I just lost my biggest client.
I learned four lessons to take away for next time.
I learned four lessons to take away for next time.
Last week, before the long holiday weekend (Labor Day in the US), my longest-running client (let’s call them “Client X”) informed me that I would no longer work with them.
While bummed about it, I learned four valuable lessons (more on that later) and created a last-effort email (which I share below).
First, how did I get here?
In 2013, after working for 1.5 years for my family’s business, I created my own LLC to take on freelance clients and help them with their marketing.
Early in my career, I realized that too many small businesses were being taken advantage of in marketing.
For example: “Client X” had been subscribed to YellowPages for over $350 per month to advertising. They never received reports and didn’t really know what they were paying for.
My goal of starting my freelance business (while still working full time) helped me understand the needs of small businesses for simple and efficient marketing tactics.
“Client X” hired me to help manage and run their first-ever Google Ads campaigns for their financial & tax service-based business.
Over ten years later, I’ve continued to provide Google Ad management services to 12 small businesses — four still active clients.
Then, there was an acquisition.
At the end of 2022, I was informed that “Client X” would merge with a larger company providing the same services but in a larger region.
There were introductions made.
Explanations shared.
Reports delivered.
The transition to the new company taking me on as a contractor was smooth, and I was grateful to continue working with them.
The goal was simple.
Continue to gain business via Google ads.
In the early days, there were some challenges:
A “site farm” company manages the company’s website, so any/all changes had to be sent through them
Google Analytics had to be set up for the new company
Google Tag Manager had to be added for conversion tracking
All the branding of the campaigns & ads was changing
These changes were made in about 3–4 weeks while ads continued to run.
I regularly pushed new ad initiatives like targeting new audiences, changing headlines, measuring conversions (online leads), and adjusting locations to target.
I wasn’t the only one providing marketing services.
Remember that “site farm” company I described before? Yeah, that company that holds these financial sites hostage refers companies, like “Client X,” to 3rd-party agencies to run marketing initiatives for them.
This particular agency (where I had met the project manager already) was in charge of creating content for the website (more on that later).
But how were the ads performing?
While most of my suggestions were not approved or confirmed — the ad campaigns were still seeing great results:
2.05% CTR (click-through rate)
$0.81 CPC (cost per click)
Ads drive 54% of website traffic
24 conversions in the last 30 days
$41 Cost Per Conversion
…additional statistics below in my email to Client X
After the first tax season with the new company, I was told they were thrilled with the latest business that was brought in from Google Ads.
I thought things were good.
But they weren’t.
I mentioned Google Tag Manager earlier for contact forms. The tags were working and measuring in Google Analytics. But…
The contact submissions were never reaching my client!
After emails back and forth with the agency and site farm, things were fixed with the test forms going through.
The Phone Call To Set Things
A few weeks ago, I had the standard monthly check-in call that turned into the beginning of the end call instead.
I was told the company wanted to decide on its future marketing budget in 2 weeks.
While I was a bit stunned, I didn’t panic.
I understood their position.
All companies have to find value in every dollar they spend.
Recall the other agency I mentioned earlier. They were the alternative option “Client X” was considering for their marketing budget.
Interestingly, SEO services were never part of the discussion with that agency.
I discovered this omission when I asked “Client X” about the range of marketing services they were considering.
Even though my services were under scrutiny, I still felt compelled to ask further questions about the effectiveness of their ongoing content creation strategies out of my commitment to small business marketing.
What kind of reports is “the agency” sending you?
What are their goals with the content?
How are they tracking results from LinkedIn?
All these questions had no answers, and I encouraged “Client X” to ask the agency for reports and expectations so they could measure their efforts.
Meanwhile, I had to deliver reports and information about my worth and the services I provided.
Here is the email I sent:
Thank you again for your call today and candidness around [CLIENT X’s] future on marketing and their budget.
With the monthly reports I have been sending, I would be happy to dive into them in greater detail if you are interested. Attached is a 90-day report I wanted to share with you, as well as some critical metrics for you to observe:
Google Ads Clicks Increased 125%
Google Ad Impressions Increased by 141%
Google Ad Cost Decreased 5.7%
Google Ad Click Cost Decreased by 58%
Website Visits Overall Increased by 72%
A Total of 52 Contact Forms Were Submitted (need to find the problem)
With this 90-day report, it’s worth noting the breakdown of your website traffic and where it’s coming from to understand your marketing channels better.
53% of your overall website traffic is driven by the ads I manage
25% of your overall website traffic comes directly to you (people know of you)
Only 15% of your overall website traffic is coming from Google organic searches
Only 1.5% of your overall website traffic is coming from LinkedIn
These numbers reflect the importance of your investment in Google Ads. However, some places should be improved with the website to capture potential clients from the Google Ads traffic being driven to your site.
Ensuring the contact forms are working correctly (which they seem to be still broken)
Enhancing the information on your site around the services you provide
Providing an email capture for newsletters to potential clients implemented on the site
Having the proper measurements on the site to track leads and where they come from — including LinkedIn, Blogs, etc.
I especially would like to inquire that the contact forms get tested by your team to see if they are working — specifically on the page here: [CLIENT X’s WEBSITE]
This disconnection is decreasing the full potential of the Google Ads investment you are making.
Overall, as a business, I know the value and importance of ensuring your marketing dollars are being returned at least 3x — With that being said, I do think it’s worth noting that regardless of what your decision is with the future marketing efforts of [CLIENT X], you should be aware of the measurements around the efforts being made.
As mentioned, I thank you for the opportunity to work with [CLIENT X]. I’m happy to jump on any additional calls to determine the best decision to benefit the success and return on investment for [CLIENT X].
I did my best to convey the value of my services and understand any marketing efforts' results. It was essential to be clear and explain my reasoning backed by statistics.
I welcome any feedback from you on this email and my approach!
After this email was sent, I was told that my services would be discontinued after this month.
While the wound is still a bit fresh, I have learned a lot:
Four Lessons I Learned from Losing A Client
Share more reporting. I could have done more while checking in every month with Client X. Any client is living and breathing their company daily — more touch points and reports are helpful.
Ask about other efforts. What other marketing tactics are they utilizing? Are they working with others? What are they expecting? Can I offer my own experience and results from those efforts?
Be confident in yourself. While I’m bummed that I lost a client and felt a sense of responsibility for that, sometimes, these relationships run their course. It’s easy to say now I could have done things differently, but I’m confident with what I did when I did it.
Get back to your roots. Losing a client isn’t a good thing, but it can be a wake-up call to get back to your roots as a freelancer to determine the needs you can help solve for businesses. That’s what I intend to do.
While I’m never happy losing a client, it’s part of the freelance life of learning, picking apart improvements for next time, and continuing to go.