No matter how hard we try to avoid them, it's inevitable that on occasion clients will experience a service problem - a change of address doesn't go through, something that was supposed to be sent slips through the cracks or a request wasn't followed up on.

Even small mistakes can be costly - they can corrode client confidence, undermine goodwill and sometimes even cost you a client. A while back, I spoke to an investor who pulled his account because of a succession of irritating mistakes over an eighteen month period.

As a result, every advisor needs a two part strategy when it comes to service problems,

First, you need to put systems in place to keep mistakes to a minimum.

And second, you need a proactive process to recover from any problems that do take place. In fact, research shows that as long as mistakes are the exception, speedy and effective recovery from a problem can actually leave relationships stronger than if the problem hadn't happened at all.

Here's a six step plan for effective problem recovery that can help maintain strong relationships even in the face of service problems.

Step One: Let clients know you want to hear about problems

Many clients are incredibly frustrated by the difficulty of getting small problems resolved with companes they deal with. As a result, many have given up complaining, mentally shrugging their shoulders and moving on.

You don't want your clients dealing with you through gritted teeth. The first thing you need to do is to clearly communicate that you truly want to hear if clients ever run into a problem, no matter how trivial.

You can't be subtle on this - you need to let clients know that if they ever encounter an issue, you want to know. And make it easy for clients to let you know when they run into a problem, by asking them to drop you or your assistant an email or to give you a call.

Step Two: Understand the issue

Clients calling with an issue can sometimes be worked up and overly emotional. As a result, your first priority is to thank them for bringing this to your attention - and then to clearly understand the exact nature of the problem. Ask clients calling in to walk you through exactly what transpired, taking detailed notes.

Then ask if you can play back what you heard just to be sure you got it right.

Step Three: Apologize

Once you've heard clients out, the next step is to apologize in a way that clients understand you truly are sorry.

These days, you see a lot of "going through the motions" apologies, apologies that don't seem heart felt or sincere. After a long wait at a TD bank counter one recent morning while the woman I was dealing with went to check something, she came back and turned to her screen, mumbling "Sorry to keep you waiting" without ever looking at me.

Not only did I not feel apologized to, I felt dismissed. If this woman had looked at me when she got back, engaged me for a second and a half and said "I'm terribly sorry to keep you waiting, we ran into a bit of a delay," my reaction would have been entirely different.

After hearing clients out, be sure to take a few seconds to ensure they understand you sincerely regret having inconvenienced them.

Step Four: Lay out next steps

Next you need to spell out exactly what you're going to do to fix the problem. Once you've done that, ask "

Even if you need to do some research or to get more information before identifying what will happen, you need to be clear on when you'll be responding with more specifics.

Step Five: Make sure the problem is fixed

Whether dealing with telecoms, cable companies or airlines, many of us have had the experience as customers where small mistake follows small mistake - it's incredibly frustrating when we go through one glitch after another.

When a client encounters a problem, you need ensure that it's corrected quickly and accurately - the last thing you want to do is to compound a mistake by failing to deliver the solution you promised.  One advisor starts his morning team meeting by reviewing a list of outstanding questions and problems, to be sure that nothing slips through the cracks. 

Step Six: Check back with the client           

The final step is to circle back with the client to be sure that you've delivered the resolution you promised.

The best way to do this is to pick up the phone afterwards and to say "I'm just calling to follow up on the problem you experienced. I wanted to say again how sorry I am that you ran into this and also to ensure that we're resolved this issue."

In the perfect world, mistakes would never happen and we wouldn't need a problem resolution strategy. In the real world, occasionally things break down and clients inevitably experience small glitches from time to time - when that happens, you need to be proactive to ensure that you turn problems into an opportunity to strengthen relationships.