Clarity vs. Assumption: Why Specificity Matters in Client Conversations

Have you ever made an assumption that came back to bite you? If you’re like me, I’m sure that you have. I did it again a few weeks ago and it reminded me of a lesson I thought that I had already learned. Apparently not, so maybe sharing this story with you will help you avoid making the same mistake I did.

Late last year, we did a team photo shoot for promotional materials, websites, press releases, and all the other places where apparently people need to see my face.

At some point during the shoot, I started joking around with the team and someone suggested I do some silly poses just for fun.

One of those photos was me pointing “finger guns” directly at the camera.

You know the pose. 👉😎👉

It was cheesy. It was ridiculous. It was most definitely not what I would describe as "CEO website bio material."

We all laughed, took the picture, and moved on.

Several months later, my executive assistant at the time emailed me. Marketing was updating my bio on the website and wanted to know which photo I preferred. She attached four options.

Three were normal professional headshots, and the fourth, of course, was Finger Guns Jason.

I responded:

"Whichever they think is best, but I think the one with the finger guns is pretty good ;)"

I thought the sarcasm was obvious. I mean, I had the winky semi-colon smile! Right?

Apparently, it was not obvious.

I didn't think another thing about it until a few months later when I happened to be looking at our website.

There I was. Finger guns. On my official CEO bio.

I immediately started asking questions, which uncovered the best part of the story.

Apparently, there had been considerable discussion between my assistant and the marketing team about whether I really wanted that picture used.

Marketing thought that it seemed strange, but my assistant assured them that I did indeed want that photo used.

Marketing questioned it again and again, she assured them it was the right one.

And thus, “Finger Guns Jason” became an official representative of WorldVia on the internet.

We all learned a couple valuable lessons that day:

1. Sarcasm is a terrible communications strategy.
2. When something doesn't feel right, you should probably ask, in person.

Clarity Is Your Responsibility

It would be easy for me to blame my assistant, except I’m the one who wrote the email. I knew what I meant, but she couldn't hear the tone in my head when I typed it. While it may sound silly, or even obvious in retrospect, that's a trap we all fall into from time to time.

We confuse what we intended to communicate with what we actually communicated, but they are not necessarily the same thing.

In person, we have facial expressions, pauses, gestures, tone, and context helping carry the message. Even then, we often misunderstand each other. Email strips most of that away and text messages strip away even more.

And yet, we use these channels constantly to communicate things far more important than which photograph should appear on a website.

Travel advisors, for instance, communicate cancellation terms, payment deadlines, insurance decisions, passport requirements, itinerary changes, restrictions, and dozens of other details where a misunderstanding can become expensive very quickly.

"I thought they understood" is not much consolation when a client thought their deposit was refundable.

Clear Usually Beats Clever

I like humor, I use sarcasm, and I enjoy being informal, but when the outcome really matters, clarity should win. You don't have to turn every email into something written by an attorney, but we all need to work to be as clear as possible.

Instead of: "I think the finger guns one is pretty good."

I should/could have written: "Definitely not the finger guns photo. Please let Marketing choose whichever of the other three works best."

This same rule applies to client communications.

• Availability
• Instead of: "We should probably get this booked pretty soon."
• Say: "The current rate is available today, but pricing and inventory can change at any time. If you'd like this option, I recommend we secure it today."
• Travel Insurance
• Instead of: "Travel insurance is probably a good idea."
• Say: "I recommend travel protection with Cancel for Any Reason for this trip because $X is nonrefundable. Here are the options…"
• Response Time
• Instead of: "I'll get back to you shortly."
• Say: "I'll send the revised proposal by Thursday afternoon."

Clarity removes the uncertainty, and when you remove uncertainty, you remove friction to closing the sale.

When Something Feels Wrong, Ask

There was another important lesson hidden in my finger guns fiasco. Marketing thought the photo choice was weird (like, really weird) and they questioned it. That's good.

But eventually they accepted someone else's assurance, despite the answer not feeling right.

We've all done this, haven’t we?

Maybe a client tells you something that doesn't seem consistent with what they said earlier or maybe a supplier confirmation doesn't match what you earlier confirmed in an email.

These instances give you that funny feeling that you should verify it. Listen to that feeling!

You don't have to be confrontational, just confirm.

• "I want to make sure I understood correctly..."
• "Before I proceed, can I confirm..."
• "This is slightly different from what we discussed earlier, so I want to double-check..."

Those little sentences can prevent enormous problems. In business, asking one more question is almost always cheaper than fixing one wrong assumption.

A Simple Communication Test

Before you send an important client message this week, take five extra seconds and ask yourself three questions:

1. Could this be interpreted another way?
2. Am I assuming the other person knows something I haven't actually said?
3. If this goes wrong, will I be able to say that my instructions were unmistakably clear?

Don't need to obsess over every sentence, but when money, deadlines, responsibilities, or client expectations are involved, those few seconds are worth it.