How to get returning clients with excellent communication

Return clients and client referrals make up a significant portion of our business.

To create the kind of raving fans who not only come back, but also tell all their friends about us, we have to provide an amazing experience every time.

Our studio manager responds quickly to inquiries, usually within four hours, and never lets a booked client wait more than 24 hours for a reply. We over communicate with our clients, so they’re never left to wonder what to expect next from us in the portrait process.

To ensure our client communication and workflow are consistent with every session, we use ShootQ studio management software. This program allows us to set workflows for each session to ensure we never miss a step, saves our email templates so we don’t have to write every email from scratch, and allows us to schedule each email to be sent.

This might sound like a lot of work, and it is! But consistent client communication is an essential part of the kind of customer service that brings clients back year after year.

Her are our 19 choreographed steps for client contact:

1. Respond to inquiry by email.
2. Follow-up email if there’s no further inquiry.
3. Email response to any questions.
4. Booking confirmation email with link to invoice payment and signing the contract.
5. Email to schedule the session planning phone call with me; includes our guide, How to Prepare, and a link to our client questionnaire.
6. Email reminder about the planning phone call appointment.
7. Session planning phone call: choose a location, tips on preparing for the session, what to expect during the session.
8. Mail postcard reminder with date and time of portrait session for client to put on the fridge.
9. Email to schedule the ordering appointment after the upcoming session.
10. Email reminder of the portrait session with directions from client’s home to our meeting spot.
11. Thank-you card in a gift bag with a little treat at the end of the portrait session.
12. Thank-you email the day after the session.
13. Reminder of the ordering appointment with directions to the studio.
14. Face-to-face image presentation and ordering appointment.
15. Email when the order is ready for pick-up or has shipped to them.
16. Enclose a hand-written thank you card with the order.
17. Email to confirm receipt of the order if it was shipped; that they’re happy with the order if they picked it up.
18. Tag the client in a Facebook post when we’ve blogged their session.
19. Email questionnaire about their experience.