Building long-term client relationships with FOX 50's Michelle Garrett

An account executive needs to have a strategic approach to be successful building long-term relationships.

Michelle Garrett, now of FOX 50, has formed these long-term relationships with clients over many years. Some of these go back to her time with other employers, like television stations in Greenville and Raleigh.

Michelle says building relationships starts with following leads and building rapport. These leads may be people the AE has already worked with or been introduced to, or it may mean simply picking up the phone and starting to dial.

"I always go in with a genuine approach and ask how I can help that client," Michelle said. "If you go in focused on how can you help the client, they'll be more likely to place their trust in you."

While this approach yields results, she says it's important to realize that rapport doesn't come easily for everybody. The AE will have to keep repeating the process until it becomes more natural to them.

They may have to work on what they plan to say before going in to meet the client.

"New AEs are often uncomfortable calling on new business, but this did not come naturally for me either," Michelle said. "I had to keep doing it until I stopped feeling uncomfortable. This is the number one thing that sales people complain about — speaking to a new client in a way that puts both you and the client at ease. This takes practice!"

The key, according to Michelle, is not just to be comfortable with this, but to come to love building these relationships and seeing them flourish.

"You don't just see them once, sell them a product and then walk away. You have to enjoy building this relationship with the client," Michelle said. "This is the most enjoyable part of my day-to-day job. To be successful here you have to relish this part of the job because that's how you differentiate yourselves from competitors."

Because trust is not built easily, these long-term relationships will need to grow beyond formal, business-only interactions.

"I am in front of my client constantly," Michelle said. "My client has become my friend and family, and they know my story — they get to know me and I get to know them."

With TV ratings constantly in flux, it's important to view these ties through a long-term lens.

"Looking back on my career, I have relationships today that I built 20 years ago — this is the best reward I can have," Michelle said. "It's very rewarding to take a relationship that didn't exist five years [ago], to now being invited to a family picnic or company Christmas party. You have to be in front of the client more than anyone else to go beyond what everyone else is doing.

"If you do make mistakes, you have to be quick to own up to it and make it right so they trust you with not only their advertising budget but with honest advice about other aspects of their business."

"As far as working with CBC, the resources you get as a new AE and the patience we are given to evolve is great," Michelle said. "The new reps here get embraced as individuals, and the company realizes their specific strengths. They get to focus on that strength instead of everyone approaching sales the same way. This is why you've seen young AEs become successful at our company so quickly."

Michelle also stressed how this freedom to focus on individual differences allowed AEs to go after the clients they are comfortable with and find their niche.

Those interested in pets can go after shelters and veterinary clinics. Those with other interests can pursue those. She believes this helps make AEs more successful, and maintain their passion for building new relationships and maintaining old ones.