Client Relationships: Teach, Don't Preach

Source: Service Minded

In this blog post, Debra Helwig recounts her experience (not a pleasant one) teaching a group of friends to make homemade jam. Years later, she realized that the reason this teaching moment was not a success was that she told everyone exactly what to do, scolded them when they made a mistake, and ended up doing much of the work for them.

Instead, Helwig says, she should have taken the advice of Carl Ingalls: “When you teach or advise, let people discover things. Don't tell them all the answers.” And “when people discover an answer, the knowledge becomes theirs.”

Many people make the same mistake in their business relationships. “Are you more concerned with showing off your impressive credentials and sharing your hard-earned expertise,” Helwig asks, “than understanding what your clients and potential clients want to know?” Instead of preaching, you should lead clients or potential clients to knowledge. Take the opportunity to build a relationship and help them grow, without trying to “look smart.”

To read the complete post, click here.

From Service Minded – Debra Helwig on Marketing & Leadership in Professional Services, http://debrahelwig.wordpress.com, November 9, 2009, “The Teaching Moment: Relationship Builder or Dealbreaker.”