For me the most important part of interacting with clients is to try to always put myself in their position.  I constantly examine my own practices, and look for ways that I can make the interaction more comfortable for clients.  Respect is a key component to those interactions, but several other areas are also important.  Below are 6 ways to help create pleasant client relationships.

1. Respect Privacy

A huge concern in today’s world is privacy.  With so much information available all the time, individuals have begun to pay closer attention to the information they provide to others.

When a client arrives in your office, take privacy in consideration.  Do not broadcast personal information openly, and never ask clients to provide identifying information in the presence of others. Only discuss personal information in a private area, and always remove materials from your office that would identify other clients.

2. Clean Your Office

Have a neat and orderly office.  Remove clutter and be organized.  It can be disconcerting to a client if they walk into an office and see stacks of paper everywhere.  This also goes for any public area that a client will have access to while in your office.

When looking at your own office, consider what your first impression would be if you were the client.  If anything would make you uncomfortable, change it.  If clients often must wait before seeing you, provide reading materials that are gender neutral, and never leave a television on with questionable content.  If you cannot clean your office, create another private area in your suite to use to meet with clients.

3. Dress to Make Your Clients Confident

Dressing professionally is important when meeting with clients.  Clients take you more seriously if you dress the part.  Clients often judge the aptitude of a professional by their appearance instead of their skill set.  If you dress sloppy, they assume your work is sloppy.

Dressing professionally not only makes clients more confident in your work, but indicates that you respect them.  It sends a message that they are important to you.  (Remember, although they may need you, they still want to feel wooed.)

4. Attitude Matters

Be pleasant and understanding when interacting with clients.  Do not use slang and never use offensive language.  If a client is difficult, and you need to be short, explain why.  If a client is disrespectful or belligerent, calmly ask them to leave.

Even if you cannot help a client, still take the time to make them feel appreciated.  Your goal should be to create a positive impression of your office with every interaction.  If an individual respects you, it more likely they will refer other to you.

Clients will learn behavior from your interaction with them.  If you are always pleasant and professional, it is more likely that they will treat you and your staff in the same manner.

5. Communicate Professionally (Even in Email)

It is just as important to be professional in written materials as it during personal interactions.  If you are sloppy in correspondence and advertising, you will not attract the right clientele.  Everything you do is a reflection of who you are.

Whenever you send anything to a client, or publish anything, always think about how you would react if you were the customer.  This includes email messages and any other electronic communication.  Whenever you send anything electronically, also think about whether you would feel comfortable sending a letter with the same content.

6. Confidence is Good, Arrogance is Bad

Clients expect you to be good at your work.  It is acceptable to believe that you are an expert in an area, but you should not be condescending about it.  Remind clients why they came to see you, but listen to their questions or concerns.

If a client is being unreasonable, politely suggest that they obtain services elsewhere.  If you cannot help someone, be honest about it, and provide them with suggestions to find the necessary assistance.

The steps outlined help demonstrate to your clients that you respect them, and helps build confidence in your abilities.  Treating clients professionally results in a more pleasant relationship.  Defining the expected interaction sets the tone for the future and communicates to your clients that you take them seriously and that they are important.

Please feel free to share any other thoughts about creating pleasant client interactions in the comment section below.

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• Colorado Social Security Law – http://www.socialsecurityinsider.com/ (@DisabilityTips on Twitter – http://twitter.com/DisabilityTips)
• Bob Kraft’s P.I.S.S.D. – http://www.pissd.com/ (@BobKraft on Twitter – http://twitter.com/BobKraft)
• Delaware Disability Law Blog – http://www.DelawareDisability.com/blog/ (@DisabilityGuy on Twitter – http://twitter.com/DisabilityGuy)
• Delaware Social Security District Court Filings – http://dockets.justia.com/search.py?query=&stateorcourt=state-de&lawsuittype=noscat-11 (service provided by @justia on Twitter – http://twitter.com/justia)
• Disability.gov News Feed – http://www.disability.gov/rss/news (@Disabilitygov on Twitter – http://twitter.com/Disabilitygov)
• Disability News Blog – http://www.disability-links.com/news/ (by Sarah Patterson, cannot locate a Twitter account)
• Long Term Disability Benefits Blog – http://www.smslegal.com/blog/?catid=1521 (@Lawyer4ERISA on Twitter – http://twitter.com/Lawyer4ERISA)
• My Disability Blog – http://disabilityblogger.blogspot.com/ (@formerexaminer on Twitter – http://twitter.com/formerexaminer)
• Personal Injury and Social Security Disability Blog – http://www.injury-and-disability.com/ (@Disability_Atty on Twitter – http://twitter.com/Disability_Atty)
• Sheri Abrams Disability Blog – http://sheriabrams.com/blog/ (@sheriabrams on Twitter – http://twitter.com/sheriabrams)
• Social Security Disability Blog – http://www.ssdanswers.com/ (@jginsberg on Twitter - http://twitter.com/jginsberg)
• Social Security Disability Hacker – http://ssdisabilityhacker.blogspot.com/ (@gachman on Twitter – http://twitter.com/gachman)
• Social Security Disability Lawyer – http://www.socialsecuritydisabilitylawyer.us/blog/ (@gordongates on Twitter – http://twitter.com/gordongates)
• Social Security News – http://socsecnews.blogspot.com/ (published by Charles T. Hall, cannot locate on Twitter)
• SSD Disability – http://www.disabilitysecrets.com/dnewsblog/blogindex.html (@ssadisability on Twitter – http://twitter.com/ssadisability)
• The New York Disability Law Blog – http://www.disabledworkerlaw.com/ (@TroyRosascoEsq on Twitter – http://twitter.com/TroyRosascoEsq)

Please let me know if there are any great disability blogs that I am missing.  Although I do Social Security Disability Law all day everyday, I still learn new things by following these sources.  I have been debating starting my own disability blog, but it is difficult to determine what I can really add based on these great sources that are already available.

Below are some additional Social Security Disability Blogs that Gordon Gates (http://twitter.com/gordongates) passed along to me.

• Indiana Social Security Disability Lawyer Blog – http://www.indianasocialsecuritydisabilitylawyer.com/ (published by Scott D. Lewis, I cannot locate him on Twitter)
• I Want My Disability – http://iwantmydisability.blogspot.com/ (published by Jeffrey Delott, I cannot locate him on Twitter)

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For a long period now, I have resisted the change to Google Reader (despite the market share that Google had racked up).  When I had tried the product in the past, I was not satisfied with the options available to me. The biggest problem had been the lack of ability to synchronize my feeds with a mobile application.  Therefore, the announcement from Newsgator came to my mind as both a blessing and a curse.

Although Newsgator has not yet released the new version of the iPhone NetNewsWire application that will synchronize with Google, I decided to bite the bullet and to import all of my RSS subscriptions into Google immediately after reading the announcement.  I decided I would begin to use the Google product and get used to its features so that I would be able to determine if I would need to find a new RSS reader application for the iPhone.

To my surprise, the Google reader product has come a long way since the last time I tried it.  There were still several annoyances, but overall I realized that it is a well-designed product.

The most significant annoyance was the default read order for each RSS feed that I subscribed to.  I like to read the oldest story first, and the newest last.  I found that this was not the default action of the Google reader product.  In order to change the default read order, I had to select each feed separately, and change the read order for each and everyone.  There is no setting to change the read order of all feeds you are subscribed to globally in Google Reader (or none that I could find).

After selecting my default reading order for each RSS feed separately, my next task was using the online web-based version of Google Reader to actually read posts.  I was very satisfied with the experience of the web version of Reader.  As I moved down the page, Google automatically marked all the stories as I passed as “read”.  Options were available to read individual posts either in the expanded view, (which included the entire portion of the post that was syndicated by the author), or in the list view (where only the title of the post is listed, and a reader could click on the individual story they wanted to read).  There were also options to read each feed individually, or to read all posts from each feed in one page.

Additionally, social networking aspects are available in every post that you read.  Stars or tags can be added to any post, and using these tools allows you to share stories with others (or refer back to them later for your own personal use).  Posts can be emailed to any of your friends, or they can be marked as unread if you want the posts to remain in your Google Reader Inbox.  You are also automatically provided with recommendations for other blogs based on your current subscriptions (I have already added 4 new subscriptions). Google keeps trends of your own viewing activity and also of the blogs that you are subscribed to.  Other users of Google Reader and of Google Profiles can also “follow” any of the tags, stars, or shared posts that you mark public.

I have quickly found that Google’s product is now much more polished than the Newsgator online product was.  My next concern was the mobile experience.

Although Newsgator promises to have an update of the NetNewsWire iPhone application released within the coming days, the deadline for the switch to Google Reader was set as August 31, 2009.  Not wanting to wait until the last minute to make the switch, I decided that I would use the mobile version of Google reader until the new NetNewsWire product is released and approved by Apple.  I was also very surprised to learn how far Google’s mobile reader has come in usability since my last experience with it.

By default, Google detected that I was using an iPhone mobile browser to view my subscriptions, and reverted me to the mobile version.  Instead of stories being expanded by default, as they are in the web version, in the mobile version the stories are provided to you in the list format.  By default, 15 stories are shown per page, and whenever you click on a story, it expands in place.  The entire feed that the publisher has decided to syndicate is available to you without having to click through to the story.  (You only are required to click through if the publisher has only provided a synopsis of the story.)  When you get to the bottom of the page, you can mark all posts on the page as read, and the next 15 stories will load.

The default mobile option in Google Reader is to show you all stories from all sources in one feed.  Although the Newsgator website and NetNewsWire also had this option, I always had read posts by source (or feed)  in the past (for example I would click on Engadget and read all Engadget posts, then I would click on the next feed I was subscribed to and read all new posts in that blog).  I found after using the mobile version of Google Reader, that I actually enjoyed reading all stories from all sources (in chronological order) better now.  There is a button on the mobile version of Google Reader so that you can still go back and read by individual feeds, but I have not used it once.

The social functions described for the web version of Google Reader, are also available in the mobile version of Google Reader.

I have already found myself using the “Star” option, the “Like” option, the “Share” option, and the “Tag” functions of the Google Reader.  These have all made the news feeds that I am subscribed to and using more useful to me (easily replacing Newsgator’s clipping function), and also allowed me to share stories of interest in an easier fashion.

In the past, I would email links to any stories that I thought my friends might find relevant. Now I can just tell friends to follow me on Google Reader.  This way if they are not interested in the links I have been sending them, they do not have to have their inbox clogged up with my junk mail.  I also found myself commenting on many more stories.  Because it is so easy to do, I have discovered the value of this feature.  The social aspects of Google Reader are integrated into your Google Profile if you have one.

Although I was initially very disappointed when I received the email from Newsgator about the change, I am now enthusiastic about it.

I think that I will be following my subscriptions much more closely during the day now that I am using Google Reader.  I already routinely visit Google repeatedly throughout a workday for searches, now I will also think about reading my subscriptions.  I believe that I will use the social aspects that I always had ignored on the Newsgator product, and share information with clients, colleagues and friends.  I am not even sure that I care when, or if, the updated NetNewsWire product comes out for the iPhone.

Please let me know what your experiences have been with following RSS feeds and using Google Reader.  If you are not familiar with RSS feeds, please let me know and I will consider creating a separate blog post to explain the significance of RSS feeds.  If you decide to try Google reader, follow my public shared items at http://www.google.com/reader/shared/sbutler76.

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The addition of these three new features would allow the iPod touch to dominate several different categories of mobile devices.  As it stands, it is already great at its primary purpose of playing music and video (although the Zune is good, no other mp3 device can even compete).  It is also great to use around the home to access the Internet or e-mail via WiFi.  For 75% of my at-home computer use, the iPod touch is sufficient.  The application library allows me to connect to social networks, to play simple games as a casual gamer, and quickly research items on the Internet through the Safari browser.

 The missing component of the iPod touch is its mobility.  This is what has made the iPhone such a huge success.  By embedding a 3G chip into the iPod touch (with GPS), Apple would open a whole new market for itself.  All of the apps that are GPS specific would work on the iPod touch.  This single device could suddenly take the place of your point-and-shoot digital camera, your flip movie recorder, your personal navigation device, your satellite radio, your netbook, your portable gaming device, your mobile internet device, your eBook reader, and possibly even your cell phone.  The reasons why are simple: The applications already exist!

I would contend that the number one reason that most people purchase a netbook is as a cheap and easy Internet device for the home.  The iPod Touch and the iPhone, although small, accomplish this goal much better.  Apple has made the web browsing experience natural through a touch interface.  The first time the Safari browser is used on an iPod Touch or and iPhone, the natural reaction is that this is how web browsing should be done.  The screen is clear, and navigating is simpler than on a PC or Mac.

 However, it would be easy for Apple to move even further into dominating this field.  The simple solution would be making multiple sizes of the iPod touch.  Apple could release an upgraded iPod Touch (version 3?) with the additional features discussed above in the current form factor, and also introduce new versions at 5″, 7″ and 9″. 

 Although the touch screen technology can be cost prohibitive in the larger screen sizes, by incorporating 3G into the devices, the cellular networks could subsidize this product.  Even if this were still an exclusive deal with AT&T, Apple would open up the benefits of the iPhone platform for people that are reluctant to leave their existing cellular providers.  This is because you could keep your current voice device, and add an iPod Touch as a mobile data device.  It would cost a little more than adding a data plan to your current phone, but people that are reliant on voice call quality, would not have to abandon their current provider.

 My advice to Apple would be to release these products on both a subsidized and unsubsidized pricing platform.  There are some people that would only use these devices at home, and the inclusion of the WiFi chip would be sufficient for these purposes, so they would not need a data plan.  However, others would want to take advantage of the mobility features already enjoyed by iPhone users.  This would allow the product to continue to be used for its original purpose, but also open a brand new market.  Customers looking for an all-in-one device would have a new option that could potentially replace the personal navigation system, point-and-shoot digital cameras, portable video game systems, eBook readers, and also would provide them with an easy way to store video of unplanned events.

 The beauty of this new device is that it would be something that individuals with iPhone envy would appreciate, but also could be something that someone that already has an iPhone would also consider purchasing.  It would be a device that you would not mind having docked as a navigation system, or radio player, because you could still accept calls from your phone at any time.  The new accessories planned for the iPhone 3.0 software upgrade are great, but what happens when you are using the TomTom GPS and a phone call comes in?  Well if you have two devices, this no longer is a problem.

Please let me know your thoughts on whether you would consider buying such a device.  I am not in the industry and I have no idea if Apple is considering such a device, but if they are not, they may be missing a significant opportunity to increase their market share.  These additions to the iPod Touch would be a much greater threat to Microsoft than any vaporware OS that Google is proposing.  It could also lead users to consider using more products from Apple in other ways.

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