By Hal Matthews
Have you ever experienced a no-show for an appointment? The temptation is to lose your temper or just slink back to your office. Losing your temper will alienate you from the client. Slinking away suggests that your time isn’t valuable and it’s acceptable for the client to be absent. Either reaction doesn’t move the opportunity forward. No-shows happen to all professionals at one time or another, but they don’t need to be disastrous. There are some simple rules to help you avoid the problem, and turn no-shows to your advantage when they crop up.
Always pre-promote the Appointment. When you’re setting up the meeting, ask, “What would you like to discuss during our next meeting?” and “Is there anything that you can think of that would come up that would prevent us from keeping this appointment?” These types of questions force the client to visualize the upcoming meeting and help ensure they are able to attend.
Remind the client about the meeting. Call or email in advance of the meeting to confirm that the client will be present. This is useful because it communicates that you’re invested in the meeting and that you’re taking time out of your schedule. If possible send a meeting request so that the appointment will make it’s way directly into the client’s calendar.
In the event of a no-show, leverage the gaffe. If the customer is a no-show, the situation can be used to your advantage, if you move quickly enough. Make the client feel obligated to you without making them uncomfortable. You need to diplomatically let them know the time and energy that you put into the meeting, but make it very clear that you want to maintain the relationship. Reschedule quickly so that the no-show doesn’t blunt your momentum. In most cases, a client will doggedly hold the next meeting to avoid an appearance of being rude.
No-shows are frustrating but they shouldn’t be detrimental to the client relationship. When handled with care, being stood up is a rare occurrence and when it does happen it can be a powerful opportunity to gain an IOU.