There is nothing better than repeat business from existing clients, and we've got the easy way for you to get it on this edition of The Inside B.S. Show. Hey, now, I'm Nikki G. This is The Inside B.S. Show. With me is Dave Lorenzo, the godfather of growth.

Dave, how are you? Hey, Nikki G. I'm doing great. How are you today? I'm great. Thank you.

So today is about how to get that repeat business that we like so much, Dave. Why? Because it just makes our job so much easier to continue working with clients we really enjoy working with and doing the work that we enjoy doing. So we need to share with our audience the secret to get that because there's an easy way to do it.

And you and I know what that is. We sure do. And the first way to get that repeat business from existing clients is simply to ask.

Here's what I do with my clients, Nicola. So one of the things I try to do in the very beginning of an engagement with a client is I try to find out as much about that client's business as I can. First, because I want to provide the absolute best experience that I can provide.

And second, because I want to know if there are any other problems that I can help them solve. Right. So when they bring me in for a specific problem and it's usually related to growth or an exit strategy, let's say it's an exit strategy.

CEO brings me in and he says, I want to exit this business in five years. There's not an immediate successor in my organization, Dave. I need you to help me figure out how I can do that.

We need to put a plan in place. So that's why I get hired. So I say, OK, Mr. CEO, first, let me do this.

I need to interview you and find out everything there is to know about your business, about your industry, about your market, so that I can give you the best advice possible. So we go through this comprehensive interview, which takes about two hours or so. And then I say to the CEO, I've got a good handle on it.

I think what we can do is we can sit down and start talking about your exit strategy now. By the way, I noticed that you identified three other areas where you have issues right now. Area number one is something that I work on.

So when we finish the exit strategy, would it be possible for us to talk about doing something in that area so I could help you there? So that's asking for business early on in the engagement, repeat business. But notice what I did. I didn't say, give me that work right now.

I said, I want to solve this problem for you first. I want to make sure you're happy with that solution. And then after you're happy with that solution, we'll talk about the next solution.

So that's asking early. Then asking often is the key point. So while you're going through that engagement with them, anytime they compliment you or they thank you, you should say you're most welcome.

It's my pleasure to work with you. I'm really enjoying our work together and I hope we get to continue it beyond this engagement. So that's asking frequently.

That's asking often. And then finally, at the end of the project, when you present your report of findings or whatever your final work product is, you say to the client as you extend your hand, thank you so much, Mr. Client. I really enjoyed this work together.

Would you like to sit down now and talk about solving problem number one? And then he'll say, sure, because you've already brought it up twice. You've already set the table for him. So asking early and asking often.

And by the way, this is not pushy. You can't view it as being pushy. You should view it as you have the solution to a problem they need to solve and they can either spend weeks, months or years figuring out how to solve that problem or they can hire you and solve that problem right now.

Another way to think about it is you're the doctor and they're bleeding out. You got to stop the bleeding. So you need to offer your services because it's the right thing to do.

So asking early and asking often, that's the first way. What do you think, Nicola? Yeah, totally agree. So when you get that an opportunity to work with a client, you should always be thinking and listening out for additional material that allows you to identify other issues that the company may not even know about.

You have the inside exposure while you're working through that first matter to already be thinking about other ones. Obviously, you need to do an excellent job, show them exactly what you can do. Then as you're doing that and you identify these other issues, find the right moment, bring it up and you've already found yourself another matter that they're likely going to bring you in on if you've done excellent work and you have a good relationship with them.

But as you said, Dave, if you're not asking, you are not receiving. And I've experienced this personally. You have to ask for more work.

You'd be surprised when you do. The client will send you a lot more work. They're just not always thinking about the next matter they can send to you.

They've got a lot of things going on. They're running a business. They're not thinking about what matter can I send to Nikki G? What matter can I send to Dave Lorenzo? They're not focused on it.

They, of course, want to send you work. That's why you're in that relationship. They know you're doing an excellent job.

You've got to bring that to their attention at the right time, especially after you've done an excellent job on a matter. Sit down with them when you have the opportunity to have that conversation and you're going to be surprised. They're going to send you additional work.

You have to ask. Yeah, no, that's that's a great point. And I hear it all the time from lawyers and law firms and they talk about it as cross selling.

Right. And they say, well, the client doesn't know everything I do, so I got to explain to them everything I do. No, no, no, no, no.

You don't have to explain to them everything you do. What you need to do is you need to ask questions that will uncover all the problems that they have and you match up their problems with the solutions you have in house. And that's how you cross sell and you get repeat business from the same client.

Hey, Nikki G, did you know you can also get our show as an audio podcast? Of course I know you can get the show as an audio podcast. I'm on it. But does our audience? I don't know.

So those of you who are watching on YouTube, you can find us wherever you get your podcast with. Just search up the Inside B.S. Show with The Godfather and Nikki G. And you'll find us right there. Click the follow button so that you never miss a show.

Now, there's a couple of reasons why you're going to want to do that. Nikki G, tell them what the first reason is. You get to ask us questions that is exclusive to our podcast listeners.

Yeah, we only answer listener questions on the audio version of the podcast. We don't do it on video. So if you want to hear what everyone's thinking or if you want to ask us a question, you got to download the audio podcast.

The second reason and my favorite reason is because you can take us with you. You can have a little Nikki G in your pocket while you're working out in the gym, washing the dishes or walking the dog. I love me some Nikki G in my pocket when I'm walking the dogs.

I don't know about you, Nicola, but that's one of my favorite things to do. Absolutely. Take us with you.

After you watch this episode here on YouTube, go to wherever you get your podcast, click the follow button so we can go with you on your journey and you can ask us questions. We will see you or more like hear you there. Point number two that we need to make on this, Nicola, and you and I agree on this, I know we do, is that you have to do your your best possible work.

You have to be extremely competent. You should be. If you're looking for repeat business, you should be the best there is in your field or one of the best in your field.

And you have to operate with a high degree of integrity. So integrity and competence are the table stakes. They're the price of entry.

They're what you need to do in order to get repeat business. I see people all the time who are knuckleheads. They they produce shoddy work product and they operate with, you know, they're operate fast and loose with the truth.

They don't blatantly lie, but they overly embellish. They use a lot of puffery in their language and they are astonished why clients don't give them repeat business. So operating with a high degree of integrity and a high degree of competence, necessity in order to get repeat business.

Thoughts? Yeah, both are absolutely necessary. No excuses. If you want to demonstrate that you are an excellent professional, you have to have both.

So let me expound on integrity a little bit, because this one I see a lot in my field. You have, you know, folks will say, well, do we really have to produce that really bad document in the case? And maybe, you know, your client's like, why don't we just not why don't we just not produce this one? First of all, there are a host of very serious issues there if you withhold something and you don't produce it. But even that aside, if you and some some lawyers may say, OK, you know, do it.

I won't produce it. But you end up in a situation where that document now comes to light and you didn't produce it. I mean, you're that's it.

Your integrity is over. But you have to take that stand and say, I'm not going to do this. Your client is going to recognize when you say, look, I'm not comfortable doing this.

This is this is where I stand on this particular issue. Your client's going to respect you a lot more. You know, I have seen that.

I have been on the receiving end of that from clients saying, I really appreciate you explaining when you get to the point there, you have to say, look, I this is my advice. I do not recommend that you do this. The client is going to respect you a lot more as professional when you do that.

Why? Because it's in their best interest as to why you are really drawing a line in the sand on a particular issue. And then, of course, you have to be competent in your space. Otherwise, you're not going to continue to work with clients if you don't master your craft.

I've resigned from client relationships very quietly and without telling anyone when I saw a client operating with a lack of integrity or when a client asked me to do something that was out of integrity for me. I don't I don't call the client out. I don't I don't make a big show of it.

I don't I don't even really share it at, you know, at dinner with my family. I just resign from the client relationship and say I'm not comfortable doing this. And if this is something that you insist on doing, I'm going to have to step away from this engagement because I just don't feel good about it.

And then I very quietly leave and and nobody knows the difference except for me. And I'm the one who has to look at myself in the mirror every day. So integrity and competence are critical.

The final point is if you want repeat business from your clients, you have to give business to your clients, do business with your clients. So I tell people all the time that when I was at the Gallup organization, I worked with 14 different banks, regional banks, one big multinational bank, but 14 different regional banks. And whenever I would go out to lunch or go out to dinner with a banker or an executive from the bank, I would always pay with that bank's credit card.

I would always make sure they knew that I had accounts at like 15 different banks, each, you know, each account with like a thousand dollars in it because I wanted them to see me doing business with them because they were doing business with me. And whenever I can now, as a much smaller shop, I refer business to my clients or I connect my clients with people who can do business with them. That's not my job.

That's not what I get paid to do. But I do it because I want them to see that I care about their success beyond just their ability to invest in me. So doing business with your clients or referring business to your clients is a great way to get repeat business because then you can go to them and say, hey, let me give you some feedback.

I had a great experience at XYZ store the other day. One of my huge clients when I was at Gallup, Nikola was in Taylor stores. They used to be in every shopping mall.

They had three different brands. They had Ann Taylor. They had Ann Taylor loft and they had Ann Taylor factory.

And whenever I traveled to a different city, I made it a point to go into the Ann Taylor store and introduce myself to the manager. If I was going there with my spouse, she would do some shopping. And more often than not, she would buy something there.

But we would then write up a quick report and send it off to the CEO about the experience we had in the store and what we purchased and how that purchase experience was. Now, why was I doing that? I wasn't doing it to provide feedback on the specific service in the store, which more often than not was outstanding. I was doing it to show the CEO that we were shopping in the stores that were putting food on our table.

I was doing it to show the CEO that we respected the process that they had in place and that we respected the fact that they were our clients. Now, did I occasionally come up with something that could lead to a different engagement? More than one time, because I was shopping at their stores, did I find something? In fact, we conducted a client lifecycle engagement as a result of me having an experience in a store that was less than favorable. And that engagement was a multimillion dollar engagement.

I didn't ask for that repeat business, but the repeat business came as somebody who was a customer. And when the CEO introduced me to that business unit to start the engagement, he said, Dave is a consultant we trust and we work with, but he's also an Ann Taylor client. And that's how this engagement started.

That's a powerful, powerful way to get recommended to someone. And it's a powerful way to develop repeat business just because you're a customer, just because you're a client of your client. What do you think? I love this.

So you hear us say this often for our audience. It's about delivering value to your clients, our relationships. You can think of it this way.

When we are hired to provide a service, it's very transactional in nature in the sense that they hire us to perform a service. They pay us for that service and we deliver an excellent service back to them. But when you think of it this way, how can I give my client value beyond that transactional relationship? You are now taking your relationship with the client to the next level because you're thinking about their business.

You're thinking long term. That will end up being a long term client if you are thinking that way and delivering value to them. It's great to give your client business back.

There's no expectation there. The client's not expecting it. You're not looking for anything in return.

It is a great way to show them that you really do support their business. I love working with clients where I can support their business. And oftentimes that's why we work with those clients is because we think they have a great business and we want to be able to help them elevate that business.

You can do that. And it's also going to end up leading back to you in a more business. That's it.

Clients, clients. That's repeat clients. We love it.

Repeat business. Business, business. That's what I just did there.

Thanks for joining us today on this edition of the Inside B.S. Show. I'm Dave Lorenzo. I'm the godfather of growth and she's Nikki G. We'll see you back here again tomorrow, folks, for another show.

Until then, here's hoping you make a great living and live a great life. Business, business. That's repeat.