I recently gave a talk about how to market to the government, and of course I talked about the importance of adding value when pursuing government contracts or new opportunities in general. That said, I feel like everyone is always talking about adding value, but people rarely do it. Somehow the concept of adding value is perceived as providing free service or giving things away, and I’d like to clarify that that is not what I am talking about.
Value is about the little things that don’t cost much but are extremely important to your clients. Let me share some examples of things we are doing at JKA that add value and make our clients absolutely love us:
- In person client visits: in this day and age where everyone is communicating electronically, we feel it’s important to actually visit with our clients. For our VIP & Coaching clients, we regularly schedule in person strategy sessions into our program making certain that we connect with our clients on a regular and consistent basis. These sessions really bond us with our clients and let them know how important they are to us. We use this strategy for both government and non-government clients.
- Transparency: instead of waiting for a client to ask us where we are with a particular project, project related tasks are scheduled through an on-line system. Our clients are provided with user names and passwords allowing them full access to monitor tasks and assignments. In addition, where appropriate files are shared electronically allowing clients to add delete and upload documents as needed instead of emailing back and forth.
- Notary Public Service: because most of my clients are government contractors, there are no shortages of documents that need to be notarized. Being a notary is huge benefit for my clients, it’s a small thing that has tremendous value.
- Proactive Suggestions & Brainstorming: when I see something that needs to be addressed, I address it – even if I was not hired to deal with it. For example, I was retained by a government agency to provide workshops and training when I noticed that there were some issues with their website. I contacted the program manager, detailing the issues with their website and offered a solution at a reduced rate. I can’t tell you how much this meant to our client, it really solidified our position as a true business partner.
- Referrals & Quality leads: all of my clients know that they can contact me anytime if they need referrals. I have a wonderful network of great clients, so a lot of my government clients call on me if they need referrals for quality MWBE firms to meet their subcontracting goals on government contracts. In addition, we have a full network of support services (administrative, accountants, insurance & bonding, attorneys, consultants, and marketing) that we generously share with our MWBE clients – free of charge no strings attached. Our clients know that their success is our success!
Bottom line is that creating value is about being present and showing clients that you care. Do what you say you are going to do and check in frequently that’s a value in itself. Your clients will love you for this.
