Have you ever looked at other businesses with a healthy roster of long-term clients and wondered — how do I get that?
To foster positive client relationships is both a skill and an art, so there’s no easy way to explain it, but it is clear that a strong client bond deepens your mutual trust and can ultimately help your bottom line. Think renewals, expanded contracts, referrals, and testimonies.
So, how do you reach that?
To help your business make the most of your current contracts and to nurture new client relationships, we’ve compiled some best practices to keep in mind — and some things you should avoid.
Let’s take a look!
What’s in a strong client relationship?

Client relations are based on interactions between real people, and people need trust, respect, and commitment to build strong relationships. This also translates to the business world.
From our own experience, fostering stronger client relationships requires:
- Excellent communication
- Delivery on promises
- Effortless information gathering and document collection
- Mutual respect
If you treat these measures as standardized business processes, rather than slapdash improv, you can thoroughly analyze your client approach.
The dos of building client relationships
1. Exceed your client’s expectations with great communication

Not enough can be said about proper communication. Learning how to communicate with clients efficiently is a must for any would-be entrepreneur or budding agency. There’s almost nothing more paramount to strong client relationships.
If you’ve run an agency or have freelanced before, you likely realize the value and scarcity of time. This is important because poor communication is a bad use of time. One that easily leads to frustration for you and your clients.
So, what goes into excellent communication? We can roughly divide this into three categories.
Speed
Timely communication is a hallmark of professionalism. It can make all the difference in how you’re perceived by your client. Trust us, no one wants to be left in the dark.
Set a maximum response time limit and stick to it religiously. If you’ve promised to respond to all emails within 48 hours, heed your word. This keeps the ball rolling and helps conversations and ideas stay fresh.
If you’re consistent with your response time, clients will know what to expect from you. It also shows them you value their time–important for building mutual respect.
Note: Quality is more important than speed Be careful not to let stress get in the way of quality. Instead, dedicate time for your business communications and practice regular communication. |
Clarity
Clarity is all about intent. We're fans of letting your personality shine through in your communication, but make sure it doesn’t fog up the essential details. Be upfront and clear about the important things, like budget and project objectives.
Before any project commences, you should clearly define:
- Your deliverables
- Your responsibilities
- Your client’s responsibilities
- Any limitations to your services
Answer this key question: what does success look like for you and your client? This helps manage your client’s expectations and avoid confusion down the road.
For example, clear communication during the onboarding process is vital as it sets a positive tone for your client relationship. That’s why many companies use client onboarding templates to hit the ground running more effectively.
Throughout the client relationship, keep dates, figures and milestones clear in your messages. Avoid approximations and loosely defined targets, which may lead to confusion.
If you’re uncertain what is asked of you, or find some details too muddy, the best thing you can do is to ask for clarification. Clarity removes the guesswork from your communication.
Related: How Clarity Bookkeeping sped up their client onboarding and client queries
Organization
If you’re mindful of how you organize your information and disperse details, you can deliver clearer messages in a timely fashion. The more clients you have, the more important this becomes.
Emails are great, but attempting to run your entire business through email is impractical. This is especially true if you’re dealing with file transfers and other mixed media transactions.
No one likes scrolling through their entire inbox for that one file. And constantly nagging clients for an important file (even if you really need it) can actually hurt the relationship. We would see these issues arise all too often when it came to collecting files and content from clients.
That’s why we made Content Snare an all-encompassing platform for data and content collection. Our tool organizes the process of getting PDFs, images, documents (you name it!) from clients, has nifty features like automated email reminders, and checklists to stay on top of received files. Plus, it consolidates communication in one space.
Messy processes strain relationships. Show clients they can count on you.
Organize the way you collect files and content from clients using Content Snare. Client work stays in order, your client relations stay strong. It’s a win-win!
2. Deliver on your promises

Nothing sours a business relationship faster than broken promises.
Many of us want to say yes to more work. The question is, can you deliver on your word? To maintain strong and long lasting client relationships, you need to accurately evaluate your business’s capabilities, maintain good internal communications, and take a structured approach to your negotiations.
In other words: don’t just say what you think the client wants to hear, be realistic.
Don’t blindly agree to client requests that are difficult to meet with consistency. Rather, be transparent and explain that their wishes exceed your current capacity. You can counter with an offer that’s feasible for you and work towards a compromise.
After all, a contract is a summary of your combined negotiations — not a wishlist.
With that in mind, only promise what you can deliver with certainty. Know your own data. What do you have the capacity for? What are your costs? How many employees can you assign to the project? Understand your business inside-out, so you can promise deliverables with confidence and set your client relationships up for success.
And remember, think beyond the initial agreement with a new client. Instead, try to imagine what value you can offer each other long-term. This does wonders for your reputation and sets you up for higher yields in the long run.
Throughout your client relationship, focus on consistently delivering quality services and professional conduct. Clients will appreciate you all the more for it.
3. Show mutual respect

Trust and transparency build respect.
Trust is the foundation of firm client relationships
To build trust in a relationship, heed your word.
Your contract should be guiding your expectations. You should have provided reasonable goals and milestones which can be met without a hitch. Your clients should have specified what they want from you and how you fit into their vision.
Now you’re armed to prove the value of your services.
The best way to nurture your client relationship is to honor your contract and communicate frequently. That means carefully sticking to your milestones and keeping your client up-to-date on project developments.
Practice transparency throughout the relationship
Transparency is one of the most important qualities of a healthy client relationship. To be fully transparent, you need to be honest about the good and the bad. A simple way to avoid future friction or ‘bad’ client experiences is to be mindful of your boundaries.
Some clients tend to scope-creep (incrementally asking for more work outside your written contract) which is a sure source of frustration and an argument waiting to happen. You want to make sure you and your client are on the same page.
So if you feel this happening, be transparent and address it. Explain that your services are limited to the contract you’ve agreed upon.
Similarly, if your communication isn’t where it should be, it’s up to you to identify the problem and figure out a solution.
Usually, transparency is part of the solution.
It might feel uncomfortable to confront a client, but remember what you’re trying to accomplish: a positive and long-lasting client relationship. This is only made easier if you nip any potential issues in the bud.
Of course, you have to be open to change and stay receptive to client feedback. If your client wants to alter the scope of your services, do your best to accommodate them. Just make sure that you rework your contracts to accurately reflect your new responsibilities.
The don’ts of relationship-building
Knowing what not to do is just as important as understanding the best practices, so let’s breeze through common mistakes that might stop you from building a strong relationship with clients.
- Don't overpromise and underdeliver: We know you’re eager to seal the deal, but promising more than you can deliver will backfire sooner or later.
- Don't ignore feedback: Client feedback is invaluable for improving your services and maintaining good relationships. If you ignore it, you’ll make clients feel undervalued and unheard.
- Don't sound generic: Treating clients as just another case or number can make them feel insignificant. We encourage you to try and build a more personal connection by showing genuine interest in their needs.
- Don't overcharge or surprise with hidden fees: This goes without saying, but let us remind you that transparent billing practices are a no-no. Even if you have to increase prices, make sure to do it using a formal price increase letter well in advance.
- Don't resist adapting to client needs: Sticking rigidly to your way of doing things without considering clients’ evolving preferences can create friction, so stay flexible and willing to adapt your services.
Nurture successful client relationships
Client management can be a tricky business.
There’s no guarantee that you’re a good match for each other, but you should always do your utmost to build a better connection.
The good news is, there are a number of measures you can take to give yourself a better chance at a smooth sailing business relationship. From clear communication to easy onboarding and transparency — being proactive pays.
Content Snare is only a part of this process, but it can do wonders in the early stages of your relationship with a client. Give it a try for free by signing up for a 14-day free trial.