Practical Sales Training™ > How To Keep Your Clients Happy > The No News Update

What is it?

The No News Update is all about keeping clients updated even when there’s nothing to report. It’s all about showing the client they haven’t been forgotten and you are on the case when they are waiting for something important to happen.

Why does it work?

It works because your clients want to feel valued and important. It’s all too easy to only make contact when there’s something to report, but if you are waiting on something important then a quick email, text or call to say “we’re still on the case but nothing has happened yet” goes a long way to reassure your client that all is in hand.

How can you use it?

If you have long lead times for things to happen for your clients, make sure you don’t just contact them when the “thing” happens.

Make an effort to keep them updated on a daily/weekly/monthly basis as appropriate. Even though there’s nothing to report, you are reassuring your buyer that they matter and that you are actively managing and monitoring the situation.

Once you understand the concept, it makes no sense to only speak with your client when the thing happens, keep them updated, show them they matter. It works.

Example:

A web design agency is waiting on third-party API access to complete a client’s site build. Rather than going silent, they send this email:

Subject: Quick update – still waiting on API approval

Body:Hi Sam,
Just a quick note to say we’re still waiting for the API credentials from your provider. We’ve followed up again today and will let you know as soon as we receive them.
In the meantime, everything else is prepped and ready to go.
Let us know if you have any questions.
– The Dev Team

Why it works:

The client feels reassured and informed
It prevents them chasing or worrying
It shows professionalism and attention to detail

The relationship stays strong even though there’s no real progress – because communication is progress in the client’s eyes.

See also