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How Do You Avoid Thorny Client Situations?
Use Clarifying Questions

The battleship captain relayed a message through his signalman “We are on a collision course. Advise you change course twenty degrees!”

Two battleships were at sea on maneuvers. Assigned to a training exercise, they had been in heavy weather for several days. As dusk approached, a thick fog rolled in making visibility very difficult. The captain stayed on watch to keep an eye on things.

Shortly after dark, a lookout reported a light off the starboard bow. The light was on a collision course with the ship.

The captain relayed a call through the signalman, “We are on a collision course. Advise you change course twenty degrees.”

Back came a reply, “Advisable for you to change course twenty degrees.”

The captain said, “I am a captain. Change course twenty degrees.”

Back came a reply, “I am a seaman second-class. You had better change course twenty degrees.”

The captain was now furious, “I am a battleship! Change course twenty degrees!”

Back came the reply, “I am a lighthouse.”

Calamity Doesn’t Just Happen at Sea

Cliff is a certified public accountant (CPA) who specializes in negotiating Internal Revenue Service (IRS) audits. He is good at what he does, but after ten years, he has grown weary of the sometimes-adversarial nature of his work.

Not long ago, he took a call from a company looking for an expert to help develop a training program. The training program was to help clients avoid attracting audits altogether.

Cliff was both flattered and intrigued. It was nice to be courted for his expertise and the topic could open a door to a shift in his practice.

The company asked Cliff for a quote for 150 hours of his time, and if he had reservations about occasionally working after normal business hours. Cliff signed the contract to get the “formality” out of the way, figuring he would work out the details over a cup of coffee. The price he quoted for the 150 hours would be a welcome bonus for the coming holidays.

After signing the contract, the company told him that another expert had completed the first 100 hours, but left the project because of stress. There were only three days left for Cliff to complete the project.

Cliff did not have 50 hours available within the next 72 hours before the deadline. When he quoted the rate, he never contemplated working without sleep. And to top it off, he would be paid a full third less than he had anticipated.

How can you prevent your engagements from running aground before or after the agreement is signed?

Ask Clarifying Questions

You can best avoid rocky shores or inequitable agreements by obtaining accurate information. Accurate information can be obtained by asking the right questions.

Clarifying questions are useful when you are not receiving adequate information from your client. Cliff and the captain had the same problem. They had what they thought was a complete picture of the situation they were facing. Unfortunately while some of the information came from the situation, key pieces were supplied by imagination and assumption.

You can frame clarifying questions by identifying the source of your information. When you are taking inventory of the situation, ask yourself where you obtained what information. What piece of the puzzle came from where? If you have too little coming from the client, then its time to verify your information with clarifying questions.

Example: There were a number of clarifying questions that were available to Cliff:

  • What does “normal business hours” mean to you?
  • When do you need the work done by?
  • When is the project scheduled to start?
  • You have asked me to quote you for a 150-hour project. How do you know how much time the work will take to complete?
  • What is the current status of the project?

Make sure your questions are in appropriate order of importance. Did you notice how the captain’s order of issues was in the inverse order of importance given the grave nature of an impending collision?

First, he offered his rank as a reason for the other “ship” to change course. Second, he offered the size of his ship as a reason. Only then did he have enough information about the physical realities of the situation to act appropriately. Battleship captain or no, land does not move!

Better Information Leads to Better Decisions

Luckily, the battleship turned in time and Cliff negotiated out of the contract.

Both dangers could have been avoided altogether by asking clarifying questions. You can use clarifying questions to fill in missing details. Never rest in your search for better information.

Better information leads to better decisions.

Happy Client Retaining,

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© 2004-2007 Jeff Simon Consulting. All Rights Reserved. Wouldn't you love to peer into your client's head and know what they are thinking and feeling? Could you have better success at keeping and choosing your best clients if you could decode their behavior? Check out the Happy Clients Newsletter at: www.happyclientsnewsletter.com.

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