"Connecting" is a key concept when you are proactively building a relationship with your client. Long-term relationships are built on regular communication that fosters trust, caring and confidence.

In his book "Power Up Your Profits," former CPA turned consultant Troy Waugh asserts that "the purpose of connecting is to build and strengthen all parts of the relationship."

So in the typical accounting firm, or law or architectural firm, who is holding the keys to the relationship? How many "parts" to the client relationship are there? 

To the principals go the spoils?

In many professional services firms, the younger or less experienced professionals may feel that it doesn't pay to invest in a relationship if a partner or senior-level professional can come along and "dominate" the account. 

Their complaints run something like this: "why should I actively cultivate a relationship with a client when the partner-in-charge is going to take over, or exclude me from meetings or communications?" Or, "why should I bother selling to get work in the door, when I'm not even going to get to work on it?"

It's true, not all senior professionals are great at communicating the status of an account when several different professionals are involved in delivering service to an account. If it is not cost-efficient or feasible on certain accounts to bill the younger person's time by including them in meetings, every effort should be made to keep them informed. E-mail makes it almost shameful not to "carbon copy" a file note to a colleague.

On the flip side, it¹s also true that these younger people should take a proactive approach in communicating their preference to be included in meetings and communications. A partner may be too busy and involved to "tune into" whether their colleague has a "vested interest" in the relationship, or feels they are being excluded. Two-way communication is key.

But, perhaps even more central to this debate is the issue of whose clients are these, anyway?

If you bring in a client, are they "yours"?

Arguably, many firms now have incentive pay plans in force whereby professionals who bring in new client work, or sell additional services to existing clients, earn a commission on the billings. Besides the fact that you may be getting compensated, there are other arguments to support why you should feel some ownership in the relationship:

You are the link, you're the reason the client chose to work with the firm

The client perceives "you're the one" who is in charge of their account, or if not responsible for the day-to-day work are at least responsible for the "goodwill"

The value of the account is in the relationship you hold with the client: if you left the firm, chances are good that the client would follow you

If you bring in a new account, or sell additional services to an existing client, you should have an active hand in the management of the account.

So what does it take to cultivate a relationship?

From your end, to cultivate a relationship, you need focus on the important "C's": 

Communication: regular, thorough, timely, clear and seeking response and action
Connections: staying in touch, "off-hours" as well as on, to establish the relationship on many levels
Caring: people buy from people, not companies; in the end, it's how you treat people that helps them decide whether they buy from you, and whether they continue to buy.

From the customer's viewpoint, the "4 C's" of marketing look like this, according to Philip Kotler in Kotler on Marketing: 

Customer value: "What's in it for them?" "Do I understand what they need, and am I delivering it in a way they value?"
Cost to the customer: "Is my pricing right for the customer's spending threshholds?" "Am I willing to offer guarantees or fixed pricing, or other rate conveniences?"
Convenience: "Am I delivering the service on time, in person?" "Do I go to the client's location as often as I ask them to come to mine?" "Is my office geographically convenient or are my operating hours conducive to my clients' preferences?"
Communication: is my "brand" or promise consistent throughout every possible contact the client has with the firm that includes advertising, personal selling, sales promotions, how the phone is answered, how guests are greeted in the reception lobby, everything.

Bottomline, whether you bring them in or not, every client that has an affiliation with your firm is your responsibility to one degree or another. The clients you bring in: they're yours and will be for life if you focus on their changing needs better than competitors.