Once I had an engagement in which I was the client, and the experience was not smooth—let's just put it like that. The fee was paid in advance, and the engagement lasted over several months. A series of small things, and the way they were handled and communicated (or not even addressed), led to unhappiness on my part by the end of the engagement.
Not once, during the engagement, did the vendor accept any responsibility for anything that went wrong. Not once. Whatever was fouled up was someone else’s fault, either a third party or me. There was never an acknowledgement of their own culpability and responsibility.
Nearing the end, we had a “wrap-up” call. It’s at this point that, as a client, you’d expect a postmortem with a few questions like “how did we do?” or “how could we have improved?”
In this case, there was nothing.
I was so disenchanted with the experience that I just wanted to get off the phone and jump in a hot shower and symbolically wash the experience away from my consciousness.
Checking in on Perceived Value
The specific problem, in this case, boiled down to one key problem: at no point during the engagement was there a check-in on my perception of value received.
I don’t know why a simple check-in never happened. It could have been fear; they knew what was wrong but were too fearful to address it head-on. It could have been oblivousness—a stunning lack of self-awareness about where the project stood. It could have been that they were in over their heads, possibly inexperienced in dealing with issues they hadn’t seen before, and just didn’t want to admit that.
I still don’t know, and by the end, I didn’t care. I was the one who felt stupid entering into the engagement.
In any client engagement, the client’s perception of value fluctuates. Maybe the client doesn’t see a lot of progress—a common problem when they can’t see and fully appreciate all the work you’re putting into the engagement. Their expectations of success, and how they define success, may be different than yours in spite of all the pre-engagement dialogue you had. Maybe you, as the service provider, make a mistake that causes a loss of time or money.
Conversely, as the engagement proceeds, you might have uncovered a way to deliver faster results or a greater tangible or intangible return of value to the client than the two of you thought possible at the beginning. Without you knowing it, the client could be comparing you to their previous provider and thinking how refreshingly better the engagement is than what they were expecting based on their previous experience.
Take the Value Pulse
To be a professional of value, you must be in touch with and aware of these value perception fluctuations.
You can’t adequately do that unless you ask. You may have to get over the fear of asking because you’re afraid of what the answer might be. Maybe you think everything is fine, but that assumption keeps you from seeing the resentment or dismay the client is harboring, which you could easily fix if you knew about it.
I’m not perfect, by any means. I’m always learning myself, particularly from my own mistakes. That stated, for the clients I work with in pricing consulting engagements, I let them know, before the engagement starts, that we’ll have a regular check-in to see whether they believe the value they’re receiving exceeds the price they’re paying.
One question I’ve started asking recently is: “are you having buyer’s remorse?” This question invariably brings a smile, but its directness invites a direct and honest answer. A simple “how are we doing?” works, too.
If there’s an uncertain or negative client response, then I remediate the issue. It could be something very simple; alternately, it could be that the client doesn’t see the connection between what we’re reviewing in the engagement and how they’ll get results after the engagement is over.
A recent example for me was a concern my client had about whether they could have an adequate enough value conversation to diagnose their client’s perceptions of value. In this case, we shifted in a different direction than I expected at the beginning: we spent a lot of time role-playing. I was not expecting to need to do what we did, but that’s ok. It met the client's needs, and their perception of value of the engagement was restored.
If I hadn’t taken a value pulse, then my client might not have brought up the reservations they were feeling. The engagement would have ended in a potentially unhappy place, and I might not have even known it.
At the extreme, if the engagement is going nowhere and the client and I agree that value remediation isn’t possible, then money gets refunded.
Your Standing as a Professional of Value is at Stake
Even when you think everything is going swimmingly, perceived value in a client engagement varies. There’s no getting around that, and you can’t control that.
Knowing that fact, what you’re in control of is how you handle it. You can put your head in the sand, or you can just merrily continue in the engagement with a “no news is good news” attitude. Alternately, you can make it a point to do a value check-in regularly and without hesitation.
Mistakes happen. Client perceptions of value received change. It’s how you handle them that distinguishes you as a professional of value in the minds and hearts of your clients.
Image Credit: Image generated using DALL·E 3
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Are you frustrated by your pricing? Need help articulating your value? Do you need a better way to identify and close your best-fit clients? Do you want to restore the joy you used to have for your business? I may be able to help you.
I’m John Ray, a business consultant and coach, author, and podcaster. I advise solopreneurs and small professional services firms on their two most frustrating problems: pricing and business development. I’m passionate about how changes in mindset, positioning, and pricing change the trajectory of a business and the lifestyle choices of a business owner. My clients are professionals who are selling their expertise, such as consultants, coaches, attorneys, CPAs, accountants and bookkeepers, marketing professionals, and other professional services practitioners. Click here to learn more or contact me directly.
I’m the author of the national bestseller, The Generosity Mindset: A Journey to Business Success by Raising Your Confidence, Value, and Prices. The book covers topics like value and adopting a mindset of value, pricing your services more effectively, proposals, and essential elements of growing your business. The book is available at all major physical and online book retailers.
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