10 Things I Learned About Time Management and Effective Communication for Successful Client Calls
By: Ott Rabi
Tags: Effective Communication, Wrike, Time Management

10 Things I Learned About Time Management and Effective Communication for Successful Client Calls Ott Rabi Follow Nov 23 · 4 min read

Due to the pandemic, working from home and taking video calls have become the “New Normal” for many of us. As a customer success manager at Wrike, I talk with dozens of small and medium businesses every week, and I’ve come across a few trends and best practices.

Effective time management is key for successful appointments. As we have limited time with each customer, it’s important to maximize the value we provide to them. Here are my tips to ensure your client calls are successful.

Time management

1. Set an agenda

This will set clear expectations, and you’ll have guidelines to follow. At the end of the call, you can always ask the client if your agenda addressed all their concerns and if there’s anything else they’d like to include.

2. Break the conversation into sections

This goes hand in hand with the previous point, and it’s important that you follow these sections throughout the call. Asking the client whether or not an agenda item was clear will open up the conversation for the client to ask additional, related questions. Last but not least, it’ll keep the client engaged and the conversation flowing.

3. Pay attention to the time

This will enable you to make necessary changes during the session and be in control of the conversation. With experience, you’ll know how much time each talking point will take on average. You can prioritize what topics you want to talk about first and what could be covered in a follow-up email or additional resources.

4. Agree on next steps and have a mutual action plan

This allows you to build long-term relationships with the client, and they’ll have a better understanding of which objectives to strive for. Furthermore, it’ll clarify what actions are required from both sides to continue fostering development. It’s never a great feeling when you have another call with the client in a few weeks’ time and no progress has been made. Keep the ball rolling at all times.

5. Have a hard stop at the end of the call

This is important so you’re respectful of the client’s time and vice versa. It creates trustworthiness and professionalism, as we all have our own work to focus on. If you follow all of the above mentioned tips, you’ll have a positive, long-lasting, and healthy relationship with the client.

Effective communication

While time management principles are important, effective communication is just as important of a key to success. This is a skill and like any skill, it can be developed and improved upon. Here are some of my tips on improving your communication skills:

1. Build rapport

You can ask the client how they’re doing or their weekend plans. Similarly, you can always ask about the weather or certain events and news in their area. It opens up the conversation and gives them a chance to talk about something that isn’t business-related.

2. Do your homework

This is key for being effective and trustworthy. Read their website, a blog post about them, their LinkedIn page, and any internal notes you have about them. These are a few simple examples to ensure you keep the conversation relevant to them, bring industry-based examples, and have a more contextual conversation.

3. Ask the right questions

I can’t emphasize the importance of asking the right questions enough. Peeling the onion layers and getting to the bottom of a situation is the best way to make sure that your recommendations are what the client needs. Often, the questions should be open-ended, so the client can describe their issues, instead of just replying yes or no. Furthermore, after a discussion, you could summarize what has been said in one to two sentences and ask for confirmation, just to make sure you understood what they meant.

4. Use clear statements and have value-based discussions

Articulating your thoughts and expressing them in a meaningful way, while making sure that you’re bringing value to the client, is what will make you a great communicator. At Wrike, we follow the proverb: “Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.. This is important as we strive to build long-term relationships and sustainable results with our clients.

5. Know what to prioritize

You should let the client talk, but still control the conversation and steer it in a certain direction. But the biggest lesson here is: Don’t assume anything. When I first started my role, this was one of my biggest downfalls. I made too many assumptions about the client’s workflows, processes, and business in general.

To conclude, set an agenda and break the conversation into sections. Pay attention to the time, set up a mutual action plan, and have a hard stop at the end of the call. Build rapport, do your homework, ask the right questions, let the client talk, and ask for confirmation. Communicate clearly and never assume anything. If you’re able to combine the above mentioned suggestions on time management and effective communication, your conversations with clients will generate value and be beneficial to both sides.