Our interview with Chris Davidson concludes with a look at the difficult conversations we have with our clients. These include those times when we need to provide a technical reality check to their wants and needs. They know their business and the problems they want to solve. However, we (as technical experts) understand how technology can be leveraged for their solution. In fact, they are counting on us to help them navigate what is real and what is realistic, given the constraints they have.

Embracing Difficult Conversations With Clients

It is hard to talk to a customer in a manner that can cause you to lose business or cause them to walk away. However, that is often the best approach to take. Honesty and being a sounding board that helps a customer decide on project feasibility before you even start are valuable skills. A customer that you turn away for the right reasons will always lead to better matches and big wins in the future. That is where those of us steeped in IT knowledge can shine. We provide a guided journey through the dangerous waters of technology projects.

About Chris

He started working in IT 40 years ago. That was before the term ‘information technology’ existed. As IT developed rapidly, he became deeply interested in how businesses used it to communicate more effectively with their clients. That led to starting Active Presence in 2002. Since then, he has launched various products and services to help improve business websites.

He has most recently condensed that experience into a combined book & toolkit called “Why Your Website Doesn’t Work – How to get your message right, focus your website, and stop losing business.”

Learn More

Check Out More From Chris at:
This is the home page of his website. Visitors can click the button to take the (free) Website Effectiveness Assessment.
They get an overall percentage score for their website on-screen – no sign-up is required. Then, they can download a detailed report if they want.

Rob Broadhead

Rob is a founder of, and frequent contributor to, Develpreneur. This includes the Building Better Developers podcast. He is also a lifetime learner as a developer, designer, and manager of software solutions. Rob is the founder of RB Consulting and has managed to author a book about his family experiences and a few about becoming a better developer. In his free time, he stays busy raising five children (although they have grown into adults). When he has a chance to breathe, he is on the ice playing hockey to relax or working on his ballroom dance skills.

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