Your last impression is as important as your first

The most important thing next to your first impression is your last. It is well known to many of us that making good first impressions are crucial in laying the foundation for any relationship – a successful business relationship being no exception. However, many of us put so much attention and focus on making a good first impression we often forget or simply ignore the importance of our last impression.

Getting the client in the door can sometimes feel like the hardest part of running a business – but keeping that client happy and maintaining a healthy and active relationship with your client is truly where the work and art of running a successful business lies. While the statistic seems to fluctuate every time I reference it, it is said to be 10 times harder to obtain a new client than it is to keep an existing one. So, keep your clients happy or you will have to work 10 times as hard to replace them. It is that last impression that will act as that vital metric in determining the client’s lasting impression of your organization.

For both personal and professional reasons I decided to sign up for a Spanish class to hopefully spark some of what I learned in highschool and college. The class was at The International Language Institute in Washington, D.C. – the class description seemed amazing; focusing more on real world application than the academics of learning a language. However, I will most likely never sign-up for any of the classes following and I believe that my loss of business could have been attributed to my last impression. That, or a much more impacting and pleasant last impression could have been the push to keep me as a continuing and paying client. The professor treated the last class poorly – he attempted to cram 4 sessions of material into our final session. We were all rushed, pressured, stressed and highly irritated throughout the hour-and-a-half session; obviously learning less than if we had just been relaxed. The professor should have been instructed to carefully cater our last class towards informing us of what is to come if we were to sign up for the next level. He should have explained what we need to know and reassured our confidence to let us know we are ready to move on – or at least tell us what we need to practice independently to be ready. However, in extremes there was actually no mention of a follow-up class; no attempt at keeping my business beyond the day.

The other thing that rubbed me the wrong way was the in-and-out flow of the last class. We got in, rushed to cram in as much Spanish knowledge as possible and then were pushed out the door to never be seen again. For less than $50 the Language Institute could have prepared a cheesy little “Fiesta” with chips, salsa and perhaps some bottled water. While the food itself is non-important, it is the congratulatory event that signifies a sense of accomplishment and togetherness that is crucial! This was their missed opportunity at converting one time customers into long-term customers. This was their opportunity to instill pride in our accomplishment and provide a sense of value in their service. This is also an excellent opportunity to get us outside the confines of our class and meet the other students and professors. I could potentially meet a professor whose connection might draw me back or even a new friend who will be signing up for the next session that might make me more willing to come back. For less than 50 cents a student, the institute could have covered the cost of such an event and the pay-off even it only results in a few conversions far exceeds the cost. There was no mention of the follow-up courses, there was no sense of accomplishment, there was no attempt at generating community and associating personality with the organization and most importantly there was no take-away that would in any way would influence or inform me of how to remain a paying customer.

When in business or life, your first impression can define the beginning of the relationship but it is your last impression that could ultimately shape the relationship into a long-lasting one.