Client (Re)Engagement: From Hello to Good-bye to Hello Again

Ensuring a valuable experience for our customers, from initial discovery discussions to onboarding, to project completion, is at the heart of everything we do at ML. It supports our vision to be the first choice of CEOs who are looking for a trusted partner to help build a predictable growth model. It’s also a key component of our hiring practices. We hire team members who are customer-centric and committed to supporting our clients on every step of their journey with us.

Our corporate philosophy is a big reason why so many clients return to ML again and again. We have many long-term clients who have worked with us over the span of two decades, often coming back to our team when they have new projects, or their circumstances change.  

Creating FANS by Delivering Outstanding Service at Every Step of the Customer Journey 

Let’s talk about that part of the customer journey that no one ever wants to talk about . . . when the relationship comes to an end.  

FANS is an ML acronym (Former Account, New Success) that describes how we turn our previous relationships into new business. This approach has served us extremely well over the years. 

• Former clients return when markets change. 

• Executives who move on bring us into their new companies. 

• Existing and former clients refer us to new opportunities. 

Our FANS approach to new business has paid off for us with over 50% of our new business engagements each year coming from former clients. This year alone we had one returning client who had worked with us 8 years ago, another 5, and a few others as recently as 2 years ago. 

How this scenario plays out is evident by one recent example of a client whose Board decided the company should bring outbound services “in-house.” While we never like to see valued customers go, there was a bright spot: the executive who recommended us took a moment to send us this note. 

To pave the way for future opportunities, we often share our sales methodologies and expertise with our clients so that they can improve their own in-house programs and set them up for success if they choose to go it alone. This “client first” philosophy supports our “experts you can trust” reputation (and often results in those same clients coming back when they need some extra support). 

For most professional service firms, the largest potential revenue source is your existing customers, which includes former clients and relationships with individuals who have gone on to new companies that meet your ideal client profile. 

These customers (past and current) already trust your brand and are familiar with your product offering. There are lots of available stats on how much cost is saved when selling to a previous customer vs. acquiring a net new customer, as well as the typical overall boost to the profit margin. Harvard Business School found that increasing customer retention and repetition rates by just 5% can increase profits anywhere from 25 to 95%. 

Maintain a Customer-Centric Approach from Start to Finish … to Re-start! 

Stay dedicated to your clients to the very end. Maintain the highest degree of professionalism possible so that you are the first people a former client thinks of when they once again need services you can provide! 

RELATED CONTENT: Read our Playbook to learn how to stay connected to your clients. Get More Revenue from Your Existing Relationships 

Consider these 5 examples of ML’s new business wins in the first half of this year: 

1. A company we pitched to last year when the CTO at one of our former clients told one of their executives to call ML based on the results we had achieved for his company.
2. A company was in discussions to hire an executive at one of our former client companies and was told that ML needed to be brought on if they were going to achieve the kind of results this executive had seen at their previous company.  
3. A company start-up that was founded by an executive who had worked with ML years ago at her previous company.  
4. A company funded by a private equity firm that had brought in an executive to take on the interim CEO role who had worked with ML at a previous company.
5. A company that was talking with a consulting firm about their go-to-market strategy and was told they should talk with ML to help them diversify their existing customer base and achieve their growth goals. 

What all these examples have in common is that they were directly driven by relationships and reputation. And in every case, the previous engagement had ended for one reason or another, and clearly not because of our team’s performance. This is why it is extremely important to deliver your A-game even at the end of an engagement. This is a core part of ML’s culture and more than 50% of our new business revenue each year comes from these former client relationships. 

It doesn’t just happen organically. We have a systematic and data-driven process. Leveraging thought-leadership content, social media, and proactive outreach at key intervals helps to ensure that ML stays top of mind with all former clients.  

Need help to devise a FANS strategy of your own?  Reach out any time and let’s discuss! 

Until then, good selling! 

Lara