Welcome to Part 1 of the Regpack Blog’s Communication Series!
We think Communication is super important, both internally and with your clients.
We’re presenting a 3 part series looking at all aspects of communication.
- Part 1 will address what is communication and how we communicate in business as well as effective client communication strategies.
- Part 2 will go into various forms of ineffective communication we have seen throughout years of experience.
- And Part 3 will conclude with how an online registration software can improve and revolutionize your communication internally and with clients!
Business Communication
In business, it’s all about communication!
You might have the best program, product or project to put out there, but if communication with your potential clients and applicants (and even your confirmed participants) is lacking, you’ll lose business.
That’s why having a great communication system set up between you and your applicants is key both to improving your relationship with applicants but also converting those applicants into participants.
The experience your applicants have before receiving your product (or attending your program) is often a good indicator as to what they can expect from you after the registration process is complete.
What is effective client communication?
While a bulk of the communication you’ll have with applicants is via email, communication is not just emails. It’s also phone calls, Twitter updates, Facebook posts and the online interfaces you present to your clients.
Communication is any point of contact you have with your clients and as well as your product applications.
This starts with the information you give on your website, the instructions you provide on your online registration system and in the visual tools you give your applicants as they go through the registration process.
It also includes your “contact” methods. How long do you take to answer emails that come through your contact page? If you have a phone number, do you answer it or return messages quickly?
Even when you are not actively engaging with your applicants they are with you: through your website, your application process, through your online registration software or what has been written about you on the web.
For instance, when your applicants are browsing your site or reading instructions, you are communicating to them what type of experience they can expect on your program.
Remember that and you will know how to create a productive communication system with your applicants.
Your Brand
It is important that you give your applicants a sense of continuity and security in every aspect of their experience with your brand.
From your website to the registration process to anything you might send in the mail. It is important to make sure that you are creating an online registration system that looks and feels like your website.
Applicants are already comfortable and familiar with your brand. If the registration process leads them to a generic website with no connection between your website and the application, they might lose trust and interest in you.
Sometimes you don’t have the resources or time to get it looking exactly like your website. Or maybe you don’t even have a website.
In those cases at least make sure that you have your logo on your online registration system as a way to bridge the gap between what they are seeing online and what they will see or have seen in past marketing and communication with your company.
Visual Tools
Today, technological tools enable you to communicate with your applicants at every step throughout the registration process.
If you do it right, you can create a process where the applicant feels as if there is someone sitting right next to them helping them out through the process.
For example, showing error messages when they complete a question incorrectly communicates to them that they have done something wrong and guides them how to correct it (and gets you more completed applications).
Other visual tools that you can use to effectively communicate with your applicants include:
- Displaying their progress as they move through the application (like a progress bar at the top of the page)
- Providing a user dashboard where the applicant can find a list of completed and incomplete items
- Giving a positive confirmation when they complete a section or question correctly
Using visual tools throughout the registration process is helpful not only for the applicant but also for you. You will get more completed applications, guaranteed.
It also shows you are a real professional. Applicants will see you take your business seriously, that you put time and care into your interaction with them, and it can give them a clue what they can expect from your products in the future.
Socialize
While we will talk about the importance of social media in future posts and how important it is to your business, it is important to mention it here as well.
Social media is an amazing way to communicate with your applicants by giving them the tools to communicate to others about your product.
Allowing applicants to “like” your product as they register is basically free advertising that is even more valuable since it comes with a personal recommendation from your clients!
It creates a conversation between their peers in a space you wouldn’t otherwise get to integrate yourself into and offers great exposure to a population you might not reach otherwise!
It also puts a “human” face behind your brand. Applicants and potential clients can passively experience who you are through your social media platforms.
They can see what’s going on with current projects, learn new updates from the company or find out about upcoming projects they might be interested in.
Social media is thus a form of both active and passive communication that is multifaceted in terms of your ability to communicate in different and effective ways with potential clients and participants alike!
Don’t overlook integrating social media tools within your registration process not just for the benefits it gives you but also as a different and fun way to allow your applicants to interact with you and your products!
What’s up next?
By following the above tips you can create a healthy and productive style of communication that is personal and effective for your business and your clients!
In our next post, we will cover what “ineffective” communication looks like so you can avoid it in your online registration processes as well as your website.
Continue on for Part 2…
Learn more about how Regpack can improve your client communication via a free demo!