You wooed those new customers, catered to those demanding clients and crossed your fingers that this would be the year your business kicked into high gear. Despite your efforts, your client retention rate a year later proved disappointing. What went wrong?Here's four ways to ensure you hold onto those high-dollar clients:1. Ongoing staff training. A once-per-year training session won't cut it. Even after employees have learned new skills, continually reinforcing that training is also important, because workers tend to drift from the mission.2. Emotional engagement. Most of us enjoy certain aspects of our jobs, but some endeavors turn into our passion. What factor makes the difference? It's simply connecting through feelings. Employers need to build in opportunities for workers to form healthy emotional bonds with coworkers. And, those bonds are crucial in keeping communication channels open. Don't leave employees with only a back-door option for grousing about their jobs.3. Building team spirit. People love to feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves. Scheduling opportunities for fun games, role playing and having a boss that appreciates humor boosts that team spirit.4. Adding a dose of 'good' drama. While the term 'workplace drama' conjures up images of catty fights over who got the best office window, good drama does just the opposite. It dampens those simmering, petty grievances through opportunities to express inner longings in a safe environment.
