2 Secrets to Landing & Keeping Long-Term Clients

In my design journey, I have lost so many good clients. Some even paid me loads of money, but I lost them.

Therefore I took some time off and researched the human psychology of Retention.

That's where I understood the two very important factors that enhance your chances of acquiring a long-term client or making the one-time client come back desperately.

I will explain those two things so you can also be a retention magnet. Read below!



Imagine you have successfully onboarded a client and you are about to deliver the final output.

The first thing you will do is

Underpromise and Overdeliver

At the current stage, you have certain deliverables to work with and you have them almost ready to be delivered.

Just take a step back, and think.

What other deliverables can you provide as a complementary gift, with no extra charges and completely free, alongside the obvious deliverables that the client needs anyway?

If I were to exemplify, you are working on a project with Logo design, Typography, Color Palette, and Corporate Collaterals as the deliverables. Here you could create a Social Media Post template or A Complete Brand Guideline document as complementary deliverables.

By doing this, you have successfully Overdelivered.

From the client's perspective, you have Under-Promised and Over-Delivered.

Benefits of this approach:

• Builds trust and credibility.

• Increases client satisfaction.

• Generates positive word-of-mouth referrals.

Practical tips for implementation:

• Be transparent about project timelines and potential challenges.

• Go the extra mile to find creative solutions.

• Offer unexpected bonuses or value-added services.

The second thing is after you have delivered the files and a few days or weeks have passed by i.e. you gave the time for your designs to breathe!

Follow Up

Following up after a client project is so crucial that most people completely ignore it.

A follow-up need not be so formal or strategic, it's just asking them how are things, how is business after your project, etc.

What does that do?

• It demonstrates genuine interest and commitment.

• It builds rapport and strengthens relationships.

• It keeps your brand top-of-mind.

A few of the follow-up examples to make an impact on the client's minds are

• Post-project check-ins: Schedule follow-up calls or send emails to see how they are doing.

• Industry-related insights: Share relevant articles, reports, or industry news.

• Birthday/anniversary greetings: A simple gesture can go a long way.

You can set up tools and automation to do this job or manually DM your client.

I prefer the manual method as it gives more flexibility and personal appeal to the client.

Want to unlock the secrets to long-term client success?

➡️ Schedule a free consultation to learn how I can help you build lasting partnerships.
https://calendly.com/kushigrafixx/intro-call

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