All posts by Jake Poinier

advice, client relationships, freelance money

You Can Do It for Love, You Can Do It for Money

I’ll be the first person to admit that I’m quick with the ax when it comes time to get rid of a challenging freelance client. Life’s too short to deal with people who make it more difficult.

But I recently ignored my rule and stuck with a high-paying client simply because, well, he was high-paying—and in retrospect, I’m very glad I did. For the first time, I was able to turn a challenging client into a loyal, lucrative one who’s manageable, if still somewhat high maintenance.

Here’s the Reader’s Digest version of the tale. Challenge number one is that he’s overseas, so there’s a time-zone issue. Challenge number two is that his English isn’t very good, so we’ve had a variety of miscommunications. Challenge number three is that he’s very demanding, and needs stuff done RIGHT NOW or he freaks out. Challenge number four is that I often have to get to double-digit drafts before he’s satisfied.

Not the ideal, eh? But the fact was he pays great, so I stuck with it. Over the course of a few months, I was able to preemptively deal with every single one of those challenges:

  • Challenge 1: I make sure I check in with him at 7 a.m., and ask if he’ll be needing my attention that day, and if so, when. I check in on weekends if I know something important is on the line.
  • Challenge 2: I’ve learned to repeat back to him what he’s said for clarification, so there are fewer miscues. Like, “So, if I am understanding you correctly, you want me to revise Project B before writing Advertisement C. Is that right?”
  • Challenge 3: I know that I need to turn stuff around more quickly for him than for most clients, which is fine because he pays a premium. More important, I ask specifically what day/time he wants things—I don’t wait for the “WHERE’S THE PROJECT A OUTLINE????” email.
  • Challenge 4: I don’t care about how many revisions there are, and I don’t take it personally if he doesn’t like something. In fact, I’ll usually assume he’s going to hate it, and then be pleasantly surprised when he’s all hearts and flowers.

Would I want an entire roster of clients like this? Heck no! But the fact is that I’ve learned to tilt the love and money equation in my favor. And it’s going to make for a nicer summer vacation than I would have otherwise had.

Question: Have you ever stuck with a client from hell purely for monetary reasons? Were you able to make any progress in turning them into a better client? If so, how?

Jake Poinier answers freelancer questions at Dr. Freelance.

advice, Business, lifestyle

Guilt Free

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By Jake Poinier

As a freelancer, it’s easy to feel guilty about shouldas, wouldas and couldas. It’s tempting to obsess on the things that you’re doing wrong — or that everyone else seems to do better than you.

I’m here to tell ya: Don’t do it. There’s no reason to feel guilty, and there’s even scientific evidence to back you up.

Career advisor Allison Cheston of Career Karma wrote a great post this week, “To Be Happy in Life, Find the Right Career,” referencing the work of author and Gallup pollster Tom Rath. (His bestseller was StrengthsFinder 2.0, and most recent work was Wellbeing.)

Since you’re on this website, I’m going to assume that you’ve found the right career. And I’d like to think you’re happy, or trending that way.

As it happens, I was fortunate enough to interview Mr. Rath a few months ago for Speaker magazine, the association magazine for the National Speakers Association. (Article pdf here). One of the things he said really stuck with me: Gallup’s decades of research bears out how much more effective it is to develop your natural talents and passions than it is to “try to be something that you’re not.”

As someone whose biggest struggles would include writing long stories (I prefer shorter stuff) and fiction (I stink at it, honestly), that comes as a relief to me. So, I can freely focus my efforts on the things I *am* good at: business copy and short features. I can’t worry that I’ll never publish a steamy tome about vampires like my buddy Evelyn Lafont, who posted “It’s Hard Out There for a Pimp…of Books” here on Freelance-Zone last week.

Mind you, this isn’t an all-ice-cream-no-broccoli excuse to blow off everything but the things you like to do. The yin to this yang is that you still need to…

  • identify and manage your weaknesses and blind spots.
  • measure what you’re doing, get honest feedback from peers/clients, and hold yourself accountable.

So, dispense with the guilt and start focusing on your areas of competence, confidence and passions. It’s a lot more productive.

Jake Poinier (a.k.a. Dr. Freelance) recently blogged about how freelancers should “Embrace your inner honey badger.”

advice, travel

Smooth seas make poor sailors

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By Jake Poinier

sailing as metaphorI’m a sucker for nautical stuff. I grew up sailing in Massachusetts, and as Arizona desert rats, our family heads out to Californian waters as often as we can — and thanks to my laptop, I can even do freelancing aboard when necessary. Last week, we sailed back from Catalina Island to Long Beach, California, after a few days of spring break. It’s about 25 miles, usually with a decent breeze. Under good conditions you can see the mainland the entire 4 to 5 hour trip.

This was not one of those days.

As we departed, the harbormaster shouted to us, “Be careful out there — it’s a little lumpy!” Sure enough, as soon as we passed Bird Rock at the harbor’s mouth, large, lazy swells started rolling in, causing a rocking-horse motion as the waves came in on the stern quarter, lifted us, tilted us, and laid us back down.

And about 4 miles in, it got foggy. Really foggy.

Growing up, fog was a reason *not* to go out in small boats lacking navigation tools. On this trip, we were in a 31-foot Beneteau, equipped with GPS as well as a compass. Still, I’d be lying if it wasn’t unnerving to see less than 100 yards, knowing the speed of ocean-going tankers hauling in and out of Long Beach, and trusting a little cartoon boat on a 4-inch-square computer to tell me exactly where the heck we were on the planet.

We made it without incident, and as a result, our entire family is better equipped to understand slightly gnarlier conditions than usual. So, let’s bring this around to how this applies to freelancing:

Know what you’re getting into. Just as most don’t go into rough, foggy waters in a small craft without navigation tools, you need to be aware of what you’re capable of handling as a freelancer and avoid the dangers of faking it. Have a basic plan before you set out, but be flexible when conditions change.

Trust your craft. A bigger boat like we were in has tons of metal in the keel to keep it from heeling (aka, tipping) too far. If you’ve built your business properly, you should be able to handle challenges such as economic slowdowns — even if your progress isn’t as fast as you’d like.

Stop and listen. We’ve all been in a freelance fog at some point — too many projects, too fast. In a boat in a fog, you need to periodically idle and listen to what’s going on around you to get your bearings. Same thing for freelancers.

Test yourself. Bringing it back around to the headline, there’s always a risk of freelancers being too cautious. Learning to handle the rough stuff — complex projects, challenging clients, tough negotiations — can provide the confidence to conquer anything.

Jake Poinier, when he’s not messing around in boats, can be found at Dr. Freelance. The name of his freelance editorial services company, Boomvang Creative Group, alludes to a boat part — a boom vang is a pulley system that helps control the shape of your mainsail.

advice, client relationships, freelance money, Sales

Dealing with Ridiculous Client Expectations

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By Jake Poinier

Earlier this week, I received a freelance referral from a previous client for a web project — and an object lesson in dealing with ridiculous client expectations.

Nice guy, we got along swimmingly. We went through the sitemap for the new, improved website, I asked my usual rotation of questions, and it seemed like a good match of their needs and my background.

Then, about a half-hour into the conversation, he mentioned that my referral contact had thought the price would be around $1000.

I must have raised my eyebrows halfway up my forehead, because he quickly backpedaled and said something to the effect of, “Now, keep in mind, he had just thrown a number out. I’m a numbers guy, and just wanted to let you know my expectations.”

I resisted the urge to run screaming from the room, knowing there was no way $1000 was going to be even close for a 20-odd page site. We wrapped up the meeting in businesslike fashion and shook hands. I told him I’d crunch the numbers and have an estimate for him the following day.

When I crunched those numbers, they indicated a cost of around triple what he was expecting. I sent the bid anyway, with a mention that I realized the estimate was far higher than he was anticipating. Perhaps not surprisingly, my phone has not rung. But you know, I’m OK with that.

Besides the need to reject lowball freelance work, there’s another lesson in here: You should never, ever try to estimate the cost of someone else’s services. My previous client, in an effort to be helpful, had established a mark that would be impossible to hit, even if my rate was half of what it is. The best course of action is always to let your fellow creatives do their own math — or things aren’t likely to add up.

Jake Poinier busted out of his corporate chains to become a freelance writer and editor in 1999. He runs Boomvang Creative Group and blogs regularly as Dr. Freelance.

advice, client relationships

Earning client loyalty for life

By Jake Poinier

I often joke that January is when clients suddenly find their to-do lists all at the same time. I prepare myself mentally for it, of course — and have plenty of strong coffee at the ready.

This year has been even more of a deluge than usual. What’s more, in the past two weeks, I’ve had several emergency calls — projects that needed to be researched, interviewed, written and approved in a day or two. It’s stressful, but I have to confess that I not only enjoy it, but I love the byproduct: earning client loyalty for life.

Now, there’s an important distinction here:

  • I’m not talking about an over-the-transom prospect who found you on Google and needs something done in a hurry. (Like the old saying, “Poor planning on your part doesn’t constitute an emergency on my part.”)
  • I’m also not talking about “the client who cried wolf,” for whom EVERYTHING is an emergency.
  • I’m talking about about a good client with whom you have a solid relationship who happens to need a lifesaver.

I remember well from my magazine-editor days when a freelancer would flake out, or a story came in that was a complete piece of garbage, or an ad salesperson would sell a last-minute ad that bumped up the magazine with an additional 8-page form. I had specific writers who I knew would come through in the clutch as well as being regulars in my freelance stable.

In the words of my friend Stephanie Conner at The Active Voice, “Being an unflappable freelancer goes a long way.” If you’re willing to work that extra bit harder for a client or editor when they’re in desperate straits, they’re going to be willing to give you more assignments long after the emergency has passed.

Jake Poinier is the owner of Boomvang Creative Group and answers questions about freelancing at his Dr. Freelance blog.

advice, client relationships, Marketing yourself, Sales

Increase response rates by customizing your query

By Jake Poinier

Coming into the final week of gathering participants for the annual Freelance Forecast, I emailed a few creative agencies specializing in freelancers to see if they’d be willing to send the surveys to clients and/or freelancers. In all honesty, the response was underwhelming. But there was one person (from Hire-Profile in Atlanta) who responded to my query brimming with enthusiasm about sharing the survey and the results within her network.

As we spoke on the phone and traded business histories, I asked her what had made her call me back. Her answer was instructive: Basically, she gets a lot of emails from people soliciting contact names and such, but she could tell that I’d put time into reading her website and making my email personal.

It was a reminder, above all, that you can’t let expedience get in the way of tailoring your message if you have a specific objective. In my case, I wasn’t trying to solicit a freelance job from her, but rather trying to get her to take some time to spread my survey around. As you can imagine, it’s even more critical if you’re actually trying to convince someone that you’re worthy of being hired and paid to do something.

Bottom line, customizing a query isn’t just about changing the name and publication or business category. It takes an investment in understanding what the prospect values — not just what you want to tell them. There’s a place in every freelancer’s arsenal for bigger, broadcast email campaigns, but you need to know when the surgical strike is the correct approach. It requires effort to have your message stand out…and if you don’t, you might be in danger of “Garbage out, garbage in.”

Contributing blogger Jake Poinier is the owner of Boomvang Creative Group, and blogs regularly at his Dr. Freelance blog.