The Countdown is on for our 2023 Client Appreciation Event
Hi there! Before getting into this week’s post, I wanted to say: I’ve been so encouraged by your support, cheerleading, and participation in our Small Business MBA fall semester launch last week. I hit a little personal goal with the launch, that’s given me a jolt of energy, not only for this semester, but for what’s in the works for 2024.
So all that to say: THANK YOU for participating, supporting, and helping us keep the energy to do and be better for our MBA students and Advisory Practice clients. Which leads me to… the countdown for our 2023 Client Appreciation Event (CAE, as we call it).
The origin of CAE is this: the Ellevated Outcomes business model is built on client intimacy. If you follow us on IG, I spoke about this in our stories during the past two weeks. And luckily, the Fast Company Innovation Conference I just attended, confirmed my bias (phew). But this has been my view for years. Afterall, all businesses – but especially small ones – need to be vigilant about continuously increasing customer value.
A few times a year, I revisit old Ellevated Outcomes business plans and annual strategies to see what’s gone according to plan and what hasn’t. There have been plenty of parts of the plan that have needed adjustment (ha). But one thing I am proud of: client delight has been in our plan’s core from day 1. Here’s a pre-covid excerpt from 2020’s plan:
We believe that how we do business is just as important as what we accomplish. We believe that it’s possible to hit ambitious goals and operate with the highest levels of integrity – delighting our clients, along the way.
Then, the success criteria section goes on to say:
The number one priority for Ellevated Outcomes continues to be ‘delight clients,’ in hopes of them becoming the Ellevated Outcomes sales force. We are proud to say that in 2019, 42% of new business was directly from referrals made by current clients. By the end of 2022, this will be >50%*.
I have to admit: it scares me a bit to be this transparent because I’d never want it taken out of context. We abide by our value of integrity, meaning: our intention is to be authentically generous. And we trust that when we do the right, abundant thing, favorable business actions will follow.
So our 2023 Client Appreciation Event is another piece of the client delight jigsaw puzzle. That and… I’ll take any excuse for a party and good food : )
This will be our 5th event. And from the prior 4, I’ve learned there are 3 other distinct reasons for our CAE:
1. Provide actionable education for our clients in a different setting.
Clients shared this feedback after our very first 2018 CAE: “Thanks, that was fun! But next time could you give some coaching or education so that we can learn?”
I was totally stunned.
I’d figured that everyone had enough learning, and they’d want to just relax and celebrate. And then I received this wise retort from two of our OG clients Paige Williams & Keith Rathbun:
Think of the types of people Ellevated Outcomes attracts. We’re learners. Growers. Reachers. That’s why we’re Ellevated Outcomes clients.
Touché.
2. Expose clients to our bench of talent.
We’re building a team with an intentionally diverse array of skills, personality, and strategy superpowers. So while a client works primarily with one Strategist, behind the scenes they’re receiving the benefit of 4 brains on their business. Our team meets twice per week for peer review. We share best practices (and mistakes), client examples of advances we haven’t seen before, and coach each other – all adding up to better client performance.
I had a funny moment last weekend when my husband Dave read something on our site and blurted out, “Is that Erin’s thing? You don’t know how to do that.” Leave it to Dave Sellers to always keep my ego in check.
And yes, Dave, that’s Erin’s thing, thankyouverymuch.
3. Put our Client Ecosystem to work.
One of the things that I hear often is: “Your roster of clients is just unbelievable.” Or “That’s what put me over the edge in joining: if they’re doing this, I should too.” It’s one of the most meaningful compliments about our business, to me. For I do believe that who one surrounds themselves with determines their success. And I care about myself and my business keeping clients and colleagues of the highest caliber.
Part of our delight process is intentionally connecting clients who can help each other in business referrals, strategic relationships, or complementary strengths. This year, our CAE is going to be really “3D,” as our keynote speaker has complimented. There will be some teaching from us Strategists but a lot of interactive and experiential work. Our team mantra this year is:
Presence over presentation.
And surely: we’ll have snafus. Not everything will go according to plan, and we’ll walk away with a list of things to work on for next year. But when it comes down to client appreciation, I always boil it down to one simple question: “When I’m in the client seat, what things do I wish my service providers did for me? What would make me feel appreciated? Delighted? Wowed?” And ultimately, our philosophy on client delight comes down to these words from Oprah Winfrey:
I’ve interviewed 37,000 people… And ultimately, each one wants to know: ‘Do you see me? Do you hear me? Does what I say mean anything to you?’
We hope that our client appreciation event is one more way to emphatically answer this question with a yes.
