Simply communicate badly or insensitively with a client (or prospective client), and you may find evidence of your mis-judged remarks shared with all and sundry.
Needless to say, this can be particularly damaging especially given we are supposed to be a ‘people business’ and if you’re shown to be communicating poorly with people then why should others seek your services?
I was reminded of this recently when I saw a tweet from a clearly disgruntled ‘client’ bemoaning the ‘advice’ their ‘adviser’ had given them. I write ‘advice’ and ‘adviser’ because the correspondence between the two showed the adviser concerned effectively wanted nothing to do with the individual who had sought their services.
Now, ultimately, we can work on behalf of whoever we might wish to, but I might suggest there is a tactful way of saying this. It’s the difference between, “I’m afraid I won’t be able to help you on this occasion” and “do not darken my door ever again”. Unfortunately the adviser had chosen a variation of the latter.
Tweet with caution
Imagine how any mortgage-seeking individual might feel to receive such a correspondence, especially if they were in need of advice given their financial situation?
Frustrated at such a response, they might issue a tweet and, even though later it might have been regretted, the damage would already have been done. Should this have gone ‘viral’ I suspect the adviser concerned would also have been regretting their poor choice of words.
So, the point is, in today’s environment we have to be extraordinarily cautious about how and what we communicate. An ill-thought out tweet can be deleted later but the damage may already be done. Ever heard of screen shots? They can keep your disastrous musings alive for ever.
Even what we might view as private communications can reach the public domain and, if they are misjudged or even misconstrued, they have the capacity to inflict real damage to individuals and businesses. Don’t be caught on the wrong side of this argument, it’s one you’re likely to lose.
Emma-Maria Coffey is Business Development Manager at Blacks Connect
