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Ensuring and communicating results with a client!

Anything considered a "hustle" and not necessarily a CENTS-based Fastlane

spirit

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Hey, I asked another user this question in another topic, but it's a big question and I think it warrants its own topic! I'd like to have a good discussion about it.

Let's say a client wants more customers as a result of your website. You know strategies like having call to actions, copywriting, testimonials for social proof, SEO, advertising, marketing tactics etc..

How are you 100% sure your efforts will actually get the client more customers? And how do you communicate this with the client, in understandable business terms?
 
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spirit

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Hey, I asked another user this question in another topic, but it's a big question and I think it warrants its own topic! I'd like to have a good discussion about it.

Let's say a client wants more customers as a result of your website. You know strategies like having call to actions, copywriting, testimonials for social proof, SEO, advertising, marketing tactics etc..

How are you 100% sure your efforts will actually get the client more customers? And how do you communicate this with the client, in understandable business terms?

I thought about this, and I think leverage also applies here. For a starting client you could say you'll check back on their business in a few weeks. If things are better, good. If not, try to improve things. Once you get a few clients under your belt, you can point reference to your previous successful clients. While it won't be 100% sure, it does provide social proof.

I don't know, maybe I'm overthinking things. I guess I'm having some anxiety over the prospect of actually solving business problems, as I've never done this before!

What do you think?
 

Chris McCarron

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Hey, I asked another user this question in another topic, but it's a big question and I think it warrants its own topic! I'd like to have a good discussion about it.

Let's say a client wants more customers as a result of your website. You know strategies like having call to actions, copywriting, testimonials for social proof, SEO, advertising, marketing tactics etc..

How are you 100% sure your efforts will actually get the client more customers? And how do you communicate this with the client, in understandable business terms?

You can't assure anything. Your job isn't to validate a business, but instead you make it easier to get sales.

One way around this is to say: "we did x, y and z for a similar client and we got them this result. We can't promise you similar success, but what I can say is that if there's a demand for your product, then we will help you to achieve the best results possible."
 

George Appiah

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You can't assure anything. Your job isn't to validate a business, but instead you make it easier to get sales.

I guess that depends on what kind of business you're in: do you deliver results, or do you perform tasks?

It's selling qualified leads vs selling ad space.

It's "first page on Google or your money back" vs "we'll do the best we can".

It's 2x ROAS or 10,000 FB likes in 7 days at 2 cents per like.... vs... "we'll spend your money for you but can't promise you anything -- it's all up to them algorithms".

It's "99.999% uptime SLA" vs "best-effort" service.

Yes, I understand that to guarantee results of any kind is a million times more difficult than just doing x, y and z tasks. That's why most people and agencies can do X, Y and Z tasks. But very few can produce any measurable results for their clients.

I also understand that, sometimes, despite your best efforts, you may not be able to produce the results.... even though you may have gotten those same results a hundred times before. But you can always put your own skin in the game and take some of the risks, rather than putting it all on the client.

One way around this is to say: "we did x, y and z for a similar client and we got them this result. We can't promise you similar success, but what I can say is that if there's a demand for your product, then we will help you to achieve the best results possible."

The caveat here is that, often, "the best result possible" depends on who does the work.

When I was in the MSP business, we always knew the more tangible and measurable results we could promise, the easier the sale, the bigger the cheque, the more the referrals, etc. Our job then was to constantly hone our skills so we could confidently promise (and deliver) more and more.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying OP or anyone else should be promising any specific results, especially if they aren't confident they can deliver.

All I'm saying is, you CAN certainly assure some things. Quite a lot actually. It all depends on whether you see yourself and your agency as being in the results and assurances business, or you're into performing tasks.

(Back into my man cave :smile: )
 
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Chris McCarron

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I guess that depends on what kind of business you're in, and how confident you are in producing results. Most people and agencies can do X, Y and Z tasks. Very few can produce any measurable results.

You can be ultra-confident and have a long history of results, testimonials, etc that you can show to a potential client.

Every agency does this and this is why so many of them use case studies.

From an ethical standpoint, you can't promise anything other than the delivery of the agreed work and if you set realistic expectations, and then deliver results that exceed those expectations, then you're not setting yourself up for trouble further down the line.
 

George Appiah

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You can be ultra-confident and have a long history of results, testimonials, etc that you can show to a potential client.

Every agency does this and this is why so many of them use case studies.

And what if those case studies contained tangible results (if you could deliver them)? Could that help win more clients?

As a business owner myself, when I read case studies and testimonies and whatnot, I'm ALWAYS looking for tangible results.

"We did SEO work for Big Co" is not as meaningful to me (and I'll suppose to a lot of business owners as well) as "We got Big Co on page one of Google for these important keywords."

From an ethical standpoint, you can't promise anything other than the delivery of the agreed work

Of course, the devil is in the details of the "agreed work".

If your mindset is you can't guarantee anything, then your scope of work will and should reflect this to cover your behind. That's certainly the ethically kosher thing to do.

But I respectfully 100% disagree with the maxim that, as agencies and external consultants, we can't guarantee any results.
 
Last edited:

Chris McCarron

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Of course, the devil is in the details of the "agreed work".

If your mindset is you can't guarantee anything, then your scope of work will and should reflect this to cover your behind. That's certainly the ethically kosher thing to do.

But I respectfully 100% disagree with the maxim that, as agencies and external consultants, we can't guarantee any results.

Every business and every industry is different. Some businesses sell stuff people want. Some businesses sell something nobody wants.

Regardless of confidence or a belief in a particular business, you can't ethically promise you'll get them set results.
 
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