Most of us have been there: You start working with a new client, and you’re excited to make an impression. You stay up late putting together the perfect presentation, and when you finally send it out, you get radio silence.
Your relationship is off to a terrible start because your email simply didn’t connect with the client. How can we avoid this situation? We learn how to build rapport in our emails.
| Key Takeaways |
|---|
| Building rapport with clients is essential in freelance email marketing. |
| Personalization and tailored communication help establish strong connections. |
| Active listening and understanding client needs lead to effective email strategies. |
| Regular follow-ups and updates demonstrate commitment and professionalism. |
| Providing value through insightful content builds trust and credibility. |
1. Greet The Client By Name At The Start Of The Email
This one’s simple, but super effective. I like to use a greeting like “Hi [client’s first name],” or “Hey there [client’s first name].” Make sure you clearly state their name in the first line so that it’s unmistakable when they open your email.
You can also add a little extra thoughtfulness by referencing something else about them, such as their company or position: “Hey there [client’s first name], good to meet you! I’m excited to work with [company] on this project.”
If your client has an unusual name (or if you just want to be extra careful), Google it and find out how it’s pronounced. This will help you avoid any potentially embarrassing moments down the line!
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2. Send A Nice Follow-Up Email
If you really want to make sure the client will remember you, send a nice follow-up email. Not only does this show that you are invested in their business, but it also emphasizes your skills and allows you to build rapport with your future client.
3. Ask Their Name In Your Initial Contact Email
Ask their name in your initial contact email. The more you can get to know your client before they hire you, the better you’ll be able to do the job. This is a great way to ask for their name right away:
Hi! My name is [your name], and I’m an email marketing professional based in [location]. I’ve worked with companies like [company] and [company], and am impressed by your business model of using a dedicated team of expert freelancers rather than hiring full-time employees. I’d love to work with you on a sample project so that we can see if we would be a good fit for each other.
4. Sign Off Personally
It may seem like a small detail, but signing off with your name tells your clients that you are someone they can trust, and it lets them know you’re willing to stand behind your work. Don’t sign off with “best” or “regards” or “cheers.” It doesn’t sound authentic and it’s too formal for what should be casual interactions. It even sounds insincere.
Instead, sign off with the most personal part of you your name. If you have any concerns about signing your full name to emails (perhaps because you have some sort of criminal record), consider using a nom de plume instead. That way you can use a variation of a pen name without having to worry about giving away an alias that would raise suspicions when used in other capacities (like booking hotels).
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5. Use “You” More Often Than “I”
One of the best ways to build rapport is to put yourself in your clients’ shoes. If you can imagine seeing things from their perspective, then you can do a better job at empathizing with and helping them solve their problems.
But how do you get there?. When it comes to email marketing, this means using the word “you” more often than “I”. This doesn’t always come easily for us writers, who tend to be self-focused by nature. But if we want our emails to be successful (and of course we do), we need to practice putting our clients first.
This tip serves two purposes: It draws attention away from the writer, which is generally a good thing since people care more about themselves than they do about others; and it encourages empathy toward clients and what they care about most solving their problems themselves or through your services or products.
Now that we know why this works so well, let’s look at an example of how “you” versus “I” sounds in an actual email pitch: Example #1 uses the word “you” more often than “I”
You are doing great work with [insert name of company]. I noticed your blog post on [insert topic] was a huge hit! I write weekly content for several other companies that have driven similar results: [include examples]
Let me know when you have 10-15 minutes for a quick call – I’d love to learn more about your business and how I can help with content marketing.
Best regards,
[Name]
6. Inform Them Of An Upcoming Meeting Or Project
You’ve got a big marketing campaign happening soon and need to inform your clients about it. How do you go about it?
Firstly, give them all the details of the campaign what is it, why are you telling them about it, and how does it benefit them?. Then, provide them with information about when the campaign is taking place and what you need from your clients such as delivering content by a certain date, banner graphics, or any other assets you may require from their team.
Let them know they can get involved in an upcoming Facebook competition or help promote the campaign on their social media channels if they would like to.
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7. Remind Them Of A Completed Job Done Well
Remember that you’re there to do a job. A good way to demonstrate this is to remind them of a completed job done well.
I usually do this at the end of an email and right before I say goodbye, but some people may prefer to use a PS at the end. It’s up to you! If your client has been especially difficult, it might be because they’re feeling overwhelmed with work or having issues in other parts of their life, so you must respond politely and respectfully.
8. Offer To Help With Additional Tasks That You Can Do Well
If you want to impress your client, offer to help them with related tasks. For example, if you are helping your client with their email marketing efforts, mention that you have expertise in other areas like social media or website content (assuming this is true, of course).
Make sure that you are confident in how well you can deliver on this work and only do so if it is within the scope of your contract. This is a great way to build rapport with a new clients as it shows them how much value they get out of working with you.
9. Refer To Something From Past Correspondence That Relates To The Current Topic
Reference something relating to the current topic, like a shared piece of correspondence or even something funny you talked about once. For example, in one of my emails, I referenced a client’s advice: “I was watching the video you sent me on how to stay productive while working remotely and am making an effort to get up at 8.”
The client responded with “Ha! Yes, that video is great! I should make more of an effort too. It works wonders for productivity when you stick with it.”
10. Ask Them How They Are Doing, Professionally And Personally
I’m all for asking my clients how they’re doing, and I recommend you do too. It’s the heart of customer service. A lot of freelancers do this at the end of every conversation or email exchange, but I like to ask how things are going at various points in an ongoing project or relationship.
It makes me feel more connected to my clients and their business which is a good thing for me as a freelancer that doesn’t enjoy working on boring projects where I have no idea what impact I am having on their business.
Sometimes it makes them happy because they get to share some good news with someone new that they know cares about their success. Or it might make them more comfortable telling me something they don’t think will make me judge them negatively like if they have been too busy to work with me lately and need to push back our deadline one last time (even though we had already pushed it back once).
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11. Match Their Tone And Personality In Your Communication With Them
Some of the most important details to pay attention to are:
- The length of their emails
- The formality level
- The amount of slang they use
- How much they joke around
If you can match these things, and you’ve got a good sense of your client’s personality, it’s going to be like you’re old friends. You’ll know exactly how to talk with them, and they’ll feel comfortable with you. This makes everything so much easier. You won’t have to wonder if using an exclamation point in an email is too informal or if saying “hey” instead of “hello” sounds unprofessional.
12. Talk About Your Weekend Or Some Other Personal Activity That Is Work Appropriate
It’s okay to be human. Talk about something fun you did over the weekend, like a trip you took, or an event you went to with friends. Keep it upbeat though and make sure it’s work-appropriate! And don’t be too weird!
13. Thank Them For Something Specific That They Did For You
Thanking clients is a great way to warm them up and make them feel appreciated. It’s an especially important thing to do if you’re new to the game or are just trying to get your foot in the door with a new client.
This isn’t always easy for some people, especially when they first start out freelancing. A lot of freelancers struggle with self-doubt, so saying thank you can feel scary, especially in those early days. But it doesn’t have to be scary, and it doesn’t have to be all about you (i.e., “thank you for giving me this opportunity”). Instead, a sincere, simple thank-you can go a long way towards building rapport with your clients.
A simple “thank you for taking time out of your busy day/week/life to talk about X project that we worked on together recently! I appreciated hearing your thoughts on X topic and working on this project with you.
Looking forward to talking again soon!” is all that needs to be said here it doesn’t need to be long or elaborate and it will make your client feels special enough that they want to work with you again in the future and recommend you to others too!
14. Just Say Hello When You Don’t Have Anything Else To Say
The key here is to make this stuff personal. You’re not just sending a business email; you’re having a conversation. So, when you write to your client, don’t just tell them what you need (like an invoice) and sign off.
Ask them how they are doing and then take it one step further by telling them something about yourself (you don’t have to go into detail). It’s a small thing that can make all the difference in how your clients react to you.
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Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, it’s important to remember that building rapport with your clients is key. It doesn’t matter how good you are at email marketing. If you can’t sell yourself and your services to a potential client, you aren’t going to win the job.
If you follow this process when pitching to a potential client, they should have a good idea as to who you are and why they should hire you. At this point, they will either like what they see or they won’t. The only thing left for them to consider is the price (they will be drawn in by your personality) and if their budget can accommodate that price tag (this should be enough for them).
At this point, all the hard work is done all that remains is waiting for them to make their decision. Good luck!
Further Reading
Check out these additional resources to deepen your understanding of freelance email marketing and related strategies:
Leveraging Email Marketing for Freelancers: Discover advanced techniques and best practices for incorporating email marketing into your freelance business.
Mastering Cold Outreach Email Marketing: Learn how to effectively utilize cold outreach email marketing to expand your client base and drive income.
Building Rapport with Clients: Explore strategies for nurturing strong client relationships and building rapport through effective communication.
People Also Ask
How Do You Build Rapport With New Clients?
As I mentioned before, a great way to start building rapport is to follow up on the first consultation call. This can just be an email follow-up after your initial consultation call, but if you want to go the extra mile, send them a handwritten note.
It’s an art that should stay alive and it shows that you care about your relationship and put thought into it. I’ve gotten so many thank you cards from my clients and people that I have worked for, sometimes for doing something as simple as scheduling a calendar invite or phone call for them. It goes a long way!
Another way is by making certain things easy for your client to get in touch with you: adding all of your contact information at the bottom of your emails, including all of your direct lines, and letting the client know they can reach out any time.
This conveys that they’re very important to you because they are! Clients are paying money to work with YOU, so make sure they feel like they made the right decision choosing you. It may seem silly at first, but as soon as I started having this mindset when working with clients: “They need me more than I need them” even if that wasn’t true it completely changed my attitude towards dealing with difficult clients.
You will always run into people who don’t find value in what you have done or don’t understand why something is worth what you’re charging them. As soon as I realized this feeling – or attitude – towards my work opened up doors for me professionally and has gotten me awesome referrals from happy customers who love working with me. A lot of my freelance business comes from just word-of-mouth alone!
What Is The Best Way To Build Rapport With Clients?
The best way to build rapport with your client is by understanding where they are coming from and empathizing with them. A great example of this is when you go on a first date or meet someone for the first time. What do you talk about? You talk about yourself, the other person, and things you both enjoy.
This same concept applies to building client rapport. Ask questions about their company, family, hobbies, and goals. Find common ground so that they feel comfortable talking to you and sharing their needs for you to perform better as an email marketer for them.
How Do You Build Rapport With Customers?
You can start building customer rapport by listening, asking questions, showing interest in what they have to say, adapting your communication style based on their level of expertise, periodically sending emails with helpful tips or resources (not always a sales pitch), and responding quickly when they do reach out.
How Do You Make A Good Impression On Clients?
Show genuine interest in your client’s business by asking questions like: “what’s been your biggest challenge lately?”; consistently overdeliver on projects whenever possible; show up on time (or early) to meetings; respect deadlines; produce high-quality work; proactively communicate progress towards goals or milestones; be honest with the client if something is going wrong related to their project or scope of work
How Do You Build A Relationship With Your Clients?
You can’t build relationships without trust, and the best way to earn someone’s trust is to show them that you care about their opinion. I recommend making it clear that you value what they have to say by asking them for feedback on your work early and often.
What Are The Most Important Things In A Client Relationship?
A great relationship with your clients will always be built on trust. For me, earning this trust means asking my clients for feedback as much as possible. I know my work is successful if my client feels like they actively participated in creating it.
How Do You Build Rapport With A Client?
Making sure that your client trusts you should always be top of mind when working together on a project. For me, getting this right means asking my clients for their opinions whenever possible and listening carefully when they reply.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.