#198 - Starting fresh with Aligned Clients + Ending Client Contracts
As we find ourselves in this time of year ripe with fresh starts and renewed perspectives, I wanted to share an important conversation I'm having frequently: aligning with the right clients and parting ways where necessary.
I love the buzz surrounding business development, up-leveling, and the client journey. There's something so invigorating about setting the stage for new possibilities. Yet, this period also challenges us to think about one of the more difficult aspects of business: letting go of clients who no longer align with our evolving goals. I know from stories shared by many of my lovely clients that this can be quite daunting. You feel that dreaded stomach drop at the thought of having "the talk,".
Let me assure you, you are absolutely not alone. Every business owner faces this at some point in their journey. Wanting to work with more aligned clients is a positive indicator of growth—it's a necessary part of evolution. As our businesses grow, our service offerings and client profiles naturally transform. Recognising misaligned client relationships isn't a reflection of carrying out something incorrectly; it's merely an acknowledgment of normal progress.
Think of it like ripping off a Bandaid; the quicker the better. The more we stress over it, the worse it seems. It’s crucial to reframe the situation—this isn't about terminating a relationship with negativity but rather making space for new and more fitting partnerships.
Here’s how I recommend approaching this delicate process:
Assess Your Client Service Agreement
Start with your contract. Whether it’s termed a design agreement, a coaching contract, or business T's and C's, understanding your existing terms is pivotal. Review what your agreement says regarding your right to exit the relationship. If we've worked together, you should find a clear exit strategy applicable to both parties. If not, you may have to delve deeper.
Plan Your Exit Strategy
Once you know what’s required contractually, begin mapping out your exit strategy. Consider any significant dates and client obligations. Might there be legal or industry-specific filing dates at play? You must ensure that termination aligns with important deadlines without leaving your client in difficulty. Remember, upholding your professional and brand reputation is as critical as fulfilling legal obligations.
Consider the Handover Process
Should your client opt for a new service provider, it’s essential to think about handover logistics. Determine what needs passing over and outline these details within your contract if applicable. Planning for this ensures a smooth transition without leaving your clients inadequately equipped.
Communicate Transparently
Once your exit strategy is planned, communicate openly with your client. Let them know what remains to be done, specify what is achievable before the end date, and discuss handover logistics if necessary. Even if you're parting ways earlier than initially planned, the process can still conclude positively and professionally.
Follow Through with Integrity
As you navigate this transition, follow through with your commitments. Clients need to feel your support throughout, even as you prepare to part ways. The goal is to maintain professionalism and mitigate any potential issues, thereby protecting your reputation and legality.
By framing the process as an opportunity for both parties, letting go of misaligned clients can become a mutually beneficial step. Terminating a contract doesn't have to be awful, and when handled with care, it can reinforce your brand's integrity and values.
I believe that both you and your clients deserve to thrive in partnerships that excite and inspire. If you need assistance or feel out of your depth, don't hesitate to reach out. You don't have to navigate these waters alone. Remember, your support network can be instrumental during these challenging times.
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[00:00:00] Tracey: Welcome back everyone to another episode of the Rise Up in Business podcast. I am loving the conversations I'm having at this time of year around the freshness of our business journey, the renewed perspective and outlook that we have and the energy that so many people bring at this time of year to talking all things business, all things business development, clients, up leveling, the client journey, growth.
I love all of it. One of the most important conversations I seem to be having around this time of year relates to aligned clients, [00:01:00] magnetizing more aligned clients in business, niching even further, and then by extension, letting some clients go, letting clients go that aren't aligned to make space for more clients who are, and sometimes this comes about because of a business owner's growth or because of an evolution or a new direction the business is taking. But sometimes it comes about because this time of year sees some more spaciousness where business owners have time to think, have time to plan, have time to think about what their ideal journey looks like, or what their most beautifully aligned clients look like. For whatever the reason may be, it is a conversation that I'm having more and more often at this time of year.
I know from talking to so many of my beautiful clients that letting someone go can be really unpleasant. When they've made a decision, Tracey, it's time to let someone go. It's time to part ways with this client. Oh, I've got that sinking stomach feeling and I don't want to do it.
I [00:02:00] don't want to have the conversation, but I know how great I'll feel once we've had it. And once it's done, I hear you. I get it. I really do. I want to dive in in today's episode and share with you my thoughts on this and give you my tips and suggestions for how to navigate this in a way which is hopefully far less painful and far less nerve wracking for you as a business owner.
The first thing I want to say, first and foremost, is you're not alone. This is all business owners at some time or other on the business journey. Getting clarity around wanting to work with more aligned clients is fabulous. It's part of growth. It's part of up leveling. As the business evolves and grows, the service offerings will evolve and grow and the clients that you will best be able to serve in your business will change. So again, evolve and grow. That's all part of the process that's supposed to happen. So that's the first thing I want to say. It's not just you. There's nothing wrong with you. You haven't done anything wrong.
And it's not about, when you look [00:03:00] back, it's not about taking on clients that perhaps weren't a good fit. It's not that. Sure that happens sometimes, but that's not the topic of this podcast episode. And that's not what I wanted to focus on. I want to focus on normalizing growth and normalizing that discomfort around the clients that you do have on the books or the work you do have in your workflow.
Sometimes it's no longer a good fit. To that I say, it's like ripping a bandaid, in my mind. And this is way I approach these conversations with my clients, often. It's like ripping a bandaid. So it's the quicker, the better. The sooner, the better, because then you've got less time to think about it and agonize over it.
And then the quicker, the better. So we all know that whether it's from our own childhood or whether that's what we do with our own kids. It's really not that big a deal. We make it a big deal by thinking about it so, so much, and we, we blow it out of proportion and that is, yes, absolutely something that happens around this topic of letting a client go.
So you can call it whatever you want. Terminating somebody, cutting them loose, [00:04:00] moving on, letting them go. However you want to frame it, however it sits for you, the process is the same. How do you part ways with a client that you have who is no longer aligned so that you can make way or make space for more beautifully aligned clients that you know you can better serve?
Here we go. The first thing I recommend you do is take a look at your client service agreement. So whether you call it your design agreement or your coaching agreement or your business T's and C's, whatever the agreement you have, or the terms and conditions you have in place for working with your client, start there.
What does it say in relation to termination? What is your exit strategy? Now, if we've worked together, there will be a very clear exit strategy in there, applicable for both parties. If we haven't, you may have to just dig a little deeper because it may not be quite as clear and as obvious. But the first thing to do is have a look at that agreement and see what it says around the right to [00:05:00] exit.
So the right to terminate. This is developing your exit strategy. Once you know contractually what it is you must do in order to be able to part ways with your client, you can then plan out what that looks like. So your client service agreement or your business T's and C's ought to have a process in there for how you part ways, what notice you have to give, who's responsible for the costs, and usually for a service based business, this ought to say something along the lines of, if you want to terminate for reasons other than a breach, you've got to give a set number of days or months notice and the client has an obligation to pay you as the service provider for everything you do up until the date of termination.
So I encourage you to get crystal clear on what your contract or your agreement with your client says around terminating, so you can start planning your exit strategy. Once you know that, you can then [00:06:00] consider any key dates or obligations that come into play. Depending on the nature of your business and the service you're providing, there may be some key filing dates, whether they're legal, or if we're talking BAS, Accounting, or if you're an interior designer and you've got a completion date to work to, if there are other trades or contractors that are reliant on the work you're doing.
Same with graphical web design. Is there a launch date? Just get really clear on the dates that are important to the project and the dates that are important to the client. What we don't want to do is leave the client in the lurch. Absolutely don't want to do that, both from a legal perspective and a business perspective.
We don't want reputational risk arising out of this or reputational harm. And legally, if we've contracted to do certain things, we need to understand what our obligations are because there may be damage that flows if we fail to deliver. So get crystal clear on the dates and obligations and then this feeds into your exit strategy because you'll be able to work out how much notice you need to give and [00:07:00] you'll be able to see whether that aligns with any key dates so that you can work out when to give the notice to make sure you can deliver contractually what you need to deliver, if anything, sometimes there's nothing, but if there is, make sure that's factored into your planning.
The next thing to consider is the need for a handover. If it is the case that your client is likely going to bring in somebody else, you need to think about what it is that's going to need to be handed over.
Some things the client will be able to hand over, some things you'll need to do. Does your contract say anything about a handover? Important to understand that. And then from a professional and business perspective, what do you need to do to prepare for that handover? Again, we don't want to be leaving the client in the lurch.
So there's a lot of considerations here, but planning for the handover is really important when you're developing your exit strategy, because then you know the work you need to do that will lead up to that date of termination. Once you have clarity on those things, you've got timeframes mapped out.
You [00:08:00] know what work still needs to be done, if any. You've planned your handover, again, if any. You can then give the notice to the client, because whilst you'll be letting the client know that you're going to part ways, and as I always say, this is a wonderful opportunity for the business owner and for the client, because if the business owner doesn't feel aligned in providing the service and chances are the client feels that too, and the client would be better served by somebody who is more aligned for them, who can better serve them.
So it's a win win. I'm the queen of reframe and I love doing that. I love reframing it and putting a positive on it. And so that's how I reframe parting of ways. But you can then get ready to give notice to the client, to let them know that you're going to terminate. You can give an explanation if you wish.
Sometimes you don't need to. That needs to be nuanced on a case by case basis, and you can let the client know, this is the notice period I have to give you. Notice period takes effect from now. Termination date will be this. This is the work left to be done. You can particularize what you'll [00:09:00] do, what you won't do, what will be left.
You can then talk about handover, whether that's going to be needed, ask for a timeframe so that you can make that process really seamless. So even though this client relationship hasn't completed the way your more aligned client relationships would, you can still off board in a really professional way.
You can still off board in a way that's on brand for you. It doesn't need to be sour. It doesn't need to be awful. It just doesn't. And you have the ability to direct this process by spending the time to plan. By spending the time to plan your exit strategy, you can direct the process so that it stays professional and stays on brand for you.
Once you have done that, you've planned your exit strategy, you've thought about the things I've discussed and you've let the client know, follow through is key. Follow through is absolutely key to make sure you do what you say you were going to do, as and when you say you were going to do it, [00:10:00] particularly if key dates were involved in your notice of termination to the client, then you need to make sure you're following through. The client needs to feel supported all the way to the end, even if you're terminating early. Even if. It doesn't matter. You still need to follow through and support the client all the way to the end, because again, we're managing your legal obligations under the client service agreement or the terms and conditions, but we're managing your brand and your professionalism by making sure you're parting ways in a beautifully aligned way for your business. I hear too many stories about how things have gone sour with a client and someone's gone, right, that's it. It's like throwing the toys out of the pram going, I'm not playing with you anymore. It doesn't need to be like that. And we're all adults. It shouldn't be like that. That's all I have to say on that.
I will spend no more time pressing that point, but it shouldn't be like that. That doesn't mean it's easy. It doesn't mean it's not uncomfortable. Yes, it can be challenging and it can be uncomfortable, but it doesn't have to be a dummy spit either. So there we have it. [00:11:00] These are my tips and my guidance to you on what to focus on when developing your exit strategy to part ways with your client.
So I've talked about the importance of planning to develop that exit strategy. Take a look at your client agreements, your terms and conditions, and and have a look what it says around timeframes, giving notice, and how you give that notice. Is it email? Is it letter? Is it phone? What is it? Then we look at key dates and obligations.
Make sure you're not leaving the client vulnerable. We don't want to leave clients in the lurch. So what will you deliver on? What won't you deliver on? And prepare details of that for the client so that they know. Think about a handover. If a handover is going to be important, prepare for that. Make sure you do a beautifully aligned handover, which is on brand and professional.
Then give the notice to the client. You've spent time planning. You're clear on how this is going to unfold. You can now give notice to the client in accordance with the agreement or the contract, [00:12:00] and you can then enter into discussions if required with the client to affect the handover, or to bring things up to speed, up to and including the termination date. Make sure you're clear on what you get paid for. And again, comes back to the client contract and make sure you issue an invoice in a timely manner in relation to what's owed to you, as at that termination date. And that's the follow through.
So if you do that, well, like I said a moment ago, just because you're off boarding somebody in a way that you hadn't intended because you're terminating early and you're terminating to do the client a service so that they can be served by somebody better aligned for them, which means it's a win win.
It's a positive for both. Absolutely. I don't think anybody's well served by somebody who doesn't want to work with them, who isn't feeling aligned, who is feeling resentful, or who just isn't enjoying it. No one is served in those circumstances. So it really is a win win and it doesn't have to be bitter and sour.
Doesn't have to be that dummy spit or throwing the toys out at the pram. It can be really [00:13:00] professional, really smooth, and then everybody feels better once the cord's cut and you're both free to move on, on your own paths to work with clients or service providers that are beautifully aligned.
I know these conversations can be awkward. I know these conversations can be tricky, and I also know sometimes you need support. So if it's support from someone like me that you need, please feel free to reach out. I say it on here so often. We don't need to be doing this alone and who we surround ourselves with in business really matters. And this is a classic example of one of those times where it really matters.
So if you do need guidance, or if you do need support or advice in a situation like this, please don't hesitate to reach out and you can book in for a complimentary chat via the website, the links in the show notes. That's what I wanted to share with you today. It comes up a lot. Now is the perfect time of year to be thinking about it, because if there are clients that you need to part ways with, now's the time so that you can open space to support clients who are [00:14:00] really beautifully aligned and that is a win win. Thank you so much for listening. I hope you've gotten some little nuggets of gold out of this episode. If you have a business friend or a colleague that you think would benefit from this too, I'd be so grateful if you would share this because that is how we get the podcast into the ears of even more business owners.
As always, thanks for joining me. I'll catch you next time.
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