Veteran ad exec Robert Solomon’s latest edition of his widely read, well-respected book, The Art of Client Service: (John Wiley & Sons),addresses the problem head on. It’s an ad book, but so much more than that. Robert guides readers – with quick, concrete, and useful counsel – on what to do and, more importantly, on what to avoid in order to forge meaningful, productive, and enduring client relationships. In a world of self-important, self-aggrandizing authors, Robert’s candor, humility, and humor are a refreshing departure from the norm.
The Art of Client Service offers guidance on how to transform every client relationship into a highly effective interchange based on honesty, integrity, and respect. The book emphasizes the fundamentals of strategy, presentation, leadership, and communication at every stage of work with clients.
This latest edition begins with a definition of what makes great client service, then tracks the agency/client relationship through the entire lifecycle, including a “How to” section devoted to running a meeting, briefing a colleague, writing a conference report, perfecting a scope of work, building a schedule and budget, formulating a letter of proposal, and crafting a presentation. There’s a section on creative briefs, and a long chapter about idea creation. There’s even a section on how to deal with unhappy clients, and how to regain client trust.
Loaded with new material but still a fast-read, there is a new introduction and an inspiring foreword by Deep Focus Founder and Global Chairman Ian Schafer. Included are a host of amusing and relevant cartoons drawn from The New Yorker.
