When you’re a hero to your clients, they enjoy a lot of advantages ― you do, too. On January 31, Pam Foster met with a group of Wealthy Web Writers to explain just what those advantages are, and how you can enjoy the hero role with your clients.
Pam is a prolific web copywriter who’s recently seen her business explode after creating a unique niche for herself. She’s experienced in writing B2B (Business-to-Business) and B2C (Business-to-Consumer) copy, emails, and landing pages and she’s certified in SEO. Pam is also the author of The Web Copywriter’s Clear Path to Profits program.
You can review Pam’s entire webinar HERE.
Advantages to Being a Client Hero
When you’re a hero to your clients, they gain:
- A trusted partner
- A single learning curve
- Relief because they know the work will get done
- Reliable results
- Outstanding service
- Excellent value
You also gain from the relationship:
- A trusted partner
- A single learning curve
- A shared mission ― you’re both seeking the same results
- Loyalty
- Steady work
- Great samples and referrals
Notice how the first two items in both lists are identical.
Today’s clients are frantic. They’re busy, they don’t have time to keep up with social media, best practices for websites, and other aspects of online marketing. They need to drive sales (or manage a team that does), and they don’t have time to write blog posts, update their websites, and tweet or post to social networks.
That’s where you come in.
Position yourself properly and you create the framework for a more comprehensive relationship with your client. You’re not “just a copywriter,” you’re a trusted adviser.
When you create a shared mission with a client, you become part of a team. That helps you with one of the perennial issues for freelancers, the isolation you feel when you’re working by yourself from home.
As part of the client’s team, look for ways to really make her shine so the client naturally wants to keep working with you. You’ll have her loyalty and she’ll give you referrals.
CARE About Your Client
In his book Crush It, Gary Vaynerchuk wrote about what he calls the CARE Approach. When you really care about a customer, it shines through in everything you do and it increases your business.
You need to care about:
- Your client’s mission
- Your client’s struggles
- Driving a pleasing process
- Quality delivery
- The outcome
As a copywriter, you care about your own business. But, the more you can show the client you care about his business and are invested in his success, the longer your relationship with that client will last.
When Pam finds a client she really clicks with, she gets 150% invested in his success and talks about “we” instead of “you” or “I.” She’s always looking for something that will help that client.
That’s the kind of relationship you should develop with your clients, too.
Some copywriters just write their copy and then they’re done. But if you care about your client, you’ll care about the outcome.
Check in with him after the project’s done to see how your work is performing for the company. It shows him you’re loyal and interested in his success.
Win Clients Over with the Proposal
Once a client asks for a proposal, you have the chance to win her over during the process.
Pam always schedules a phone conversation to gather more information. During the call, she:
- Walks through the client’s mission and struggles
- Asks probing questions
- Discusses the competition
- Drives the conclusions and wraps up
After the phone call is over, she follows up as promised.
One of the reasons she always schedules the call, Pam explained, is because “it’s way too easy to do business electronically without getting to know the person you’re dealing with.”
When you get acquainted by phone, though, you have a chance to let your personality shine and establish a level of trust. Sometimes that makes the difference between getting the assignment or watching it go to a competitor.
The conversation doesn’t have to be long ― Pam usually schedules about 20 minutes ― but that’s time enough to give you some good insights you can use when you put together the proposal.
After you’ve talked, tell your prospect you’ll deliver a thoughtful proposal within 48 hours.
Your proposal should be well thought-out, and should address the struggles she’s having. Offer to walk her through it so you can explain any area of it she may have questions about.
You don’t always need to deliver a full-blown proposal. If it’s a simple project and you’ve developed a good rapport with the client over the phone, you can just say “let’s go.”
Present a “Let’s Do This!” Proposal
Your proposal should always be professional, and persuasive as well. Don’t make it wordy, though ― think “crisp and concise.”
You should:
- Recap the mission
- Make a promise about what you’ll deliver
- Show an example of what you’ll do
- Set expectations and outline how you’ll accomplish your task
- Include the budget and terms
- Assume the prospect will go for it
If writing a headline will be part of the project, give him an example of a benefit-rich headline using keywords. It shows you really do know what you’re doing and gives him a taste of the quality of your work.
Your budget and terms go at the end of the proposal ― after you’ve wowed him with your understanding of his business and what you can do for him.
Your budget shouldn’t surprise the client, and it won’t if you lay the groundwork for your pricing during your initial conversation. Pam usually tells the prospect up front that she has a rate sheet, and indicates the range. Since she charges by the page, the client can multiply the rate by the number of pages.
Always assume the prospect wants to work with you and make it easy for him by asking questions like, “When would you like to start?” or “When would it be convenient to walk through this?”
Pull the Best Out of Your Client
Before you start writing any copy, you need to do your research, starting with the company.
Use a brief or questionnaire to collect basic and critical information. Pam uses a two-page questionnaire which forces the client to really think through the information she needs. If the client doesn’t have the answers right off, offer to walk through it with her.
Ask for background stories about the company. These can give you some great ideas for approaches and angles. Ask “Why did you start this company?” and “What’s the reason this product was developed?” to elicit some really great information and bring the company’s story to life.
Confirm the Message Direction
Before she writes the copy, Pam wants to be sure she’s on target so she doesn’t waste a lot of time. So, she sends the client a “message map.”
Your message map should:
- Condense and finesse what the client told you
- Present the #1 promise
- Present the differentiators (benefit bullets)
- Confirm the offer and call-to-action
- Ask for agreement
Be a Terrific Team Member
Sometimes you’ll be the only freelancer working with a group of company employees. At other times, you’ll be part of a team of freelancers.
As the copywriter, you get to “drive” the team, but you should always do it in a way that’s fun and collaborative.
Make a point of meeting each team member, even if it’s only over the phone.
Be proactive about setting the framework for working together. Ask them how you’ll work together, and tell them what your usual process consists of.
Compliment your team members on what they’re doing well. Offer to share what you know about best practices, and refer them to experts so they’ll know why you want to do things a certain way.
Be helpful. Don’t just walk in and take over, be collaborative.
Meet all deadlines and expectations.
Always support team members in front of the client. If you have disagreements or criticism, save them until you’re in private. Make sure the team feels like you’re on their side.
If the client doesn’t have a team, you can help him put one together. Refer reliable developers, graphic designers, and other team members, and introduce them to each other. Provide reasons for the referral, and make it easy for the client to bring those team members on board.
If you’re referring a freelancer, make sure he’s reliable ― your work can suffer if there’s a less-than-stellar graphic designer or web developer on the team.
Help to make the transition easy when new team members are brought in.
Go Beyond Your Client’s Expectations
If you really want to be a hero to your clients, exceed their expectations. Make sure everything is clear, polished, and that there are no surprises. Pam often reviews copy with the team before she presents it to the client “in case there’s something weird.”
Here are a few ways you can exceed expectations:
- Use checklists, format, and spell check
- Be exceedingly clear and educational
- Run it by the team first
- Explain what you’re presenting
- Set up a time to walk through it with the client
- Reinforce the original mission and how your work solves the problem
- Invite feedback ― and be open to it
- Meet every deadline
- Communicate progress along the way
- Make suggestions beyond the scope of the original project
- Don’t let the client see your struggles
If your child gets sick, the client doesn’t need to know. “Always present a can-do, positive front. Don’t let them see you scrambling in the background,” Pam advised.
But Wait, There’s More!
Wow your clients by being responsive. Be quick and helpful ― answer questions, find out information you don’t know, make adjustments cheerfully, be available at odd hours, and impress them with your commitment.
If something isn’t working, come up with a new strategy.
Send some helpful information at random times.
Refer your client’s business to others, and ask for referrals.
Suggest other content you can help with. Do they need blog posts or articles? Emails? How’s their social media?
When you really care and make an extra effort, you become your client’s hero. You stand out, you have longer-term client relationships, and you earn more. (Capes are optional.)
