Client comes in for a first-time consult. Does not have a situation at all. Very slim possibility that if person X does action Y to the client, and company Z fails to respond appropriately, and if Mercury rises in Aquarius when this all goes down, then maybe there will be a case. But I’m thinking “There’s nothing here.”
So I tell Client, “Right now, it doesn’t look like there’s much I can do for you. I sue people, after all, and this requires something of a more delicate touch. I’d like to monitor the situation for about a month and see if it develops into a scenario where what I do could be of potential use to you. So please let me know if X or Y or Z happens.” Client leaves, satisfied and pleased.
After the fact, I think the reason for Client’s satisfaction was the phrase “monitor the situation.” That made it sound like I was going to be doing something for him, which is actually the opposite of what I just told him I was going to do. If he takes a moment to think about it, he’d realize “I’d like to monitor the situation,” really means “I’d like YOU to monitor the situation,” and in fact this guy was obviously intelligent enough to puzzle through that. But the use of a verb like “monitor” induces a different emotional response, one of affirmation, concern, and activity on the part of the professional from whom Client had sought advice. And maybe what the guy was really paying for was that sort of affirmation, from someone presumably both knowledgeable, objective, and assigned to consider his interests, rather than any sort of actual problem-solving.
If only it were always that easy to generate happy clients.
I’ve learned that sometimes people just want to vent. And if you can vent to a professional, it can somehow often do the trick.
Don’t forget to bill him* for your monitoring!
* do not actually bill him for your not monitoring.
When someone says “I’d like to monitor it,” I think it’s at least plausible that think that someone meant “I intend to monitor it.”
If someone says “You need to monitor it before I can do anything for you,” then the client has been told something more honest or at least more clear.