Contacting a customer after the work is finished and paid for

4 days ago
3 min read

Updated: 2 days ago

Introduction

Enormous attention goes into the period before a sale and almost none into the period after it. The invoice is paid, the job is closed, and the relationship ends by default. Meanwhile the customer is at their most satisfied, most willing to recommend, and most likely to say yes to something small — and nobody makes contact.

This is the cheapest source of work available to most small businesses. Reviews, referrals, repeat purchases and the information that improves everything upstream all come from this period, and all of it requires nothing more than a message at the right moment.

1. Contacting a customer after the work is finished should happen while they are pleased

The timing.

Within days of completion, while the result is new and the experience is fresh. A month later the feeling has faded and the reply rate falls sharply. Put it in the job process rather than leaving it to whoever remembers.

2. Ask whether everything is as expected

The first message.

A genuine question about the work, not a request. It catches small problems while they are still easy to fix and before they become a review. A problem raised privately and fixed quickly frequently produces a better review than a job with no problems at all.

3. Ask for the review at that moment

The second purpose.

The point at which somebody says they are happy is the point to ask. Made easy, with a direct link, this is where nearly all your review volume will come from. Asking in the same message as the satisfaction question is more effective than a separate one later.

4. Ask for the referral in the same conversation

The natural extension.

Whether they know anybody with a similar need. Most satisfied customers would recommend you and almost none do so spontaneously, and the gap is closed by asking. Giving them a sentence describing what you do makes the recommendation more likely to be acted on.

5. Tell them what happens next

The practical content.

Guarantee period, maintenance intervals, what to watch for, who to call. This is useful, it reduces later calls, and it sets up a legitimate future contact. Written once, it can be sent after every job.

6. Diarise the next natural contact

The mechanism for repeat work.

A service interval, a seasonal check, an anniversary. Recorded now, when you know the dates, rather than reconstructed later. This is the single entry that turns a completed job into a repeat customer.

7. Ask what nearly stopped them buying

The research nobody does.

At this moment they will tell you honestly. Ten answers describe your funnel's weakest point better than any analysis you could perform.

8. Ask how they found you, again

The attribution check.

The answer given after the job is frequently fuller than the one given at enquiry, because the whole story is now in view.

9. Keep the record

The requirement for everything above.

What was done, when, what they said, when to return. Without it the next contact starts from nothing and the value of the relationship is not realised.

Be careful about the boundary between a service message and marketing. Contacting a customer about work you did is generally different from marketing new services to them, the rules differ by jurisdiction, and preferences and consent should be respected either way.

Conclusion

Make contact within days, because that is when the customer is most satisfied and most willing.

Ask whether everything is as expected so small problems surface early, ask for the review at the moment they say they are happy, ask about referrals in the same conversation, tell them what happens next including guarantee and maintenance details, diarise the next natural contact while you know the dates, ask what nearly stopped them buying and how they found you, and record all of it so the next contact has context.