Some ecommerce businesses cater to clients, while others cater to customers. It’s reasonable to wonder what sets these two apart. After all, they sound pretty similar, right?
In reality, establishing whether you need to cater to clients or customers has huge implications for how you conduct your business. The difference can alter everything from which communication channels and products you offer to how you develop your business goals.
This guide discusses the similarities and differences between customers and clients so you can better understand their respective needs, goals, and expectations—and develop effective sales strategies to grow your business.
What is a client?
A client is a customer who buys personalized services from your company to satisfy a need, solve a problem, or get advice. They generally receive personal attention and have more access to your company’s employees—usually through a dedicated account manager.
Client acquisition involves promoting your services to those who need them rather than marketing to a broad customer base. Companies offering client-based services often work with a small number of clients, each with high revenue potential, rather than constantly seeking more customers. To become a client-centric business, customize your services for individual clients and work on building long-term relationships with them.
The client journey
The client journey usually involves the following stages:
- Awareness. The client may conduct research or take a relationship-based approach, such as networking.
- Consideration. Because client relationships are long-term, they may scrutinize your services closely to weigh their options. The client may want to meet to discuss their needs, deliverables, and timeline for the project.
- Purchase. The client enters a formal business relationship with your company and may sign a contract to engage your professional service.
- Onboarding. The client receives instructions, timelines, and plans to set them up for success. Larger companies may also assign a dedicated account manager.
- Client relationship management. Existing clients stay committed to your company over several weeks, months, or years through strong communication and reliable service.
Providing a good client experience
Strong professional relationships built on trust and solid work are essential to long-term success. Here are some ways to provide a good client experience:
- Anticipate needs. Look for and address potential issues before they become problems.
- Communicate. Check in with the client to offer help periodically through phone calls, emails, and virtual or in-person meetings.
- Evaluate performance. Assess how well you’re meeting your client’s expectations by soliciting verbal or written feedback, sending out surveys, or scheduling performance reviews.
Examples of businesses that work with clients
Companies generally work with clients if they offer professional services to satisfy a personal or commercial need. Here are some examples of client-based companies and industries:
- Law firms
- Software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies
- Editorial service companies
- Design studios
- Marketing and advertising agencies
- Insurance agencies
- Real estate agencies
- Accounting services
- Tutoring companies
- Primary care physicians
- Childcare facilities
- Personal trainers
What is a customer?
A customer is a person or business that buys your goods or services without entering a formal, long-term business relationship with your company. Customer relationships are typically quick, transactional, and nonexclusive. A customer may make a repeated or one-time purchase from your company while shopping for the same products and services from similar companies.
Compared to client acquisition, customer acquisition uses a more generalized marketing strategy aiming to increase sales volume across a broad customer base. To become a customer-centric business, create standardized products and introduce your brand to as many members of your target audience as possible.
Although the focus is on short-term interactions, it’s not uncommon for successful businesses to develop long-term relationships with their customer base to earn repeat sales. This could be accomplished through community building or a strong social media presence.
The customer journey
The key stages of the customer journey usually involve:
- Awareness. The potential customer learns about your company and its offerings through marketing campaigns, organic social media posts, blog posts, Google ads, or a word-of-mouth referral.
- Consideration. The potential customer may evaluate their options across several providers and choose based on research into factors like convenience, price, reviews, and location.
- Purchase. The customer buys your product or service.
- Retention. The buyer may become a repeat customer if you offer competitive prices and exceptional customer service.
Improving customer experience
You may be able to improve your customer experience—and increase sales—in these ways:
- Understand customer communication channels. Improve your customer experience by understanding how they interact with you through touchpoints like website visits, social media posts, email marketing, customer service calls, and in-store experiences.
- Develop customer loyalty. Customer loyalty programs encourage repeat purchases by rewarding customers with discounts, free offers, and other incentives.
- Be consistent. Use consistent language and imagery on your website and in sales materials so your product or service information is clear and accurate.
- Provide follow-up support. Offer high-quality customer service by resolving issues or answering questions as swiftly as possible.
Examples of businesses that work with customers
Whether they’re making casual purchases (like a bag of chips) or buying a once-in-a-lifetime item (like a wedding ring) doesn’t matter so much as the customer relationship a person can expect. Here are some examples of businesses that work with customers:
- Hotels
- Coffee shops
- Supermarkets
- In-person retail stores
- Online retailers
- Restaurants
- Gas stations
- Pharmacies
Client vs. customer: How they differ and why it matters
Customers and clients are people or organizations that engage with your business. While the two share similarities, they have different goals and expectations.
The main difference between customers and clients is the type of purchase each group makes. Generally, a customer buys standardized products or mass-marketed services from a company. A clientpurchases customized, professional services or products to get advice or find solutions to a unique problem. This difference can impact how you acquire and engage your customer base over time.
Understanding the difference between clients and customers is essential to developing your business strategy. Your business can create the best possible marketing strategy, as well as reinforce its brand identity and values, by defining which type of buyer you serve—clients or customers.
Here are some key differences between clients and customers:
| Client | Customer | |
| Engagement | Formal ongoing relationship with communication and collaboration. | Short-term transactional relationship with potential post-sale customerservice. |
| Offerings | Customized services tailored to each client’s needs. | Standardized goods or services. |
| Business volume | Few clients with high revenue potential from each client. | Broad customer base often focused on high volume. |
| Acquisition | Targeted approaches, such as networking and partnerships. | Generalized approaches, such as media campaigns. |
| Experience | Deeper relationships and tailored services, regular check-ins, and proactive problem-solving. | Products and services provided quickly and easily, alongside exceptional customer support, as needed. |
| Journey | Brand awareness and sales, then continuous engagement, personalized service, and relationship management. Ideally leads to repeat purchases. | Brand awareness and sales, then ideally repeat purchases. |
| Exclusivity | Typically the exclusive provider for the client, who may sign a contract to engage services. | Less exclusivity. Customers may patronize several businesses that offer the same product or service. |
Client vs. customer FAQ
What is the difference between client and customer?
Generally, a customer buys products or services from a company through one-time or sporadic transactions without receiving personalized attention. They may choose a business based on factors like value, convenience, and location. Meanwhile, clients build long-term relationships with a company to receive customized products or services that meet their needs.
What is an example of a client?
A client could be a person who pays for a service, such as dog grooming, or a company that uses the services of another business, such as a law firm.
Do ecommerce businesses have clients or customers?
An ecommerce business may have clients or customers depending on what it sells.
Can you turn customers into clients?
It’s sometimes possible to convert customers into long-term clients. Satisfied customers may decide to work with a dedicated representative from your team to buy personalized services. For example, a bank may offer general banking services to its customers and private wealth management services to its loyal clients. However, not all customers become clients.
