idealmike
Level X3
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Yesterday I posted some Freelance Business Management Tips Finding Success when Freelancing. Which can help you to get set up when freelancing. But today I want to post some actual client management tips as well for learning how to handle and deal with your clients that you get when freelancing. Of course having some business management skills can help you to get a good start in the world of freelancing. But you will also want to know about some good client management tips as well so you can know how to handle your clients and prospective buyers more efficiently and help you to find success!
[b]Do you always remain calm and professional with irate clients? Be honest.[/b]
I try to, but sometimes I lose my cool when the client is just being dumb and stubborn. I've gotten "No You Listen! I know SEO and how it works! It shouldn't take longer than 2 weeks to rank for my keywords!" And I'll respond with "Well if you knew what you were doing, why did you hire us to do it? Could you not rank for your difficult keywords? If not, then you knew it would take more than 2 weeks to rank ;) " lol :D
[b]Do you stick to your working hours or do you work around the clock?[/b]
I try to work when my little girl is at school, so between 8:30am and 2:30pm. I'll also work while she's home, but not as much.
[b]Can you identify genuine buyers vs tire kickers?[/b]
Oh yeah. I've had plenty of tire kickers and they get pretty annoying. The genuine buyers will be ready to go once you answer a few questions, and the buyers send you all their questions in one email, not 25 lol :D
[b]Do you bite off more than you can chew? How do you handle that?[/b]
Not very often. Sometimes I will if the paycheck is nice lol. But even then I have plenty of people to help me out, and if they can't, they know people who can :D
[b]Do you have a backup contingency plan in place?[/b]
Yup. But it requires me to have $1,000,000 in my bank account first. So I'm currently working on that lol :D
[b]Do you pitch for free? What if the pitch takes 6+ hours?[/b]
Yup, a free pitch is a necessity if you're trying to close a big client. No one will pay to listen to you spew crap out of your mouth lol. Most of my clients are under a contract so those 6 hours aren't much in the long term :D
[b]Do you have a contingency budget plan in place for big jobs?[/b]
Yup, but I have people pay me at least 50% up front for big jobs so that I know they are serious. The contract alone isn't as safe as you would think with huge projects :(
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If someone wants me to do a write up for them I invoice them and I don't start until the payment has cleared in my account.
[b]Do you always remain calm and professional with irate clients? Be honest.[/b]
Yes I do always remain calm and professional, that doesn't mean I will take their s*** though. Most often when someone has gotten irate with me it has had nothing to do with me or my services. I remember one customer screaming and swearing at me because she thought her order was late. I called her to tell her that her order was ready and had just been collected by the courier and she would receive it in 2 days time. She said I had promised her delivery on that day. I calmly told her that she was mistaken, she has it in writing that the date was for completion.
Anyway I forwarded her the email and she never responded at all. She tried to place an order a few months later and phoned me because she had problems logging into my website. I explained to her very nicely that unfortunately I cannot supply to her any longer because of the verbal abuse.
[b]Do you stick to your working hours or do you work around the clock?[/b]
My working hours are whenever I can fit work in around my family. This sometimes is around the clock. I often have to work late into the night to get things done. I only have 3 to 4 hours in the morning when my kids are in play school which is not nearly enough to make a dent in my to do list.
Can you identify genuine buyers vs tyre kickers?
Yes and I find tyre kickers really exhausting. I can spot them immediately and I try to be professional and attend to their endless queries... but if there is something really important I need to attend to that will be done before giving more of my time to tyre kickers.
I had one woman calling me for over a year asking me if I offer discount for wholesale orders. Every time I said yes, on my wholesale website I have wholesale pricing. No but can she get a discount off wholesale? And my answer was always the same, that no, that is my best price. Please read the terms and conditions. Then she will wait 2 weeks and phone me again. I started ignoring her calls after a while (yes I know not very professional) and she would then email me. I started just forwarding the same email response to her and eventually she left me alone.
[b]Do you bite off more than you can chew? How do you handle that?[/b]
Yes,sometimes and that is when I work late at night!
[b]Do you have a backup contingency plan in place?[/b]
Not really. I have been working on this. but I don't really have a contingency plan in place.
[b]Do you pitch for free? What if the pitch takes 6+ hours?[/b]
I don't do that sort of work. I am a blogger and online marketer, so I work for myself and I buy services here. But if I had to do a pitch I think it would depend on the situation. If a tyre kicker asked me for a pitch I would charge a steep price. Otherwise I would do it for free.
[b]Do you have a contingency budget plan in place for big jobs?[/b]
Yes it's called full payment upfront:) If someone wants me to do a write up for them I invoice them and I don't start until the payment has cleared in my account.
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Cristian
No. Well, I'm a very passionate guy, I'll burn like a roman candle if someone gets on my nerves. In fact, most of my negative reviews are because I couldn't keep my mouth shut and have some professional patience.
So there. I was honest.
Well. I generally work after my day job but sometimes I get up very early and work then.
Yes I can smell tyre kickers from a mile away.
Well, no. I usually get myself into project I can actually deliver.
Yes I do, its called my day job.
I usually pitch for free. If I get the project, fine, if not, well, that's life.
I don't really know what this is, so I guess no. [quote]Do you always remain calm and professional with irate clients? Be honest.[/quote] No. Well, I'm a very passionate guy, I'll burn like a roman candle if someone gets on my nerves. In fact, most of my negative reviews are because I couldn't keep my mouth shut and have some professional patience. So there. I was honest. :D [quote]Do you stick to your working hours or do you work around the clock?[/quote] Well. I generally work after my day job but sometimes I get up very early and work then. [quote]Can you identify genuine buyers vs tyre kickers?[/quote] Yes I can smell tyre kickers from a mile away. [quote]Do you bite off more than you can chew? How do you handle that?[/quote] Well, no. I usually get myself into project I can actually deliver. [quote]Do you have a backup contingency plan in place?[/quote] Yes I do, its called my day job. [quote]Do you pitch for free? What if the pitch takes 6+ hours?[/quote] I usually pitch for free. If I get the project, fine, if not, well, that's life. [quote]Do you have a contingency budget plan in place for big jobs?[/quote] I don't really know what this is, so I guess no.
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