Winning the Fight but Losing the Customer

People in the marketing world either love Seth Godin or they hate him. I personally enjoy him; he has a new-millennium sort of wisdom, but he delivers it in something of a folksy way.

At any rate, I ran across this post of his last week. Go ahead and go read it, but the gist of it is that sometimes, in business, it doesn’t matter if you’re right. If your customer is unhappy, she’s unhappy. No amount of arguing can change that. If you want her to remain your customer, you need to acknowledge that she’s unhappy.

This got me to thinking about revisions.

I rarely get asked for revisions. I always offer at least one revision for any given project. Customers want to know they have recourse if they don’t like the product. On top of that, it doesn’t happen very often. If I get asked to revise one project in a hundred, that’s probably a lot.

In many cases, the revision represents a change in project requirements. It’s more of an “oops, I  needed to have these three keywords” or “hey, can you write this in Top 10 format?”

My instinct, when I am asked for a revision, is to recoil. I could argue with the customer. I could tell him that he’s changing the scope of the project, that my time is valuable and that I don’t appreciate being asked to do the work twice. Technically, all of those things are true.

But you know what? I don’t usually do that. Once I get over my goofy artistic pride (”WHAT?!? Did the Pope ask Michelangelo to revise the Sistine Chapel?!? This is OUTRAGEOUS!”) I usually just do the work.

And you know what? Those customers – the ones that ask for revisions – almost always come back. In fact, they come back over and over again. And usually, they don’t ask for revisions again.

So, what about you? What’s your revision policy? Will you only revise if you didn’t meet the project specs, or do you allow for customer error? I look forward to hearing how everyone approaches the issue!

(Oh, and if you’re interested in more Seth Godin, here are three of his best books to get you started):

Permission Marketing : Turning Strangers Into Friends And Friends Into Customers

All Marketers Are Liars: The Power of Telling Authentic Stories in a Low-Trust World

The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick)

53 Sure-Fire Ways to Lose Clients

Just about any freelance writing blog will tell you how to keep clients. They’ll tell you things like “do your best” and “meet deadlines.” Heck, I’ve done it myself. Unless you’re new to the freelance writing blog niche, you’ve heard it all before.

What they don’t all tell you is why you keep losing clients. In my mind, that’s a better lesson, and one that can help grow your freelance writing business quicker than anything. Here are 53 of the things you can do to keep those clients from coming back:

1. Keep your customer records in your head. There’s no reason to create a contact list or database of names and contact info. You’ve got a big brain, use it.

2. Meet deadlines. If a project is due at 5 PM, turn it in at 4:59.

3. Learn to proofread quickly. Those mistakes will jump right out at you anyways.

4. Ask for more work. Daily.

5. Or, you can go the other route. Don’t ask for more work. They probably don’t have any for you anyways.

6. Don’t be afraid to put a finished project in your portfolio. Online. Without asking.

7. Buy Rockstar Freelancer and Unlimited Freelancer. Don’t read them.

8. Subscribe to The Writing Journey and Freelance Writing Jobs: Business Tips. Don’t read them.

9. Stand up for yourself. If your product doesn’t need improvement, tell the customer.

10. Stay away from social media like Twitter and Facebook. They’re just fads and don’t really work for building a writing business.

11. Work hard for at least a few minutes a day. Work smart the rest of the time.

12. Borrow ideas from others. Frequently.

13. Use a Spell Checker. Warning: the following video contains (unintentionally) adult language.

14. Always think outside the box. There’s probably not a good reason it was done that way before.

15. Never give anything away.

16. Follow up on every lead (within a week or two). Writing is a long process, and customers are patient.

17. Answer emails weekly, too.

18. When someone asks for a free sample of your work, give them a lecture and some good links about “spec work.”

19. Covertly outsource. Clients aren’t hiring you, they’re hiring your business, right?

20. Meet expectations, but charge extra to exceed them.

21. Run down other writers. After all, they’re the competition.

22. Be overly casual with your clients. It’s harder to fire a friend.

23. Never admit mistakes.

24. Be humble. Don’t toot your own horn, or potential clients will think you’re conceited.

25. Template your customer service. Know what your customers will complain about and answer those complaints immediately.

26. Create a complex pricing structure. That way, you can always be sure to make enough on any given project.

27. Don’t follow the hot trends. You’re a leader, not a follower.

28. Never work for less than your best rate. It devalues the market.

29. Do all of your own design work. You’ve got a great eye for what works.

30. Don’t ask for the sale. You don’t want to be pushy.

31. Spam. Frequently.

32. Only work for cash.

33. Keep SEO #1.

34. Don’t spend any money on marketing.

35. Don’t offer revisions. Clients rarely ask for them, anyways.

36. Don’t hone your craft. You already know what the hell you’re doing.

37. Never collaborate with another writer. You’re a one-woman writing crew.

38. Put new customers first. Your long-term clients will understand.

39. Squeeze as much business from each client as you can. Don’t let them go anywhere else for anything.

40. Design and price your service offerings based on your time, not on the market.

41. Marketing is an art, not a science. Be artistic.

42. Worry about today. Tomorrow will take care of itself. This goes for deadlines, too.

43. Assume that your customers are looking only for the lowest price.

44. Forget about small accounts.

45. Once a client tells you “no,” don’t ask again.

46. Remind clients and potential clients of how good your writing is, rather than how your writing can increase their business.

47. Ignore word-of-mouth and in-real-life marketing.

48. Be completely flexible in your schedule. Work when you can, or when you want to. Customers will adjust.

49. Treat email correspondence with your clients like you would correspondence with a close friend.

50. Talk smack about former clients. This will help your new clients know how to act.

51. Don’t argue with a customer, even if they want you to do work that you know will fail them.

52. Only do business within your target market.

53. Ignore your critics completely.

Obviously, there are more. What are some ways you’ve lost business? I’d love to hear them!

The Phone is Your Friend – Use it!

If I had my druthers, all of my freelance writing business would be conducted via email and Skype. It’s so much easier. I don’t have to put on my happy voice. Don’t have to wear my game face. If I don’t feel like getting all schmoozy, I don’t have to.  For me though, a telephone is an essential tool, one too many freelance writers are quick to avoid.

Let me explain a bit more…

I have a client. She hired me to help build her online presence and she hates the phone too. We’ve been emailing back and forth for weeks and I’m still failing to see her mission. Finally I insisted on a phone call and she reluctantly agreed. In 20 minutes I was able to determine what it is she really wanted and now we’re rocking the gig.

By taking to the phone I was able to:

• Use her voice to gauge her feelings about my ideas
• Use sincerity in my voice to reassure her that the project will go well
• Flesh out her wants and needs
• Take our relationship to a whole other level

Email, instant messaging and social media are great tools. They’re tools used to build relationships and land business connections. Sometimes a face to face meeting or a phone call is needed to hit that home run.  When we hear voices we can judge emotions better as tones can’t be conveyed as well via email. Voices help to build trust and confidence.

Many writers don’t want to do the face to face or voice thing as they insist they can do all their business via email. This is true. A phone isn’t needed nowadays at all. Just because something isn’t necessary doesn’t mean it doesn’t make good business sense though.

Don’t just go the distance, go the extra mile. You may think your clients won’t notice, but they will.

5 Reasons Not to Burn Your Bridges

So you lost a gig. Maybe your client felt you weren’t a good fit. Maybe she ran out of funding or maybe  it was you who wasn’t feeling the job. Does that mean you should go openly badmouthing your former employer all over Twitter or the forums? Does that mean you should ignore this former clients emails and questions? No. No, it doesn’t.

You may be unhappy with the present circumstances, but burning bridges doesn’t do anyone any good. Before you start talking smack about the people you used to work for, consider this:

5 Reasons Not to Burn Your Bridges

1. Your Client May Be Back in Business One Day

If your client had to let you go or take a break because his funding ran out, that doesn’t mean he has no intention of using you again in the future. That money may begin flowing again soon. By burning your bridges, you’re erasing the possibility of him contacting you once he’s back in a position to hire your services.

2. Your Client May Want to Recommend You to Others

If you did a good job for your client and parted on good terms, she may want to recommend you to others. If she doesn’t trust you anymore, this won’t happen. Every future client has the ability to recommend you to another client or two and so on, don’t blow it by saying or doing things you may regret.

3. You May Need that Client One Day

What happens when you need a job recommendation or testimonial? If you’re bashing your former clients on your blog and it’s not pretty, they’re not going to want to put in a good word for you.

4. No One Wants to Hang Around with Mr. Grumpy

Self explanatory, really.

5. It May Turn Off a Potential Client

Why would any potential client want to hire someone who is indiscreet or saying unkind things about the people he has worked for before? Before you bash a client, keep in mind that words do stay online forever and they can come back to haunt you.

Bad feelings happen, it’s only natural and writing is a good release. Before you fire off angry missives and hit “enter” or “send”, think about what you’re doing and how it will affect your future.

When you burn bridges you’re not hurting your client as much as you’re hurting yourself.

Blowing a Deadline or Saving the Day?

The deadline’s approaching, you haven’t started yet – or worse, you did start and you’re stuck. Each time you sit down to write, nothing comes. Well, something comes, but it’s pretty awful and you can’t send that to the client.

Your heart starts pounding. Your stomach twists. It’s the project from hell… and it’s due for delivery. You’re not going to make it. What do you do?
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Where Are All the Good Writers?

I had a recent conversation with a peer who mentioned that finding good writers to work with was more than a tad difficult. She’d been disappointed time and again by writers who just weren’t what they seemed to promise.

That’s a problem. When you don’t deliver on your promises, you end up costing yourself repeat business, long-term clients and better jobs. You move from client to client with no stable customer base and no guarantees of future work.

You also screw up business for your customers as well, leaving them facing extra expenses and cleaning up a mess. You create a bad reputation for yourself – and quickly, too.

Here are three issues that my peer and I discussed so you can make sure you aren’t one of those writers who falls short and disappoints.
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Want More Work? Don’t Pitch Your Diplomas

What traits, characteristics, and qualities make for a good freelancer?

Well, they have good attitudes. They’re positive people who like to help clients while providing fast service. They often have an ability to think ahead and suggest alternatives or better solutions. Sometimes they propose new ideas to make the client’s company better.

There are plenty of other qualities on the list. If you had to put them in order of importance, where would you put ’skilled’?
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Are You Creating Your Own Bad Reputation?

What’s your attitude? Are you the type of person that takes everything as it comes and thinks, “To each his own”? Or are you the sort to get indignant, light on fire and go around smacking people when they’ve insulted you?

If you’re in the latter group, you could be costing yourself work.

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