Four Ways to Deal with Your Dangerously Educated Client

I was in the process of moving when this came out, so I'm just finally making my way over here. This is such a great article and I think really speaks to the current situation faced by consultants in every field. One would hope that a more knowledgable client base would only help business because it they would become aware of why they needed help. Knowledge is like a blackhole the further you go the more distance you see you need to travel to truly understand. At times this is the case and I have clients come to me saying "I didn't actually know how much I needed someone like you to help me until I was reading .....".

But at times it prevents people from reaching out for help because they are convinced that they know what they are doing, when they really are clueless.

"I may not know how to run a business, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night"

The good thing is that i think a more knowledgable client base helps weed out the overwhelming about of faux consultants out there (i.e. people that also don't know much more than an cockroach about running or promoting businesses) because they have a harder time relying on high end BS to hook a client

A little late to the party here @KenMueller but I really enjoyed this. The increased information on the part of clients/consumers is a reality -- everyone simply has to deal with it. Sometimes it makes for a more informed client; sometimes it makes for a dangerously misinformed client. Ask a surgeon or oncologist how much distraught people researching on the Internet has not improved the care they provide.

As you put it in #2, understanding that the knowledge is limited (and I would say often devoid of crucial context) is key. Then helping them understand the reasons why there might be another piece to the puzzle comes next.

I love this post @KenMueller and it also relates to my post about the secret sauce. So many people....so many....think the free stuff is the sauce! They even think an E Book or a store bought one or a Webinar is all they need. They forget their business is unique and often implementing strategies and ideas take someone who can...US. Not saying people can't learn but it takes time. And seriously while I am really inquisitive it is not to learn what I don't need. When I worked on Rocket and Missile and Hydrogen Car programs I asked the Engineers enough so I knew how something worked properly because I often had my Engineers and theirs working on stuff and I was the sales guy. But I never asked Lockheed to teach me to design my own rocket. Or felt the need. I sold valves. I was a valve expert (though not an Engineer). Someone can have a great thriving business. They want to know how marketing works. They should. But that isn't their core competency. Find an expert. Great at least you won't get ripped off. But you should spend time working on your business. Not trying to be what we do.

My long winded point is all this public information sometimes has people feeling more empowered than they really are!

A Little off topic, but piggy backing off the general gist. Right out of College, I worked my way up the ranks on the "Business Side". I quickly, ran into that proverbial wall between the Business and IT. IT knew everything, we knew nothing. IT dictated what we got, and how we got it.

That to me was a huge disconnect. That we were at their mercy. We didn't have the base knowledge to rebuttal the a) exorbitant costs b) nor the huge disappointment that it didn't live up to our expectations.

I couldn't take it anymore, so after 4 years I jumped. Went back to school and learned the IT Side, and started over on the other side of the wall. My philosophies were a huge success, and I uncovered what I knew was true (that a large amount of IT inherently snow balls the business, with grandiose promises, price points to match, and under-delivers with brilliant jargon intended to talk around you in such a whirlwind, you just say ... uhhhhhhhh ok)

12 Years later, Ive fallen in love with walking into Businesses, hearing their horror stories dealing with IT. I immediately jump into their Wish-List of what they really want. Then explaining to them, the solutions in their words (our words), and finally delivering solutions that not FIT their business and also improve their models and work flows and efficency to boot.

During the past year, I have made another transition. Now, I am tackling the Marketing side of things. So here I stand, a Marketing guy with IT and Business knowledge. (insert dramatic gopher music here). I digress.

Where was I. So when I saw the title of this post, I was intrigued. The transparency of knowledge is a fantastic thing! I love when business champions have done their homework and come into things armed and ready! Knowledge is cheap. So many companies get burned, because there are so many consultants out there that sell themselves so well, because they had enough knowledge to talk the talk, but not enough to walk the walk.

Businesses get burned, and get jaded. It's kind of like when the Magicians of the World became furious, when David Blain reveled how he did the tricks of their trade. But the truth be told, those tricks were old and outdated, and magicians would never progress past sawing a girl in half, or magically make silver rings attach by clinking them together.

All the open knowledge? It's great. It just means I have to take it up a notch, to get that wow factor. Which in the end, makes me happy, because I still get their Wish-List, and I still wow with those deliverables, and weeds out the charlitans.

Agencies need to increasingly be in the business of interpretation rather than information. We have to tell clients "here's what this means, and what to do about it." As I always tell my agency clients about social media reporting - you better have some great advice and context accompanying this report, because your customer has a printer and toner of their own.

Hey Ken, good to see you at the house that doesn't suck.

I think the more informed the customer the better it is for the true professionals. Typically, these customers are the ones who 'get it' and understand what you bring to the table. Does that mean we have to be on our toes as well? Absolutely, but that is the way it should be.

I look at is as the cream will rise to the top.

Very informative and well done sir; thanks for sharing.

I so agree with you, @KenMueller ! We love an educated customer or potential customer! Even if their knowledge is shallow or misinformed, knowing they've done some homework on their own means we don't have to start at square one and do all the educating [convincing] ourselves. That saves a LOT of time in the front end, during consultation, and makes both sides happier!A colleague of ours working in the same industry (internet-focused marketing) ONLY works with educated customers. I never asked him why, but I assume it's because they take less time, and they're easier to please. I'm not sure how he finds out up front who's educated and who's not, or if he ever says, "No, you're not educated. Can't work with you." I should ask him.

@ginidietrich haha. you love the first line...yes. I'M A MORON!

It is important to think about the questions that this knowledge brings and to have answers. Sometimes the best value proposition is to explain that even though they can find enough info online to DIY it they can't do it as well as you can.

It takes time and experience to gain expertise and you can't gain that from a video.

haha, I was thinking WebMD when I saw the title of your post, and then saw your reference to it. It's a prime example of getting educated enough just to be dangerous.

While reading this, I thought one of the cool things was how this drives us to be better at our jobs. In a way, you've outlined a competition for knowledge. It's similar to what occurred in my neighborhood recently, which was a new salon opened up and coincidentally (not) the other 2 salons updated their image.

I think a better educated customer base keeps your employees accountable. Knowledgeable people can't be BS'd to or fooled as easily. Plus, if they're in on your industry lingo, it's easier to be open with them and get meaningful input. That said, some customers learn just a little of your industry and think they know more than you, those are the really dangerous ones.

@kmueller62 call yourself a moron?? *CLICK*

@kmueller62 Hey, I'll have to check that out. Thanks...maybe???

My old bosses knew enough to be dangerous. They would ask me things like "Why don't we have 1,000 Facebook "likes" yet?" and "What is the ROI of Twitter?" and I would try to explain that this all takes time.

I like having to be sharp, but when talking to a brick wall, I give up and walk away. I do know many things and can help someone get started for sure. Can I do a web design? No freaking way.

The most important part about being useful to anyone is to not BS them about what you can and can't do.

Hi Ken,

My clients are starting to ask me detailed questions about CMS systems and how to integrate a website with their database. Should we use Flash or JavaScript? What about SEO? WordPress or Joomla? Well, I usually defer to my developer for detailed answers, but just the fact that many of them already know about this stuff makes it easier to share my knowledge, however limited :) and my developers knowledge. Keeping up on this stuff is a bear, but it makes us that much better :)

We see this all the time in my world of jewelry. The customer comes in and is 1) better educated on a specific item than the staff member (not idea, but happens all the time) and 2) has price compared the hell out of every item and is even using their phone right there in the stores.

If all we have is the product (or in your case the information), we are either going to have to sell for a low price or figure out what added value we offer and determine how to explain it to the customer. What can you offer your customer that is more than just the facts.

But much like in my world, consumers want to make sure that someone is there when something goes wrong. Chances are, if you got the best possible price or the cheapest possible information, you aren't going to get the very best service.