Technology Partnership: Dropping the Client Label

No one wants to be just another client.

We work hard to make superior products for human beings who need them. We’ve made apps. We've made websites. We've worked with every different moving part that goes into being a tech partner for businesses across many dozens of industries.

We have never encountered anyone who enjoys being referred to as, or treated like "the client".

Tech Partner Vs. Tech Client

That all sounds great, but isn't it just semantics? What's the difference between calling someone a technology client vs. a technology partner, really?

Allow me to answer this set of hypothetical questions with a rhetorical question of my own: Is it wise to assume that semantics don't matter?

Let's talk about it.

Partners

Business owners who hire web designers tend to care deeply about the details of their brand, digital presence, and product deliverable(s). If they had the time and expertise to create their own products, they would be giving their highest level of care, energy, and passion to doing so.

In a tech partnership, the work really does mean something. We remember the way they smiled the last time we over-delivered on a feature; how grateful they were that we knew them well enough to anticipate their question on that weekly call. By shifting our language we shift our mentality, and tasks as mundane as coding the space between paragraphs on a homepage or adjusting how many words go into a paragraph begin to matter more.

Clients

"Clients," on the other hand, sound more like faceless, interchangeable entities. Their requests and feedback are more easily (if unintentionally) distanced from their legitimate human needs — tallied up as boxes to check on a burndown chart.

Clients make requests, pay bills, and receive lackluster end results. They're less likely to receive the benefit of the doubt or feel like their web team is invested in their success. Where partners have the ear, interest, and collaborative passion of their tech partner, clients tend to end up with a cookie-cutter product.

Tech Partnerships Help Put the Best Foot Forward

Few things are as important to a growing business as the professionalism of their website and digital presence. In this day and age, a website acts as a storefront in many ways, and the quality of that website can make or break a company in almost any industry.

By that logic, web development and design is a fairly high-stakes investment for the businesses that choose to work with us. So, anything we can do to deliver on that investment is worthwhile.

That's why we prefer to frame our business relationships as tech partnerships. The word "client” feels too sterile. Money comes in, a website goes out. The relationship, if there was one at all, ends the moment the job is finished. We don't want to get in the habit, even subconsciously, of defining a partner as some piece of economic machinery or a set of tasks to complete.

Three Truths of Business

• Business owners deserve functionally powerful digital products backed by reliable web support.
• Business engagements yield the best results when they are more than a mere series of transactions.
• Businesses relationships are relationships that mean business.

That’s why we prefer to call the people we work with tech partners, not clients.

Place Your Trust in a Tech Partnership

Like an unscrupulous mechanic, certain web studios may take advantage of your lack of tech experience, charging more money while delivering less than you deserve. That's not the reputation we'd like our industry to stand for.

As a tech partner, we want you to understand the impact of your investment. We invite our partners to participate with us in a transparent dialogue, and when the product is finished, you can bet we're going to cheer as loudly (sometimes louder) as you.

Discover the Difference a True Tech Partner Makes

Curious about a tech partnership with Chek Creative? Please get in contact with us to discuss your digital goals. We can't wait to explore the possibilities with you!