Set Expectations to Improve Your Client Experienc

Earlier this year, I had periodontal surgery. While the procedure itself went amazingly well, my recovery experience could have gone much better if the practice had done a better job of expectation setting.

Yes, I was briefed on what to eat and not to eat and how to keep everything clean, but what they didn’t prepare me for was what the healing experience would look and feel like, and it honestly created a lot of unnecessary issues. 

This got me thinking about client experiences and how important it is to set expectations.

Business owners are told to focus on the transformation constantly. But how often are they reminded about the importance of setting expectations?

Let’s talk a bit about how we set expectations so you can see how this comes to life. 

Right now, we set expectations during our discovery and onboarding phases of our work–before a client even becomes a client, and immediately following. It shows up in our website and marketing copy a bit too–but minimally. 

Some examples of ways we set expectations: 

• Discussing capacity demands of the business owner (and their team, if they’ll be involved in the engagement)

• Discussing the timeline of the engagement and any known conflicts that need to be factored into the overall schedule

• Sharing a welcome guide and an onboarding presentation that includes information about our approach, our frameworks, and a little bit about us as people

• Talking about the Change Curve and the importance of committing to the personal development that our work together often requires

However, I want to also share that we haven’t always been this thorough with how we set expectations. It’s easy to assume that we have a perfect process for everything, but let me assure you, this has evolved and grown over time–and it’s still not perfect. 

But we ask clients for feedback, take note of questions they ask, and even tap into our own sense of what was missing during engagements so we can make changes anytime something doesn’t land the way we want it to. In other words–we’re always evolving our systems and processes, and you should be too.  

I know it might be a little overwhelming to think about updating your systems and processes for as long as your business exists. However, if you’re not keeping them updated, you’re missing opportunities to provide a better experience for your clients–and likely missing ways you can better leverage your team and technology. 

So, how can you do a better job of setting expectations for your clients? What can you address with them upfront that is costing you time on the backend now? Where can you provide more information in your client experience to reduce the number of questions you receive?

If you’re not sure how to answer those questions, or you’d like a trustworthy perspective on your client experience, let’s chat!