The greatest part of being a freelance writer and blogger is having long-term clients who appreciate you work enough to keep coming back and paying you for your work. It really is the Holy Grail for self-employed people, because there is nothing worse than having problem clients who are difficult to work with for whatever reason.
When you manage to find a great client, you might feel a sudden rush of panic because you want to guarantee that they will stick with your services. This is completely understandable, as every freelancer wants great clients, and the key to keeping the relationship is to deliver the goods on time, and to give a little extra.
A Personal Example
I turned freelance in March this year, and I was able to do so because I found a great client who had a variety of sites that I could write for and build with them. I have worked with this client since November 2012 and it shows no sign of slowing down. The reason for this is because I always meet deadlines, ask questions about the business, the future and anything I have an issue with, and I always give more than what I am asked to do.
For example, when we first started working together, I was paid to write four articles on the process of writing and publishing. Each post was to be between 500-1,500 words. I made sure that the posts were between 1,000 and 1,500 words, and I sourced images for the posts too. As a result, I was given log-in details for the site because I had shown a willingness to give a little extra.
Before long, I was writing for three other niches and doing exactly the same for those sites. All because I wanted to impress my client not only with my writing, but by my professionalism and willingness to make a concerted effort to be useful to my client.
It may sound like I’m blowing my own trumpet a bit here, but I have made sure that I have treated every client of mine – whether it is for one blog post a month or several a week – in exactly the same way, and it has served me well. As long as you get paid what you’re worth and are always professional, there is no reason why every freelance writer can’t do the same.
A Little Bit of Free Work Goes a Long Way
Some people might read that last sentence and think: “Working for free? Are you insane?” It isn’t as mad – or as difficult – as it sounds. If you are prepared to go out of your way for a client that you like and want to continue to work with for a long time, you have to stand out for them, and the way to do that is to do something special for them for free. This could be anything from sharing the blog posts you have written for a client on your social networks to writing a guest post for them. Check out this post from Moz.com for some other great ways to make your clients like you.
I have written articles for the likes of Business 2 Community and the Huffington Post where I have mentioned my clients, and that has definitely helped cement the working relationship. It showed them that I appreciated them working with me and I was proud of the association. It ended up being mutually beneficial for both of us: They got extra publicity from the posts and my standing with them improved, and all because of a couple of guest posts.
Impressing your clients can sometimes be difficult, especially if they have extremely high expectations or you are not in regular contact with them. All you can do in this instance is give your very best each time out, and not take things personally if a client asks for an edit on a piece of your work. It is your professionalism and willingness to go a little further for your client that could make it a long-term relationship and not just a flash in the pan. Just be sure to stand your ground when you need to. Good clients will always appreciate it when you do. Don’t let anybody walk all over you.
Photo credit: Kristina B via photopin cc
via Business 2 Community http://www.business2community.com/blogging/going-extra-mile-blogging-clients-0605390?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=going-extra-mile-blogging-clients
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire