It took me several hours on the weekend to remember how I posted journal entries every month.
Now imagine your brand new client trying to navigate working with you.
- Do you want them to drive that process?
- Do you want the client to guess how to best reach you if something goes wrong?
- How will your new client get the information that YOU need from them to produce results?
A client onboarding SOP removes the mystery and anxiety and replaces that with clear steps on how to best work together . It shows you are organized, reliable, and know what you are doing. The trust factor goes up by 1000% almost immediately.
2. Client Onboarding = Time Well Spent
Time is precious. Time is money, as the saying goes.
When a client-customer relationship is formed, it takes time to ramp up. As a vendor, you need to understand the client’s goals and challenges. Your product or service helps the client reach goals and solve problems.
Yes – of course. But that’s obvious.
The time it takes for you to get there means more dollars in your pocket and theirs. Clear steps for client onboarding help things move smoothly and quickly. Your team and the client’s team knows what they need to do and when they need to do it. When everyone knows their part, it’s easier to work together as a team.
3. Happy clients mean a happy business
Happy Wife = Happy Life, right?
The same goes for your clients. If you make clients happy from the very beginning, you set them up for success and have a satisfied customer.
Let’s face it, when we work with someone for the very first time, we want to feel special. Clients invest time, energy, and money into your product or service. The 30-minute onboarding call that you have with a customer shows that you care about their needs and the experience you want them to have.
Clients who feel welcome are likely to stick around. They will tell their friends and colleagues about your business. And when you do inevitably run into an issue or challenge in the client relationship, you will navigate through it much easier.
In Conclusion…
Ultimately, having clear steps for client onboarding makes sense. It builds trust, gets things done faster, and makes clients feel happy and valued. Your clients will love working with you! Your homework assignment for this month: the next time you start working with a new company, pay attention to how they welcome you aboard. It will tell you what kind of experience you can expect to have with them during the good times and not-so-good times!
Getting your own set of SOPs started is easy! Download our FREE “In Case of Emergency” SOP template. Then, let’s chat for 20-30 minutes on how you can best implement this freebie, and how you can start your Client Onboarding SOP. Schedule your no-obligation discovery call with LaRinda at Expert Virtual Services today!