Meeting a client for coffee is about more than finding a café that serves your favourite brew.
If it goes well, a good coffee meeting can help strengthen your relationship with that client and increase his or her loyalty toward you. But a meeting that doesn’t go well can do more harm than good.
If you take your clients to a “dive” or make them feel uncomfortable, they might begin to think they can’t trust you, says Joshua Zuchter, a life and business coach in Toronto. They will start to wonder: If this is the way you treat a person, how will you treat their portfolio?
For a positive coffee meeting with a client, follow these tips:
> Show up early
Even if you’ve been to the café before, get there before the client does in order to avoid any problems.
Arrive at least 15 minutes early, says Zuchter. That way if there is an unexpected issue, such as construction or an unscheduled closure, you can contact the client and make other arrangements.
> Wait for the client
Hold off on ordering that delicious snack until your guest shows up.
If the client arrives to find you already halfway through a cappuccino and an apple strudel, Zuchter says, he or she will be turned off. Instead, wait for the client, and then order together.
> Get the number
Make sure you have the client’s contact information handy.
People often run a few minutes late, Zuchter says, but if you’ve been waiting for 20 minutes, call to see if the meeting is still on or if the client has accidentally gone to the wrong location. (One well–known chain is famous for having several locations at the same major intersection.)
Exchange cellphone numbers, he says, and decide together whether you can exchange text messages.
> Foot the bill
Inviting a client out for coffee is not the time to be a Scrooge. Make sure you pick up the tab.
“If you’re inviting [a client] for coffee it’s always your treat,” says Rosemary Smyth, owner and coach with Victoria-based Rosemary Smyth and Associates, which specializes in coaching financial advisors. You invited the client to meet for coffee and so you should pay for his or her order – even if it’s an extra-large latte with sprinkles.
> Keep it professional
Treat the conversation as a professional one, despite the casual café atmosphere and the Radiohead song on the overhead speakers..
“It is a real meeting, so follow up with any requests,” says Smyth. If the client asks for more information, be sure to take note and take action. Make notes about the meeting, just as you would for a meeting held in an office setting.
IE