5 Ways to Boost Client Satisfaction

5 Ways to Boost Client Satisfaction No matter the industry, creating happy clients or customers is critical to a business’s success. A satisfied client is more likely to return with future needs, and they may also leave favorable reviews or share the positive experience with other potential clients. In other words, a happy customer can become your best ambassador (the same idea applies to happy employees, by the way)! Cultivating practices that create happy customers is a powerful investment in your success. Here are 5 ways to boost client satisfaction and build trust and loyalty with your clients, keeping them coming back for more. 1. Communicate Clearly. Manage your clients’ expectations by ensuring they understand precisely how your products or services operate and what to do if they experience issues or questions. This is especially critical for any new clients. Make sure you are extra clear and responsive so that their first impression and first experience is a positive one. Additionally, clear communication means discerning your clients’ needs. As the saying goes, seek first to understand and then to be understood. Sometimes, we need to differentiate a client’s needs, wants, desires, and expectations. Take the time to ask questions and never assume anything. Correctly assessing your customers’ needs allows you to propose the best solution for them. 2. Be Consistent and use an “ACE”. Another component of the customer experience depends on how consistently you deliver results. Can your clients expect a response to inquiries within a predictable timeframe? Do you consistently deliver products or services that meet their needs or, even better, surpass them? We love the ACE concept: aim for Above Customer Expectations…an element of positive surprise could help develop the feeling that they are special and unique. 3. Be Responsive. Clients need to feel seen and heard. Whether they’re reaching out with an issue or a compliment, it’s important to respond promptly. Keep responses professional and courteous, and avoid using canned or generic text. If you can, adapt and personalize your methods of communication to their preferences, especially if you strive to offer a high-end experience. 4. Anticipate Needs and show initiative. Think of a holiday display in a grocery store or pharmacy. When you walk into the store at the beginning of February, you’ll find an eye-catching display of Valentine’s Day cards, boxes of chocolate, and stuffed bears. The store has anticipated a need and created an easy-to-find selection of popular products that someone might purchase together. Creating a “Frequently Asked Questions” page on your website is another way to anticipate clients’ needs. This page collects common inquiries in one place so clients can quickly and easily find the answers they need. 5. Value Feedback. We live in an imperfect world, and nothing reminds us of that, like our mistakes and those who take note of them. When a customer has a less-than-perfect experience, listening to their feedback is essential. Thank them for their comments. If possible, ask how the client would prefer the situation be [...]

By |2024-07-23T09:49:29-04:00July 23rd, 2024|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on 5 Ways to Boost Client Satisfaction
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5 Ways to Influence People at Work

5 Ways to Influence People at Work Influencing people effectively at work is very important for various reasons. It helps you promote your ideas and achieve your goals and is critical for leadership development and career advancement. For some individuals, having influence may seem like an innate trait that cannot be learned. However, the truth is that anyone can develop influence with others. Like any other skill, it just requires a bit of learning and practice. Here are 5 ways to influence people at work. 1. Establish Credibility. Take some time to think about your experiences, education, and passions. Identify the areas where you feel most knowledgeable and skilled. Share your expertise and opinions in those fields to establish credibility. Remember, credibility also involves acknowledging when someone else knows more than you do and being willing to defer to their expertise. 2. Listen First and Be Curious. When people feel heard, understood, and respected, it fosters a positive work environment. In a culture of open communication, where ideas are valued, everyone feels empowered to contribute. Listening to others builds trust, a necessary component of influence. Therefore, before making yourself heard, take the time to listen and understand what others are saying and what’s important to them. Be genuinely curious and interested. Additionally, it's essential to connect your ideas with their needs to make sure that your contribution is valuable. 3. Be Flexible. Remaining flexible is crucial in persuasion as it allows us to adapt our approach to different situations and individuals' needs, increasing the likelihood of success. By being open-minded and willing to adjust our strategies based on feedback and new information, we can build stronger connections and achieve more effective outcomes. 4. Show Initiative. Have a good idea? Spot a solution that may have been overlooked? Speak up and step forward to help implement your ideas. Good leadership fosters influence, and being willing to step forward with a solutions-oriented attitude helps build people’s confidence in you. 5. Build Connections. The key differences between influence and manipulation lie in your intent. Influence involves shaping others’ behavior with integrity, transparency, and respect whereas manipulation involves exploitation and disregard for the well-being of others in pursuit of our individual goals. Building genuine connections demonstrates respect and promotes team well-being. Understanding team members' goals, needs, and expertise positions the entire team for success. Increase Your Influence Individuals who can effectively influence others tend to excel in their careers. Whether it's persuading clients, negotiating with stakeholders, or leading projects, influence skills are highly valued in professional settings. Training sessions can enhance your skills and help you achieve more with others. Our Persuasion, Influence and Political training session presents techniques to adapt to different personalities and situations in order to maximize your impact on those around you. Contact us today to learn more.

By |2024-04-29T10:42:00-04:00April 29th, 2024|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on 5 Ways to Influence People at Work
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4 Steps to Introduce Change Successfully

4 Steps to Introduce Change Successfully Introducing change successfully doesn’t happen by accident. Gartner, a research and advisory group, estimates that only about 34 percent of change is successfully implemented, with an additional 16 percent reporting mixed results. Those aren’t the best odds. Using a little organization and some other vital strategies will boost your likelihood of being among the 34 percent who report success with implementing changes on their team. Here are 4 steps to introduce change successfully. 1. Acknowledge the Need for Change. The first step in introducing a change is understanding why it is necessary. What issue will a change improve? What happens if the problem remains unaddressed? Most importantly, how does the change impact the individuals on your team? Remember, people will always want to know the “WIIFM”… What’s In It For Me? Many people find themselves intimidated by big changes. Change is risk; it feels unpredictable. Giving up the comfort of a routine can be hard. Understanding the need for change helps you communicate to your team why the new idea is positive. If your team has a clear vision of how a new practice will benefit them, they will be more likely to support it. Gaining that support is a critical component that will determine whether your change is successful. 2. Create a Plan with Your Team. Once your team clearly understands the reason for the change, it’s time to craft a plan. What are you asking your team to do differently? How will they accomplish these new tasks? If support and/or training is necessary, when and how will that take place? Map out a process for implementing the new procedure with them. If you involve them in the planning, it becomes “our change” instead of “your change”. Together, consider the team’s overall calendar as you decide when the change will occur. For example, it may make more sense to postpone a change for a short time if key team members will be out of the office on vacation or are nearing a critical deadline. 3. Implement the Change. Even when we do our best to anticipate all the possible outcomes, new processes can cause unexpected ripples impacting our team or customers in surprising ways. As you introduce the change, ensure you are available to answer questions or address unexpected effects of the new procedure. Check in regularly with your team members to see what’s working and address any concerns or questions they may have. 4. Evaluate the Results of the Change. Sometimes, change has quantifiable results with numbers that tell the story of its success or challenges. At other times, you’ll have to gather information from your team and customers about how the new process impacts them and addresses the issues that prompted the change. Consider your criteria for success. What was your highest priority outcome? Did the change make it possible to achieve that outcome? What has improved as a result of this change? If not, what new information have you learned [...]

By |2024-03-27T17:02:00-04:00March 27th, 2024|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on 4 Steps to Introduce Change Successfully
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4 Ways to Create a Collaborative Team Culture

4 Ways to Create a Collaborative Team Culture Oliver Wendell Holmes once said, “Many ideas grow better when transplanted into another mind than the one where they sprang up.” It’s one of the best serendipitous qualities of a collaborative group. What began as an ordinary or half-impossible idea can round a brainstorming circle and become a genius solution in the hands of a collaborative team. Creating a collaborative team may take a little effort, but the rewards the team receives are more than worth the investment. Here are 4 ways to create a collaborative team culture. 1. Encourage Open-mindedness and Respect The first rule of creating a collaborative team is that the team must be a safe place to speak up. If team members can’t openly share their ideas, even the bad ones, they’ll withdraw from the discussion. Not only will you miss out on valuable input (even a bad idea can spark a trail of ideas that lead to a good one), but you’ll also miss out on something even more critical: engagement from your team members. Set the expectation of respect and make team meetings a safe space for new ideas. Set an example in the way you relate to the group. If someone shares an opinion that won’t work, thank them for their contribution. If you see team members speak down to one another, redirect the conversation, take the person aside privately, and encourage them to work on their open-mindedness. 2. Focus on Meaningful Priorities People can only focus on a few goals at a time, so limit the team’s focus to three or fewer specific goals at a time. Decide on a few inspiring and meaningful goals as a team. Make sure every team member understands how they can contribute and how achieving these goals impacts/benefits them. Set in motion an action plan and start tracking the team’s progress. 3. Get Everyone Involved in Problem-Solving Give your team a chance to build rapport with one another by involving them in team problem-solving tasks. This allows them to listen to each other and brainstorm together. It also helps get buy-in and builds engagement in the solutions the team devises. Ideally, don’t try to rush things. Whenever possible, let the discussion proceed until a consensus is reached. This can take time, but it allows everyone the chance to be heard. It will enable people to disagree and change course or forge meaningful compromises, which generates buy-in, a must-have in creating a collaborative team. 4. Invest in Your Team’s Development A team that advances in skills, advances their goals, and finds greater success. How will coaching or training add value to your team as a whole? How do development skills benefit individual team members? Investing in your team’s growth, both personally and as a whole, shows your team you care about their career growth. Providing that support can help reduce attrition and boost team members’ motivation at work. Get the Best from Your Employees Are you getting the most [...]

By |2023-10-30T10:49:29-04:00October 30th, 2023|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on 4 Ways to Create a Collaborative Team Culture
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4 Great Ways to Boost Your Interpersonal Communication Skills

4 Great Ways to Boost Your Interpersonal Communication Skills Interpersonal communication refers to the methods we use to communicate thoughts, feelings, and needs to other people. On the job, this includes things like reporting the status of a task we’re working on, asking for information for a task or job, and resolving conflict between team members. When we think about communication, we often think of the messages we’re sending out using words, such as our verbal or written communication, but interpersonal communication includes so much more than that. There are four types of interpersonal communication: verbal, non-verbal, listening, and written. We use all four types of communication daily, even in a single meeting! Here are 4 ways you can boost your interpersonal communication skills so you can more quickly understand others and be understood. 1. Practice Active Listening Active listening sounds basic, and it is quite simple: listening with the goal of understanding what someone is saying. That said, it’s easier said than done and most of us need to improve this, especially in our fast-paced world. It means listening without thinking of your response or forming rebuttals. It means using your body language to signal attentiveness. To make sure you are truly listening, make sure to make eye contact, focus by removing notifications and distractions. If possible, take notes and ask questions to show that you are present and interested. 2. Use Assertive Communication Using assertive communication means speaking in a respectful way that is clear and direct. “I” statements can help you strike the balance between being direct and respectful. For example, “I need more time to complete this task” is better than, “You didn’t give me enough time to finish.” Instead of using words like “should” and “could”, try rephrasing with more positive words like “will” and “want”. Not only is this better communication, but it will also give you more of a sense of empowerment. There’s a big difference between, “I should get most of my emails answered today,” and “I want to reply to my important emails. I will do this by tomorrow end of day.” 3. Check Your Body Language Nonverbal communication makes up a big part of our conversations, whether we consciously realize it or not. We look for clues in our listeners that show they’re paying attention, understand what we’re saying, and clues to help us assess how they feel about our ideas. We also read the body language of people as they’re speaking to us. Maintaining eye contact tells listeners that you’re speaking directly to them. Good posture communicates that you have confidence in what you’re saying. On the other hand, crossed arms or legs tend to signal discomfort or resistance to the ideas in discussion. Looking down or away from the people you’re speaking with suggests distraction or insecurity. Checking in with your body before and during a conversation can help you make sure your unspoken conversation matches the words you’re saying and signals your confidence and connection with your [...]

By |2023-03-24T12:01:30-04:00March 24th, 2023|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on 4 Great Ways to Boost Your Interpersonal Communication Skills
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Get a Fresh Start with These Tips for Managing a Hybrid Team

Get a Fresh Start with These Tips for Managing a Hybrid Team The new year is the perfect time to create a fresh start and update your skills in managing a hybrid team. You may have practices that used to fit your team that simply don’t work well today. We live in a new world in which employees may be at home, in the office, or some combination of both. From time to time, we all need to reevaluate our performance and change what we’re doing to meet new challenges and opportunities. Turning the calendar to a new year is a perfect time to freshen up our management approach with some new strategies for today’s agile teams. Here are 4 tips for sharpening your effectiveness as a leader and help in managing a hybrid team. 1. Communication is Key Whether your team works on site or remotely, one of the best ways to maintain a cohesive, productive team is to clearly communicate how you want things to operate. Be sure your preferences are clear as far as what types of issues or communications should be handled via an email versus scheduling a meeting. Make sure your team understands which projects have top priority, and any changes to the scope or deadline to your team’s work. Some hybrid team leaders have opted to have daily standups or check-in meetings at the start of each day. While that approach may not be right for every team, pay attention to the needs of your crew. While extroverted personalities are energized by spending time together (even virtually), introverted workers may find too many meetings to be disruptive and inhibit workflow. One approach for managing a hybrid team that fosters clear communication is to set an agenda for each meeting and send it out beforehand. If your team members review the agenda and determine they do not need to attend, they can skip some meetings and continue working. 2. Combat Natural Bias One issue faced by hybrid teams and their leadership is a natural bias toward members who work on campus. It’s sort of like the expression, “Out of sight, out of mind.”. We naturally think that team members who are in the office (whom we can visually see working) are more productive than team members who are working remotely, when this is probably not true. Managing a hybrid team effectively means you’ll need to work to correct that natural imbalance by connecting with your remote team members. Set regular one-on-one calls or video chats to briefly check in with them. Making sure they have what they need can go a long way toward making team members feel supported and valued. It also keeps their contributions to your overall team present in your mind as you lead. 3. Create Connections Leaders do so much more than herd a project toward completion by a specific deadline. They’re responsible for finding ways to pull a team of people together so that the resulting sum is greater than [...]

By |2022-01-18T13:09:29-04:00January 18th, 2022|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on Get a Fresh Start with These Tips for Managing a Hybrid Team
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4 Reasons Leadership Requires Friendliness

4 Reasons Good Leadership Requires Friendliness Leadership requires a lot of different skills. In addition to expertise in a specific field, it requires the ability to manage resources, budgets, projects and most importantly, employees. One of the best ways to invest in the people who make up your team is to make friendliness a key component of your relationship with them. Friendliness isn’t the same thing as friendship. It’s possible, even beneficial, to craft a friendly management style and still maintain professional boundaries with your team members. Why does good leadership require friendliness, now more than ever? Here are 4 good reasons to use a friendly approach with your team in order to boost morale and reap the rewards of success together. 1. People respond more openly and positively to friendliness. Getting results through friendliness can take a lot less energy than getting results through direction. Task-oriented managers find it more difficult to motivating people. Think about it this way: if you use a positive, friendly approach when communicating with your team, they’ll be far more likely to leave a meeting feeling valued and energized. When team members feel like their boss is pushy or demanding, they may work more in the short term. In the long run, though, they’ll be less inclined to be fully engaged. They may also move on to a new job or boss more quickly than an employee who feels appreciated by a leader who understands them and shows that they care. 2. Friendliness increases the chance that others will buy in to the objectives. Friendly leaders believe that the way they address people is a key part of what creates a happy team environment. It cultivates the feeling that you’re all in this together and shows an investment in them. Friendliness also contributes to creating a safe environment for your team to ask questions. Employees are more likely to invest in objectives that they understand and believe in. 3. Friendliness in leadership sets the tone for your team. Whether leaders realize it or not, the people they lead carefully watch their words and actions. People model their leaders, too, so adopting a friendly style and using that approach with your team sets the tone for how they deal with each other. A warm tone and a positive approach reassure your team, especially in challenging circumstances. Bring out the best in people by showing them that you are not disproportionately results-oriented. As always, balance is key! 4. A friendly leader actually has greater impact on the team. A leader who approaches his team with intense emotions—displaying anger, stress or frustration openly—might hurt the team over-reacting. Venting might feel gratifying in the moment, but it can also reduce the trust between a leader and his team. It creates a leader-versus-team dynamic rather than a sense of facing a challenging situation together. Friendliness on the other hand, helps craft that sense of community and team spirit. A friendly approach shows the team that the leader views himself [...]

By |2021-05-25T16:01:14-04:00May 25th, 2021|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on 4 Reasons Leadership Requires Friendliness
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5 Tips for More Effective Meetings

5 Tips for More Effective Meetings Meetings: people seem to love them or hate them. Some see meetings as a time waster, while others thrive on the collaborative energy that comes from regular check-ins or stand-ups. Whatever the emotions that seeing a meeting on the calendar causes, meetings are an essential tool for an effective, successful team. Crafting effective meetings takes a little time and planning, but it yields great results. Here are 5 tips for more effective meetings that will boost your team’s communication and success. 1. Craft a clear and inspiring agenda. Before calling a meeting, establish the agenda. What are the meeting objectives?  These days, more than ever, we should remember to include a more personal goal. On top of “taking care of business”, we need to ask people how they are doing, show that we care and offer our support when needed. 2. Make sure a team meeting is the best approach. While meetings can resolve complex issues quickly, they also interrupt the workflow of the team. Before you schedule a meeting, ask yourself some basic questions. Is the issue best addressed in a team setting or one on one? Which people need to participate? We can inform the others after the meeting. Could the issue effectively be addressed via email or chat or via another medium? Don’t just have meetings out of habit. Meetings are time and energy consuming, and effective meetings should always add value to each person participating. 3. Inform the team of the meeting agenda ahead of time. Send a quick note to the team inviting them to the meeting and giving them an idea of the issues to be addressed. This gives team members a chance to think of questions or gather any relevant information before the meeting begins. 4. Make sure everyone is adding value and actively participating. It’s tempting to have a meeting to update people and share information, but that could be done in an email, right? In order to get the most out of a meeting, make sure it’s an opportunity for brainstorming and getting people’s ideas and input. 5. Send a follow-up reminder after the meeting. After the meeting ends, but while it’s still fresh in everyone’s minds, send a quick note to the team thanking them for their input and listing the highlights of the meeting. This list should include any questions that were raised that require follow-up and any tasks that were assigned to team members. Communicating these points to the team helps keep everyone on track and ensures that tasks get completed. Thanking the team also reinforces the value each member brings and offers much-needed appreciation. We all need that extra boost from time to time! Ingrid Kelada Owner of KCC Positive Business Psychology & Happiness Expert Join Us for a FREE Event March 23rd - How to Stay Connected While Working Apart Join us for a KCC Coffee Chat! This coffee chat will be an interactive presentation in which three of our team [...]

By |2021-05-19T16:21:11-04:00March 8th, 2021|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on 5 Tips for More Effective Meetings
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9 Positive Leadership Maxims

9 Positive Leadership Maxims Being a great leader is more than a job—it’s a way of approaching life. It can sometimes be a challenging lifestyle, and can even be discouraging. Here are 9 positive leadership maxims to energize you in your leadership role. 1. To make a difference, be the difference. Are you practicing the changes you want to see in your team? Leading your team by example is a powerful way to lead. 2. Leadership is showing people not that they MUST take a certain action but that they GET TO take that action. The way we word something can make a huge difference in perception and motivation. “I chose you for this and here’s why it’s an opportunity…” sounds and feels better than “I need you or want you to do something…” 3. To get the best out of people, embrace the best in them. What gifts and talents do your team members bring to the table? Are you leveraging those effectively? Consider making a list of each team member and what they do best, and look for new ways to use those abilities to enhance your team’s performance and success. 4. It's not so much what you say as a leader that's important; it's your ability to inspire action that matters. What are you doing to energize your team in meetings? Do they leave a meeting feeling excited to get to work on the next project? Use the last few minutes of each team meeting to inspire your team and instill some excitement for the tasks ahead. Connect what you’re doing to real life. How is your business making a difference in the world, and how do your employees’ actions directly contribute to that? 5. Half the art of listening is waiting. Sometimes just giving people that extra pause before speaking shows them you’re truly open to what they have to say. It can indicate that you’re not only listening but also processing what they share. 6. If you are always right, you are usually wrong. Nobody is perfect, and nobody is right all the time. One of the quickest ways to destroy trust with your team is by refusing to admit when you’re wrong. You may not always be ready to acknowledge it, but your team probably already knows you’ve made a mistake.  The great news is that being humble enough to admit mistakes and correct course with your team will actually help build trust and better position your team for success. 7. The best leaders make use of the simplest of ideas. Complex ideas can take a lot of energy to explain and to convey to others. But a simple idea that can be explained in just a few words? It’s more memorable, more energizing and easier to pass on to others. 8. Leadership is seeing hope in any adversity. In leadership, you don't have to expect the worst, you just have to make the most of it when it happens. It might take some [...]

By |2021-01-19T17:44:56-04:00January 19th, 2021|Leadership Tips|Comments Off on 9 Positive Leadership Maxims
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