Have you ever been given a client and then hear from your referral partner that they complained about your service or lack of response?
As a loan officer, I work with several agents who generate most of their business from their web sites. Obviously, Internet "leads" require instant follow up and a significant amount of relationship building before they can be considered real clients. I hate even using the term leads because it has a negative non-personal tone, however, lets call it what it is for the sake of this blog post.
So, when my agents get a call from a lead complaining that they haven't heard back from me or that I'm not able to provide them with the program they may be searching for, it makes me look bad....
Or does it?
Maintaining a relationship with a referral partner is a full-time job. My agents and I are all aware of each others business and client communication systems. So, when a lead complains about not receiving a phone call or something else, we all know that they are pretty much making up excuses for not wanting to go through the home buying process with us. At that point, we can re-examine what needs we should focus on satisfying in order to turn the lead into a loyal client.
On the flip side, when a loyal client complains, we know that there is an issue which should immediately be addressed. Regardless of the truth, the client's perception is the only thing that matters. Maybe not returning a call after 8 pm constitutes "lack of service" in their eyes. Who knows? Either way, we can focus on fixing the problem instead of spending our time trying to defend ourselves. It really doesn't matter who's side of the story is correct.
Our clients see it that way, so we should too.
To the point: If you trust your referral partner, there shouldn't be any reason to have multiple discussions about your integrity. I know my agents work hard, and they are confident that I'm doing my best to make them look good as well.
Question: When your clients complain, who do your referral partners believe?
Comments(5)