Why listening matters and how to do it better.

I was chatting with two Directors of a creative agency recently where they talked me through what they described as ‘an incredibly difficult pitch meeting.’

Here’s what happened. They’d made the final three and were asked back to present their creative ideas. They decided that wasn’t what they were going to do. They wanted to win the business and they wanted to win it in the right way for them and for the client. They knew this would lead to a better outcome, but it wasn’t what the client was expecting.

‘We’re not going to do a creative pitch’, was their opening line. The clients’ faces dropped. ‘Well, why are we all here then?’ They persevered and started to present their pre-creative strategic approach, but two slides in, they stopped, the clients’ faces unchanged. Then they did something brave, they abandoned the presentation and they listened. Really listened.

The other agencies subsequently presented creative, and when asked to explain where it had come from, one replied they had trusted ‘their gut’. But the client had done enough thinking during the first meeting to feel alienated by this response. Why? Because the client had been given the opportunity to explore the value of their own contribution, of their perspective and their experience to the outcome. They wanted the chance to have input, but the agency with the ‘gut-feel’ approach locked them out.

Interestingly, the client, for whatever reason, may have inadvertently set the situation up by writing a brief that was actually counter to them being able to add real value to the conversation. But it is the braver agency that capitalised on this. The conversation was incredibly difficult and almost backfired, but with careful considerate conversation, they won the work, a six-figure job and their biggest win ever.

I was speaking with two associates of the DBA recently, Jan Casey (who runs a DBA workshop on what clients want) and one of the DBA’s client contacts and I asked them both what builds a client’s confidence in their creative agency.

Both said straight away, the ability to listen and genuinely listen.

Many things contributed to the agency’s success here, but their ability to listen really stands out.

Here are a few myth exploders around listening:

 

Why listen?

When you listen, you create an open, honest discussion. This removes the adversarial element that could rear its head. There was no challenging or pushing from either side. Both sides came to the table knowing they have a contribution to make. Both sides let go of their desire for it to be their idea alone.

Listening reduces the likelihood of a defensive response. Perceived criticism is often just the client’s perspective. A questioning and listening response shows you have the confidence to unpack the situation.

You’re paid to advise. Often the brain that contains the problem, contains the solution. By paying attention to people, you enable them to access their own ideas first. That’s not to say that you’re expertise is redundant. Just pause, wait it out longer than you want to.

 

What to do

If you’re listening it does not mean you can’t challenge what a client is saying. The key may be in what they’re not saying. Your listening starts at the brief stage. What are they asking you to do? Listen to it and look for gaps, anomalies. Note these as they come up, as you listen. If something occurs to you make a mental note to ask a question.

Don’t interrupt. Real listening is not about waiting to speak.  By giving your true attention to the person, you raise the quality of their thinking. They relax in the knowledge they are not going to be cut off. They think better and more clearly as a result.

Ask a question—‘What else do you think about this?’ surprisingly this simple question can get your client walking around their situation and noticing new things.

Check your face. Your face is a force of encouragement or discouragement. Get an expression on your face that says, ‘I’m interested, keep going.’ Hold it. Look in a mirror. Would you keep talking to this face?

Your eyes. Keep your eyes on the person talking. No matter what. They will look away, their eyes will go in any number of directions. You should keep yours on them.

And if you find that your client-to-be can’t or won’t work in this way, you always have the option of saying, ‘we won’t be able to work together this time’. The guys in the example above use a simple triangle to evaluate an opportunity. They rate it on the quality of 3 things: the work, the relationship and the money. Crucially it has to match their expectations on at least 2 of these to be worth going for. They listen to their clients and they listen to themselves. This means they win the business they want.

 

About the Author 

John Scarrott is the Membership Director at Design Business Association.

He’s responsible for bringing new members to the DBA and working with current members to ensure they see value from their investment. John also works with the DBA’s Experts and Supporters to create positive conversations within the DBA community

You can follow John on Twitter—
@DBAScarrott or join the conversation in the 
DBA’s LinkedIn group.