Over the course of our 13-year history, we’ve had dozens and dozens of clients. And I’ll be honest; some client relationships have been better than others. There’s no one to blame for that, of course. That’s often just the way human relationships work. Sometimes you click from the get-go. Other times… not so much.

But my experience has shown me that no matter how your relationship starts, whether you “click” or not, it can evolve into a lasting, productive partnership, so long as you keep a few things in mind.

Listen (No, really listen)

When I was younger (much younger, I promise!), I thought I knew everything. Of course, this bravado was really masking the insecurity that I didn’t know anything at all. But over time, I’ve been able to let go of that fear and really delight in the interesting things others have to share, particuarly when their thinking is so different from my own.

I know it probably sounds trite, but it’s true: Listening is vital to a good client relationship. When I talk with clients, I always start by listening without judgement. I listen not only for what they want, but how they want people to feel and what they want them to think about. That’s the first ingredient to arriving at a good result.

So what does listening look like? It means quieting your own impulses to impress, seek validation, and convince people you know what you’re doing. Remember, you’ve already got the job. So quiet your ego and open your ears.

Know Your Strengths

Now, you might be thinking, this guy sounds like a bit of a doormat. Well, maybe that’s true… sometimes. And it was even more true when I was first starting out in this business. I wanted to please everyone, because giving people what they want feels like a pathway to success.

With experience, though, comes the realization that collaboration requires confidence. I’ll tell you straight up that the stereotype about artists lacking confidence applies to me more than anyone I know.

For me, projecting confidence, even after years of doing this job, is still the most difficult part of the client relationship dynamic. To get over that, I remind myself that clients hire us for a reason: Because they felt our particular expertise could help them achieve their goals.

Recently, a client said to me, “We hired you because you are good at telling stories.” That stuck with me because I believe it, too. We’re never going to be the absolute best at every aspect of animation. This is an impossible fantasy. However, we can strive to be the best at storytelling, and to speak from authority on that skill. When a client comes to us with an expectation to “do something great,” we feel empowered to push the client and say, if you want to do something great, then you need to tell a good story.

I would ask, then, what is your gift? How can you honor and nurture it into something that feeds your confidence and authority?

Establish Boundaries

It’s important to know what you can do really well. But it’s also important to know, define, and be clear about what you can’t do to help set client expectations.

One way we do this at Planet Nutshell is by having a clearly defined revisions policy. We offer two rounds of revision on each phase of production. This helps us define expectations for the scope of the project, and it also helps us plan a detailed schedule. An open-ended revisions policy can lead to delays at best and at worst, it can cause resentment on both sides.

Having the policy is easy, but enforcing it? That’s always difficult. At times, though, it simply must be done, for the benefit of both parties. A client needs to know what is in and out of scope so you can both work together to stay on budget and hit deadlines.

Build Trust

Speaking of deadlines, take them seriously, and don’t miss deadlines you’ve committed to. Follow-through builds trust. And trust is the currency of enduring, long-term relationships. When you accept a job, you are promising to show up for the client and deliver.

And when you are planning your schedule, you can even plan for trust, and leave yourself time to exceed expectations before a deadline. I’ve said before that the most important part of a project is the last ten percent of effort and polish that elevates a project from good to great. Build time into your project schedule for the final push.

That’s just a start. Relationships are complicated, and there are million ways to nurture and maintain them. Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

As you may now, 2020 was a… unique year, to say the least. But despite all the uncertainty and change, the Planet Nutshell team kept working away and completing projects for some stellar clients. So before we depart for our much-deserved holiday break, we wanted to share some personal highlights (ordered by production date) to commemorate this particularly wild ride around the sun.

LightForce Orthodontics

You can 3D print all kinds of things, but can you 3D print custom orthodontia? LightForce sure can. Check out this short video about LightForce Orthodontics and their quest to revolutionize braces.

Gentle Giant

What’s this? Live action from an animation studio?! You better believe it. Our neighbors Gentle Giant wanted a video that tells the story of a successful move, which was easy enough, considering they complete them every single day.

Artsville Season Two

Artsville is an arts and humanities educational webseries we created and produced along with our good friends and PBS affiliate KET. And 2020, we brought it back for a second season. While we love all the episodes from this year, we particularly the Vocal Parts episode, which contains an original bluegrass ditty (a collaboration between ourselves, and amazing composer, and some wonderful performers). Look for even more Artsville in 2021!

Shriners Hospitals for Children: Christmas in July

We love how our friends at Shriners challenge us to try new things with each project, and the Christmas in July video was no different. We loved giving their beloved spokesperson an (animated) cameo.

UETN: We’re Here for You

While this year was filled with requests for content related to the COVID-19 crisis, we gotta say, this spot for our friends for UETN was among the very best.

Azúcar

Wait… have you not heard about Azúcar yet? Where have you been?! Azúcar is Planet Nutshell’s first original short film, and while it actually won’t be premiering until Spring 2021, 2020 was the year we all decided it was time to make this dream a reality.

UETN: Holiday Broadcast Spot

All right… I will admit that I think I saved the best for last. This spot from UETN wishes everyone hope and connection this holiday season, which is exactly what I wish for all of you reading.

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And I know, I say this every year, but that’s because it’s true: None of these projects could have been done without the incredible talent of our in-house production team, as well as our freelancers. Here are all the people and production houses who helped make our biggest year yet possible:

Jen Sanchez, Mollie Davis, Sam Berliner, Liz Breen, Jody Snider, Nati Brondani, Renee Kurilla, Ana Hill, Hannah O’Neal, Camille Vincent, Jessica Mao, Rachel Howell, Chris Zuppa, Jake Williams, Zara Magumyan, Ethan Barnowsky, Taiko Sound, Joy Lamberton-Arcolano, Brian and Rosi Amador, Robert X. Newman, Kate Liebl, Ellie van Amerongen, Paul Lutty, Audrey Ruano, GoLocalise, Angie Natale, Bagamor Media, and lots of voiceover talents (you know who you are!).

And of course, a huge thanks to our 2020 clients:

• Adaptive Biotechnologies
• Bagamor Media/Foghorn Therapeutics
• Gentle Giant Moving Company
• George Bard
• Kentucky Educational Television
• Latino Victory
• LightForce Orthodontics
• Shriners Hospitals for Children
• Utah Education & Telehealth Network
• WGBH Boston

Over the past month, it feels like the world has changed yet again. This time, though, rather than hunkering down, the team at Planet Nutshell wanted to take action. We’ve been doing a lot of thinking about how we can make a difference, have a positive impact, and make improvements where necessary. And we settled on three key positions that we felt were important to share.

1. Planet Nutshell remains committed to producing high-quality media that serves a cause higher than ourselves. As a team, we have all made a choice to make media that matters, media that is meaningful, that supports nonprofits and social causes, and that helps our audiences learn and grow.
2. Planet Nutshell will continue to emphasize and prioritize diversity and inclusivity. It makes us stronger, better, and more aligned with the world we live in. We believe that we can do better in this regard, and we will be launching a new initiative in the coming months that allows us to nurture talent from disadvantaged communities.
3. Planet Nutshell is working to embody the change we want to see in the world. We can’t share too much now, but we are excited to unveil a major new project soon that amplifies voices that are underrepresented in America. Meanwhile, we are in the process of donating a production to a social nonprofit. 

I want you to know this is not a one-and-done post. We are holding ourselves accountable to these statements and will be checking in with you all — our audience, loved-ones, and clients — about our progress. I remain hopeful and optimistic that we are all moving towards a better place, one that is more just, more equitable, and healthier for all. Change is hard. But it must come and we’re excited to be a part of it.