Client meetings are at the heart of the Blue Fountain Media process. We use them to get to know our clients, to find out what they’re looking for from their websites, and how we can help. The work we do ranges from one-off logo designs and press releases, to ecommerce site re-designs and long-term marketing campaigns.

As the first person most clients see, I often get asked by friends and colleagues about client meetings, either out of curiosity or a need for advice. Here are a few that come up a lot:

How do you prepare for any given client meeting?

Before inviting any client to a meeting, I like to chat with them by phone to learn more about their project. Is it a new website, a redesign, are they looking for online marketing or newsletters, or something more? The initial phone call helps us understand the client’s goals and needs for the project, who their target market is and if they have a budget or time frame in mind for getting started.

Every client is different and we provide a completely customized solution to suit their needs. It is important to gather this information up front so we can best assess how we can help them.

Sometimes we send a Client Questionnaire to help them start the brainstorming process, and many people send along their own document with ideas for the project.

Next, we will set up a meeting in the office to better understand the client’s goals, and to review ideas or examples with them. To prepare, we have an internal meeting to review these materials together as a team. We give everyone on the team as much information as possible about the client so that they prepare their own thoughts and questions.

The internal meeting includes team members such as a Creative Director, designers and often a member of the marketing team. We review ideas and examples to show the client, research their competitors, determine our agenda and our goals for the meeting. Usually, we’ll send an agenda when the meeting is scheduled. If it’s a last minute meeting, we will meet a few minutes before to prep and ensure we are all on the same page.

We want our potential clients to feel comfortable with us and see us as their in-house team. Inviting them in to get to know us and show examples of our work helps both parties decide if it’s the right fit for the project.

What if a client has an agenda other than working with Blue Fountain Media?

We try our best to lead the direction of the conversation. We do so by explaining to them what is most important to discuss right now in order to get their branding, website or online marketing project started.

Talking about their needs and what immediate results they can expect helps focus the conversation. If a client has not already filled out a Client Questionnaire, walking them through this process also helps to get back on target with our agenda. We also let the client know that we offer up to a free hour of consultation on their project so that they know time is limited and we don’t run off on tangents or onto other agendas.

How do you stay enthusiastic about meeting a certain client after meeting them over a long period of time?

We want our clients business to succeed, so we are always trying to think of new and exciting ways to help their project. We’re in a pretty enviable position right now: we’re getting enough business that we can be as selective in choosing clients as they are in choosing us. We pride ourselves on working with clients that believe in their own project and we believe in it as well.

Our design team is constantly looking at new websites, cool interface designs and challenging themselves creatively. Our marketing team does a great job of thinking of innovative ways to enhance the website, drive interaction and help the client gain exposure online. Our evolving knowledge and experience helps us bring something new and fresh to a project every time.

Here at BFM we are constantly working on new projects, producing fresh content and using cutting-edge tools so we can do something new and better on every project.

Tags: clients, meetings