When planned properly, client appreciation activities can help with two goals: thanking your clients for their trust and loyalty, and further developing your business relationships.

“[These activities are] really about focusing on building and nurturing relationships as opposed to getting new accounts,” says Sara Gilbert, founder of Strategist Business Development in Montreal.

Client appreciation activities don’t necessarily need to involve large parties, where you wine and dine the majority of your clients. Instead, it is a good idea to plan some smaller gatherings throughout the year that incorporate your interests as well as those of your clients.

“Learn more about your clients and prospects,” says Gilbert. “Down the line, it will help you, leaps and bounds.”

In order to succeed, it is important to choose activities that will allow for interaction between you and your clients. For instance, an evening at the theatre may be an enjoyable outing, but it will not provide the environment for a personal conversation.

When John and Rebecca Horwood, Toronto-based directors of wealth management at Richardson GMP Ltd., want to have those deep conversations with clients, they treat them to lunch at a favourite restaurant.

You can learn so much during those meals, says Rebecca Horwood. Clients might be more open about topics such as their family, business plans and big decisions like the possibility of selling property.

These are the details that can get you thinking about ways you can help these clients, which can be discussed in a future review meeting.

Activities should also reflect your clients’ interests. In planning your client appreciation outings, consider the information they have shared about their hobbies, the Horwoods suggest.

They find that clients who are highly engaged in the investment process tend to enjoy “lunch and learn” events with investment managers who share their market outlooks.

For clients who prefer a more passive role in the investment process, casual events tend to have greater appeal. For clients in this category, the Horwoods recently organized an art tour in their office. It was an invitation for clients to drop in after work and learn more about the art collection housed in the team’s office. Clients mingled while enjoying refreshments.

“It was probably one of our most fun events,” says Rebecca Horwood. “There was not any investment talk.”

Advisors should take advantage of the flexibility that different seasons can provide.

“Be creative. Look into [local] events to see what’s happening, look for something new,” recommends Rosemary Smyth, founder of Rosemary Smyth and Associates in Victoria.

Warm weather can allow for outdoor sporting events and festivals, while cooler temperatures can be the time to discover new restaurants and tours of local galleries or museums.

Don’t forget that client appreciation events can be an opportunity to develop your business. Although you should not bluntly pitch your services during these activities, you can use these events as way to meet clients’ friends and family. Encouraging clients to invite guests, who may become prospects, is critical, according to Smyth.

The Horwoods welcome a “plus one” to some of their activities, depending on the nature of each event. The art tour, for instance, allowed clients to bring a guest.

Says Rebecca Horwood: “We believe our clients have like-minded friends.”

For more technical seminars, the Horwoods might instead ask clients to bring another professional — like their accountant — or the invite might be extended to a centre of influence who would be asked to bring a client.

“We’re not comfortable saying, ‘who can you refer us to?'” explains Rebecca Horwood. “Rather, we say, ‘do you have anyone else who might be interested in hearing this?'”

This is the second article in a three-part series on client appreciation.

Next: Small gestures of gratitude.