Episode 646 Communicating With Your Clients With Cami MacNamara
Show Highlights
In this episode, Rob Cairns and Cami MacNamara dive deep into the essential art of client communication for agency owners and freelancers. They discuss how maintaining regular touchpoints—even when things are quiet—builds trust, prevents churn, and fosters long-term professional relationships.
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Show Notes
Key Discussion Points
The Power of the Client Newsletter
- Preventing “Out of Sight, Out of Mind”: Both Rob and Cami emphasize using newsletters to remind clients of the value you provide, especially for those on maintenance or care plans.
- Humanizing Your Brand: Cami shares how including personal updates (like family news or travel plans) helps clients connect with her as a human being rather than just a “tech provider”.
- A Tool for Emergencies: Newsletters are also effective for mass communication during outages or scheduled downtime.
Setting Boundaries and Managing Expectations
- Scheduled Communication: Cami uses tools like Mixmax to write emails when she has time but schedules them to send during business hours.
- The Friday Cutoff: Cami includes a notice in her email signature that messages received after 11:00 AM on Fridays may not be read until Monday to protect her “admin time”.
- Avoiding the “Instant Reply” Trap: To manage client expectations, avoid replying to non-emergencies within minutes; instead, train clients to understand your workflow and availability.
Tactical Communication Tips
- Batching Outreach: When reaching out for big projects like site redesigns, Cami batches her emails (e.g., five clients a month) to avoid being overwhelmed by simultaneous positive responses.
- Preferred Mediums: While Rob often prefers Zoom for coaching to provide recordings, Cami finds that her small business and nonprofit clients often appreciate a simple 15-minute phone call.
- Working ON the Business: Reserving Friday afternoons for internal admin and client outreach ensures that “working on the business” doesn’t get pushed aside by billable tasks.
Resources Mentioned
- WebCami Habits: Cami’s newsletter for web designers.
- ManageWP: Used by Cami for automated monthly client reporting.
- Mixmax: An email productivity tool for scheduling and tracking.
- Google Tasks: Cami’s preferred method for tracking admin to-dos.
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