The Art Of Client Service, Revised And Updated Edition Part 5

CHAPTER 26.

Better to Have It and Not Need It, Than to Need It and Not Have It Are you familiar with the "umbrella theory" of life? The theory goes like this: If it looks like rain, carry an umbrella and there won't be any. The theory applies not just to rain, but to account management. The idea is to antic.i.p.ate what might happen and prepare for it. Chances are it won't happen, but if it does, you'll be ready. It's the way to stay out of the rain in dealing with clients.

I remember once being in a second round creative presentation when the client asked, "Can I take another look at the idea I killed the last time we met?" I looked at the creative director; she looked at me. We both had a.s.sumed the work was dead, and didn't think to bring it with us. I never let that happen again. I don't care if I'm on the fifth round of creative presentations; I make sure I have all the work from the previous rounds.

For a different creative presentation, I remember rus.h.i.+ng to get all the work together, and neglecting to bring a copy of the creative brief. I didn't realize my oversight until we were in the meeting and I went fumbling in my briefcase for the brief that wasn't there. I sure didn't look like the b.u.t.toned-up account executive I thought myself to be. Instead, I looked pretty foolish.

In the barely controlled chaos that often precedes a client presentation, it's easy to forget something, or to find yourself scrambling to locate a doc.u.ment that suddenly becomes the focus of the discussion. So I suggest you make a checklist for yourself. This will force you to antic.i.p.ate the questions or issues that might arise in the discussion, then will help you create and compile all the materials you might need to respond.

As you try to squeeze a two-foot pile of stuff into your ultra-thin, ultra-cool briefcase, remember that it's better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. Even if you have to walk into the meeting with a shopping bag bursting with background material.

CHAPTER 27.

Support What You Say I remember an instance when a single unsupported a.s.sertion derailed an entire presentation. remember an instance when a single unsupported a.s.sertion derailed an entire presentation.

My agency colleagues and I were presenting an ad campaign to a prospective client. Key to the campaign was a particular celebrity spokesperson. We believed this spokesperson was perfect for the client, and for the audience we were trying to reach.

We just a.s.sumed the client would agree with us. So when the client asked us for some data or research to support our recommendation, all we could do is offer more opinions. We found ourselves saying "We think this" and "We feel that" when what the client wanted to hear is "Here's what we know know, and here are the facts to back it up." Our lack of supporting data made us look unprofessional.

We probably probably were right about the celebrity working well for this client, but the client was were right about the celebrity working well for this client, but the client was unequivocally unequivocally right to expect us to make a sound case for our recommendation. When we didn't, we undermined our credibility and sabotaged our entire presentation. Needless to say, we didn't get the account. right to expect us to make a sound case for our recommendation. When we didn't, we undermined our credibility and sabotaged our entire presentation. Needless to say, we didn't get the account.

Well before you make a presentation, check it for any claims it makes. If there's an opinion that won't stand up to a client's challenge, make sure you go back and build a case for it. If you find you can't build a case for that opinion, you're better off keeping it to yourself.

CHAPTER 28.

Listening Is More Important Than Talking At a major presentation for a big piece of business, my colleagues and I came prepared with what we thought was powerful strategic insight and dazzling creative. We presented with great self-a.s.surance for more than 90 minutes. When we were done, we asked, "Are there any questions?"

The room was silent. Then the lead client stood up and said, "Very impressive. It's clear you thought long and hard about our business. Speaking on behalf of my colleagues, I want to thank you for all your effort. You'll be hearing from us in about a week."

We were dumbstruck. No questions? Not a single one? All we could do was thank the clients for their time, shake their hands, and leave.

A week later we heard from the client. The company had selected another agency.

It should have come as no surprise to us. During our presentation, we did all the talking. Not one of us thought to stop and ask the clients, "How do you feel about this?" or, "That's our opinion; what's yours?" or, "Am I being clear on this point?"

We came off as arrogant and tone deaf. I later learned the client felt browbeaten and excluded.

We should have known then what I know now: If, at the end of your presentation, you and your colleagues have done all the talking, you will know that you have failed.

The goal isn't to deliver your lines exactly as rehea.r.s.ed. The goal isn't to make all of the points you want to make. The goal is to be effective, and that means engaging the client, as early and as often as possible, in a discussion that leads to a sharing of ideas and opinions, and that ultimately leads to a meeting of the minds.

In one of the best new business pitches I ever partic.i.p.ated in, my colleagues and I never actually got to present. We certainly were prepared, but the client preferred to talk, and we let him. It led to a freewheeling, wide-ranging discussion. We went well over our allotted time. Ultimately we were awarded the account.

It was the best presentation I never never made. made.

Running a meeting . . .

CHAPTER 29.

Start on Time, End on Time Does anyone in advertising pay attention to this simple rule? I doubt it. Okay, with client meetings agencies certainly try to be punctual. But then the clients usually keep the agency waiting. If the problem is chronic with your clients, you have two options: 1) put up with it, or 2) gently, very gently, remind them they are paying for all those people cooling their heels in the conference room.

With internal meetings at the agency, usually everyone keeps everyone else waiting. You can do something about it, however. If it's your meeting, start it on time. If it's someone else's meeting, show up on time. If the meeting leader isn't there, or isn't ready to start, give him or her ten minutes, then leave. Do that a couple of times and people will get the message.

With everyone on call to clients, there are going to be occasions when people will be late for internal meetings. The goal is to make that the exception, not the rule. The idea is to respect your colleagues' time, which allows you to ask for the same in return.

Once a meeting is underway, the goal should be to make it as short as possible. Get it done so everyone can get out and do the work.

Another secret to meetings that respect everyone's time is to have fewer of them. If people are chronically late to meetings, it might be the result of too many meetings that add too little value to the work process. So when you call a meeting, be certain it's necessary, invite only the people who need to be there, and make sure you accomplish what you set out to accomplish. If you do these things, you will become known as a person who gets things done. People might be late to other meetings, but they'll show up on time for yours.

CHAPTER 30.

Have an Agenda and Stick to It (Most of the Time) The process of creating an agenda in advance helps you determine if you actually need need a meeting, or if a phone call or an e-mail will do. I'm a big believer in face-to-face contact, but I also know that too many meetings can impede work rather than advance it. That's the test: Ask yourself if the meeting will advance the work. If the answer is no, or if the answer is that I can accomplish the same objective as effectively without a meeting, then don't have it. a meeting, or if a phone call or an e-mail will do. I'm a big believer in face-to-face contact, but I also know that too many meetings can impede work rather than advance it. That's the test: Ask yourself if the meeting will advance the work. If the answer is no, or if the answer is that I can accomplish the same objective as effectively without a meeting, then don't have it.

a.s.suming the meeting is necessary, you should create an agenda, and not just in your head. Putting it on paper shows respect for the other partic.i.p.ants. It also gives you a way to solicit input. This is particularly important when preparing for client meetings. You want your client's input before you get in the conference room. Nothing undermines efficiency worse than convening a group, only to find there is disagreement over the meeting's purpose and content.

At the meeting itself, the agenda provides focus, and helps keep you on course. Start by asking if everyone is comfortable with what's planned. If it's a client meeting, be particularly sensitive to the client's wishes. Restate the meeting duration: "This should take us about 30 minutes."

The agenda should be your guide, but don't let it control you-you should control it. Agendas are not written in stone, and agencies are in the idea business. If a meeting takes an unexpected but promising turn, be prepared to go with the flow. I've been in meetings where, quite unexpectedly, wonderful discoveries were made or insights revealed. In some of these situations, my agency colleagues and I were meeting on something quite unrelated to the breakthrough we achieved. That's a great meeting.

CHAPTER 31.

Be Brief, Be Bright, Be Gone I've been trapped in a thousand meetings and conversations that have gone twice as long as they needed to.

I'm sure I've been as long-winded as the next person.

The way to shorten those meetings and conversations is to come to the table prepared. Know what you want the outcome of the meeting, the conversation, or the presentation to be. Say what you have to say quickly, clearly, and concisely. Don't waste your clients' or colleagues' time. The workday is long enough as it is.

Above all, know when to close your briefcase. Once you have buy-in, it's time to move on. If you continue to talk, you might talk people out of what they just agreed to.

I know one CEO who can be very persuasive. He has just one flaw: He doesn't know when to shut up. He makes his case-people often agree with him-but then he keeps talking, and before long those he persuaded are rethinking their decision.

You're probably wondering who that CEO is. It's me.

CHAPTER 32.

Lead the Meeting, Don't Tyrannize It Your role is to guide the discussion, to keep everyone on track, and to ensure you efficiently accomplish what needs to get done, while leaving room for productive detours and digressions. You want to make sure all voices are heard, and actively seek partic.i.p.ation from those who are more inclined to listen than contribute.

If anything is unclear, your job is to make sure it becomes clear by probing the other people in the room or on the phone. It's important to grasp not only the text of what people are saying, but also the unspoken subtext.

With clients, there will be times when you detect a subtext to a comment or a reaction, but choose to deal with it privately, after the meeting. You'll have to judge when this is the best course of action.

For example, if the subject of cost comes up in a large group meeting, it sometimes is better to take the conversation offline, where you and your client can speak privately.

Let's say you're in a large group meeting and you observe the client being short with one person on your agency team. It could be nothing, or it could be a sign of a bigger, deeper problem. You don't want to ignore the sign, but you certainly don't want to pursue it in a roomful of people. The right course of action is to follow-up in private with your client.

In-person meetings are easy to run compared with teleconferences, but teleconferences are an unfortunate reality, especially with out-of-town colleagues or clients.

On the speakerphone you don't have the advantage of face-to-face contact, or the clues of body language. Voice inflections become muddy. So you need to work extra hard to ensure all views are expressed and heard. You must pay extra attention to hear the subtext of any client commentary.

Every meeting should have a well-defined ending, where you recap any decisions reached, next steps to be taken, and who owns them. This requires not only that you listen well, but also that you take careful notes. In short, meetings matter. It's your responsibility to facilitate the desired outcome by leading, not dominating, the discussion.

CHAPTER 33.

Always Follow Up This has happened to me more times than I care to remember: I meet with a client to go over a creative brief or something similar. We discuss, negotiate, agree. Or so I think. The next time we meet, I hear "That's not what we agreed to."

Sometimes I'm dealing with a client who suffers from a convenient form of memory loss, which seems to only affect his or her ability to recall our last discussion. Colleagues are not immune from the disease either, and I admit I myself have suffered from it on occasion. Other times it's not a case of selective memory; instead something really did get lost in translation. You finish a discussion, you think you have consensus, only to discover there is a disconnect somewhere.

That's why it's critical to follow up every meeting, every call, every decision. Never a.s.sume there is closure; secure closure. Immediately after the meeting concludes, follow up with an e-mail conference report. It is not necessary to revisit the discussion. Simply bullet the decisions reached and the next steps required.

You should do this for all meetings, but it is crucial for client meetings, because it provides an audit trail. Should a dispute arise later in the process, the conference reports will quickly confirm who agreed to what, and when.

Have I been clear? Or do I need to go over this again?

PART TWO.

Relations.h.i.+ps

Att.i.tude

CHAPTER 34.

Judgment Overrides.

Any Rule.

Martin Puris, cofounder and former CEO of the great agency Ammirati & Puris, has said, "The job of account executive is the most difficult in the agency business. It's an intellectual high-wire act.

"The two fatal mistakes an account person can make are to become either the client's 'man' at the agency-or the agency's 'man' at the client.

"Both fail.

"A good account person gives us objectivity, commitment, insight and-above all-truth."

It is no small challenge to counterbalance client demands with agency realities, and to manage money and time when both have become increasingly scarce. The deeper challenge is to have the judgment needed to do and say exactly the right thing in exactly the right way to exactly the right person at exactly the right time.

Some account people seem to have great instincts about this. But I'll bet if you look deeper you'll find that there's more to their judgment skills than just good instincts. I'll bet you'll find that the account people with the best judgment are the ones who made mistakes and learned from them. Their good good judgment comes in part from previous judgment comes in part from previous bad bad judgment. judgment.