Building successful long-term business relationships

Throughout this month we talked about what it takes to build long-term business relationships.

We established this to be an important factor in building a successful business.

Before we conclude this part let’s discuss two more essential elements that can help you greatly improve your business relationships:

• email etiquette
• do’s and don’ts of socializing with clients

Email etiquette

Good business communication includes good emailing habits. Here are few tips to help you in becoming a better communicator:

Be prompt
Do be prompt in answering your emails sent during the business hours. Especially when it’s something simple and all is required is a “yes” or a “no” answer.

When it would take extra time and effort to complete what the sender has requested, respond promptly AND inform the sender of the approximate time it would take to complete the request. Don’t just ignore it until you have time to get to it – that’s BAD business policy.

Educate your email recipients
When they are slow in responding, I try to remember, “When you know better, you do better”.
Assume their lack of response is not intentional – it’s just plain ignorance of good business practices.
So tell them! Nicely, of course!

Do’s and Don’ts of socializing with clients

Some of you (especially those just entering the business world) may be intimidated by the prospect of socializing with clients.
Don’t be. Much of what we talked about so far – such as respect and courtesy – can be applied successfully to any business-after-hours social gathering.

Three important things to keep in mind:

1. You belong there. Don’t be intimidated by titles, social status or higher income.
2. Be discreet. If you learn about a private matter, don’t take it into the business setting.
3. Know Thyself. Yes, I said this before! In this context it means know whether you should or should not be drinking while socializing with clients.

Final thoughts
The three key elements that will help you build a long-term business relationship:

Trust
Respect
Good Communication

Wishing you much success in building the business of your dreams.

Mariana Fieraru

Mariana Fieraru, an Eastern European transplant, fell in love with her new home shortly after landing in New York. She "discovered" pizza! Years later she still loves pizza. And so do her two feathered-kids, Sunny and Flipper

Mariana worked on both, the east and the west coast.
Big or small, each project she worked on helped define the importance of gaining and sustaining a competitive edge in an increasingly complex business environment.

Business know-how, love of teaching and writing – all combined in 2006 to form OBI.
Its mission: to make learning fun! And easy.

Through its training, consulting, and publications OBI builds bridges of knowledge to take you from where you are to
where you want to go. Using a mix of serious, informal, analytical, and optimistic approach, OBI truly makes learning fun.

Learn More