Think of your business\u2019s biggest patron\u2014someone who pays for your products or services. Are they a client or customer?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s the difference, you ask? We\u2019ll answer precisely that in this blog post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A client is a long-term customer who consistently buys products, services, or advice for important aspects of their business. Client relationships are typically:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here are some examples of client-based services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Consulting and advisory businesses that offer niche professional services have clients. They work closely with their clients, offering recurring consultations on business strategy. In short, clients buy advice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Advertising and digital marketing agencies have decade-long relationships with their clients, understanding the intangibles of the brand and creating personalized and differentiated campaigns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Litigation takes time. So, a law firm often has life-long relationships with their clients, having access to confidential\/personal information. It\u2019s not called \u2018customer confidentiality\u2019 for good reason!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A customer is an individual or a company purchasing goods or services from a business once or from time to time. Customer-vendor relationships are typically:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Examples of customer-based services would be as follows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Supermarkets, apparel stores, or drug stores\u2014retail establishments offer customers products with little to no customization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Customers generally prefer specific restaurants or cafes and visit them often. Even if a customer has a relationship with the staff, they will be served from the menu with minimal customization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Long-term customers don\u2019t make clients. This goes for spas and salons as well. Each visit is considered a transaction. The best customer-based service businesses<\/a> can do is increase the number of transactions in a month\/year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The main difference between a client and a customer is the nature of their engagement. A customer is a patron of a business, buying one-off products and engaging in a transactional relationship with a vendor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clients are long-term loyal customers with a collaborative relationship with a vendor who solves complex and important problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In essence, every client is a customer, but not every customer is a client.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Client vs Customer: Key differences<\/p>\n\n\n\n While the nature of engagement varies between client-based and service-based businesses, neither is better or more profitable. It does not imply that transactional customers are not loyal either. The difference is just the business model.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, just because a customer engagement is transactional does not mean no relationship. A retail organization makes efforts to build relationships through loyalty programs and communities to increase the number of transactions and share of wallet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whether you have a client- or a customer-based business, you can build relationships to increase the customer\u2019s lifetime value. A simple and robust way to do this is using a customer relationship management (CRM) process<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also called customer success, it\u2019s about investing in your customers\u2019 success and offering high-quality customer service<\/a>. Professional service or similar premium support is also becoming commonplace. All to drive a long-term client relationship. This is particularly common with SaaS customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKey Differences Between a Client and a Customer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n
\n <\/td>\n Client<\/strong><\/td>\n Customer<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Term<\/td>\n Long-term<\/td>\n Short-term<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Offerings<\/td>\n Customized services (plus advice)<\/td>\n Standardized products or services<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Engagement<\/td>\n Relationship-based with ongoing collaboration<\/td>\n Transactional with possible after-sales service<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Interactions<\/td>\n Have dedicated managers for each individual client<\/td>\n Don\u2019t have dedicated managers. Customer support staff handle all interactions<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Volume of businesses<\/td>\n Low with high revenue potential from each client<\/td>\n High with a lower transaction value<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Revenue model<\/td>\n Retainers with monthly billing cycle<\/td>\n Payment for products bought<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Example<\/td>\n PR consultants, therapists, accounting firms<\/td>\n Bakeries, petrol pumps, wedding planners<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n