A few weeks ago, Judy had just sat down to eat her all-organic kale salad when she got a call (of course, fork was in mid-air). It was a frantic client, asking if she could come interpret at a deposition. Now. Always eager to help a client, Judy left the kale salad sitting on the table, threw her hair into a less-than-perfect ponytail, changed from yoga pants into a suit, put on lipstick in the car and drove the 3 miles to the client's office. Time elapsed between phone call and arrival: 13 minutes. Not bad. Lunch was a bag of chips in the car. The client was truly stunned that Judy showed up so quickly (living down the street and being familiar with the law firm helps), and was very grateful. For this project, the court reporting firm hired Judy, and these guys are really, really nice.
We found out how nice they are when they paid their invoice within a few days and also included a Starbucks gift certificate with a handwritten note thanking Judy for her assistance. How nice is that? We are grateful to have wonderful clients who go above and beyond -- we would have been happy with just the check, but the small gift certificate is a truly lovely gesture.
What's the nicest thing a client has done for you? We'd love to hear about it!
4 comments:
Thirteen minutes! That's got to be world record. I think I answered an email once within thirteen minutes (maybe), but that one there takes the cake! You need a new category like Fastest Service of the Month or something. You can bet that client will remember and come back for more.
My favorite is the one who paid within two days, and threw in a gift certificate for a car wash!
And there was the one who sent a very large (Kindle-sized) Amazon card with the final payment on a very large project.
Guess which clients I bend over backwards for?
@EP: Hehe, yes, quite proud of this speed record for interpreters. :) Love the idea Fastest Service of the Month idea.
@Caitilin: You have some amazing clients! Excellent idea: everyone needs a car wash once in a while. And an Amazon card? Cool! We'd bend over backwards for that client, too -- no doubt!
One of the best similar memories for me would be a snail mail card, handwritten, thanking me "for the hard work salvaging that job" and saying "I want you to know how much I appreciate your help".
Snail mail is the personal touch!
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