We’re Here to Explain Why You’re Wrong (and Why That’s OK)
One of the harder parts of being single is having to finish your own sentences — most people find that it’s nice having someone who can read your mind and who knows exactly what you mean. But a bond like that doesn’t just form out of nowhere. It requires collaboration and open communication, both of which take work.
This is especially true when it comes to relationships between digital partners and clients. You can only hit a target if everyone clearly understands the ideas, goals, and direction. Both partners sometimes fall into the habit of assuming what the other wants or needs and avoiding the gritty, tough (but necessary) conversations when issues come up. But that’s not the best approach.
We’ve had clients do a seemingly complete 180 in their disposition when communicating with us. When we’re direct about the tension in the room and ask about it in a way that doesn’t dodge the issue, it defuses the situation and encourages conversation. Pretty often, problems don’t have anything to do with us, but pointing out that we noticed a shift in the relationship can help them correct course or even bring our attention to any challenges we might have caused.
Our willingness to be honest and upfront is something our clients appreciate and that helps us build stronger relationships with them. By being totally transparent, we ensure that neither partner ends up in a relationship with faulty lines of communication.
Calling Out the Hard Truths
When it comes to creating a fantastic digital experience, the user matters most. While the boss has to sign off on things, we don’t create with the CEO in mind — we zero in on the audience. Keeping the focus on the user makes for strong partnerships with our clients and solid innovation.
If a user-centric foundation is going to work, though, clients have to feel like they’re being heard. People don’t want to talk if no one else is listening. So we listen. We pay attention, ask questions about their goals and objectives, and then relay how we understood their answers back to them, which gives them the opportunity to clarify anything we missed the mark on the first time. By engaging with their needs and goals and letting them guide that conversation, we show that we’re invested.
Creating an effective road map that actually leads somewhere — mildly important — means prodding clients a bit at the outset of the relationship to get a fuller picture of where they stand and what they think we need to do to make their goals a reality. That’s why we focus on the end result from the beginning and then create a way for them to get there.
This is where we come back to the transparent, solid communication we talked about earlier, though. Mapping out a path to creating the best user experience can often mean telling clients they’re wrong. No one wants to do it, but we will — and we have a good reason.
Method Behind the Madness
Obviously, our goal is never to be confrontational with clients. This can make calling out their missteps or misguided ideas hard. Our job is to create the best and most strategic creative user experience for our clients, though, so we occasionally have to buckle down and tell them they’re heading in the wrong direction. Explaining our reasons behind recommending a different direction typically makes it easier for them to digest the information and helps them to see that we aren’t just disagreeing because we think our own ideas are more genius than theirs.
Collaborating with a partner is always difficult, and it’s important to define expectations for how you’ll work together from the start. When everyone is on the same page, the groundwork gets laid for a transparent, honest relationship — that’s where magic can happen. But without a mutual understanding of the goals and the process, chaos becomes a whole lot more likely. I’d recommend opting for the magic.
When you take this approach, everyone stays on track and communication stays open. Hold regular check-ins to keep the entire team informed of your progress so nobody ever feels like they’re kept out of the loop. Forcing everyone to sit down together and talk things through can be the key difference in the success of your creative partnership. Most people don’t get together and hash things out very often — they stay too distracted and busy — but you’d be amazed at what can come from committing an hour to strategic collaboration and conversation.
Ultimately, being willing to bring attention to hard truths with partners opens doors for better communication, focus, and collaboration throughout the relationship. Even if it’s awkward to tell a client that an idea won’t work, it will be even harder down the road when you’re in the thick of things.
If you have a creative partner, you’re not in this alone and you don’t have to do everything yourself — or even know how to. Establish an honest, open line of communication to build the steady foundation for creative genius together. If you set things up this way, you might even get the added bonus of having a partner that can finish your sentences for you.
