Stop Trying to Delight Clients

‘Delighting' clients is a goal that puts Herculean pressures on professionals, offers low marginal value to clients, and increases costs of doing business.  So what to do?

When I speak with buyers of professional services the vast majority provide examples of outstanding service in terms of very straight-forward and human interactions - from the act of visiting the client at their premises or work site, to remembering important meetings for their client and considering what is required beforehand.  

So rather than trying to delight clients in the jostle for the ‘most trusted adviser’ trophy, focus instead on reducing their effort. That is, the work they must do to get their jobs done.

Extending the observations of Dixon, Freeman and Toman (2010), telling client-facing professionals to "make it easy" for clients gives them a concrete, even liberating, foundation for action.  

After all, people like people who are easy to work with.

And in the current environment of under-staffed and over-worked professional services teams Margaret Luciano’s (2022) suggestions for strategically paring back effort is spot on. Maybe that client doesn’t really need a weekly personal phone call after all!

Cutting a bit of slack might be good business for every one.

This is an update to an article originally published 12 June 2012.

References & FURTHER READING

Casciaro T & Lobo M S (2005) Competent Jerks, Lovable Fools and the Formation Of Social Networks, June Issue of Harvard Business Review

Christensen C; Hall T; Dillon K & Duncan D S (2016) Know Your Customers ‘Jobs To Be Done’ September Issue of Harvard Business Review

Dixon M.; Freeman K & Toman N (2010) Stop Trying To Delight Your Customers, July-August Issue of Harvard Business Review.

Donahue J (2022) Being Easy To Work With is the Single Most Underrated Career Skill.

Luciano M M (2022) Three Strategies For Managing An Understaffed Team, Harvard Business Review

Sills P (2019) Principles of Influence: Likeability, New Zealand Law Society Law Talk Issue 935

Sue-Ella is the Principal of Prodonovich Advisory, a business dedicated to helping professional services firms sharpen their business development practices, and attract and retain good clients.

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