Client quality has a huge impact on your income and happiness as a writer. And yet, few writers understand how to judge client quality before starting a working relationship. While there are many different evaluation systems out there, in my 15 years as a freelance writer and marketer, I have found there are just four questions you truly need to ask.
These quick, simple questions can help you spot “red flags” and potential problems before you’re deeply involved with a client. Plus, by using these four questions consistently, you’ll do a better job of screening potential writing opportunities that come your way, so you can focus exclusively on the projects and clients that are best for you.
One additional pro tip? Use these questions once you’ve settled on your niche or specialty, as a way to help you focus on the best long-term opportunities within your unique list of prospects.
Question #1: Do you truly like and enjoy the topic, product, or service?
This seems like a simple question, but it’s one I’ve seen trip up many working writers over the years – including myself! Taking on a client or marketing assignment for a product or service you don’t actually like is a recipe for misery, poverty, and disaster.
Early in my career, for example, I accepted an assignment to write a series of blog posts and web articles about handmade wooden pens. Easy enough, I thought, I just have to write about pens. And, if I’m being perfectly honest, I needed the money.
It didn’t take long for problems to crop up. Within the first few articles, I’d exhausted everything I wanted to say about wooden pens for the rest of my life. I had to practically chain myself to the computer to work on a piece, and I’d struggle all day to complete a single article. I fell behind on other projects, which cost me money and clients, and, ultimately, I had to quit the gig.
Contrast that with the writing I do in the financial industry. Stock trading and money flow fascinate me. I could talk to you all day and half the night about corporate balance sheets, investing opportunities, and interest rates. I’m voluntarily reading about money and markets every day, so getting paid to write about something I’m authentically interested in feels like a bonus instead of hard work. Plus, since I have such an enthusiasm for it, when I’m working on financial projects, I work fast.
The bottom line? If you need money fast, you can try to tough it out with any client that will have you. But, if you’re trying to make a real living as a writer… and enjoy yourself as you go along… make sure you truly like the product or service before you say yes to a project.
And, if you’re taking on things to pay the bills, start looking for projects you’ll enjoy to take the place of the ones you don’t.
Question #2: Are these people business professionals?
When you’re working with a client, you want them to be business professionals. That doesn’t require suit-and-tie corporate styling, a formal office, or specific business lingo. Instead, it means (at a minimum):
- The client knows their business and can explain it clearly.
- The client has basic systems and processes in place for attracting customers, selling products/services, and providing customer service.
- The client responds to emails and questions in a timely manner.
- The client has a clear system for paying invoices.
To illustrate this, consider two of the clients my husband works with in his live sound business.
The first client, LP, is an international events company run by a former actor and performer. They do dance shows, rock tours, casino residencies – anything they can book. As a part of this business, my husband gets to work with household names in the music world. He loves feeling connected to the stars. Unfortunately, with every show, he struggles to get all the details he needs to write contracts and often has to follow up multiple times on his invoices.
His other client, SO, is also an events company. They specialize in large events, like festivals and corporate parties. But, instead of phone calls and emails, they have a company-wide scheduling app and a shared folder of contracts and artist details. When there’s a show coming up, everyone gets weekly updates on the status of costumes, equipment, and venues. Invoices are paid each Monday, and there’s a clear system for submitting them for approval.
The differences between these two clients are crystal-clear in hindsight… but the signs were also there in the initial interviews and projects for each client.
Whenever you can, avoid clients who don’t take the details of running a business seriously. They’ll eat up your time, suck away your energy, and kill your cash flow. Instead, look for clients who have a clear marketing system, who respond to you promptly, and who seem to know what they’re doing when it comes to running their business.
Question #3: Is this business in crisis?
Writers are superheroes… but we shouldn’t have to be. While all businesses have their ups and downs, you’ll want to be on the lookout for businesses in crisis.
Businesses in crisis often hire writers with the intention of using that writer to “save” the company. They’re relying on you – and your skill as a persuasive writer – to bring in X amount of new leads or dollars (often over a very short period of time). If you can’t get it done, the company could fold.
As you do your initial interviews or discovery calls with a prospective client, watch out for phrases that imply you’ll be expected to execute a complete business turnaround, revive a “dead” mailing list, or deliver a multi-million-dollar sales campaign right out of the gate. These are all signs of a business with unrealistic expectations of what an individual writer or marketer can do for them.
Now, to be fair, there are companies in crisis who make great clients for the right type of writer. Yet, if you’re not intentionally setting out to specialize in rescue work, use this question to screen prospective clients and keep your energy focused on the most vibrant and viable opportunities.
Question #4: Will I get feedback or data about my writing?
A final question to consider is whether you will be able to get feedback or results data about your writing. There are two reasons you’ll want to seek this out…
First, as a writer, it’s hard to build your skills without feedback. It’s true that getting booked for another project is a form of feedback… but that’s not the same as a copy chief telling you how to improve your headlines or the marketing director sharing data about traffic, clicks, and sales generated by your work. Timely, specific feedback can help you level up your skills fast.
For example, when I was working for a preparedness company, I got daily reports of how our emails performed. Based on open rates and clicks, I could see I needed to write shorter emails with more political themes. Once I made this change, my emails got better results for my client (and I earned more royalties as a result). And, that’s not all…
With feedback and data, you can begin to take on a consultant’s role with a client. You’ll know what’s working or what’s not, allowing you to make smarter suggestions for upcoming editorial or sales copy projects. This makes it more likely that future projects will be winners, and helps you step into the role of a trusted advisor, which can be a very lucrative addition to your writing work.
Your next steps…
You may have spent a large part of your writing career, so far, worried about being good enough for clients. However, the reality is clients also need to be good enough for you. And, there’s an enormous difference between having clients and having good clients.
Take a look at your existing clients or any client opportunities you’re considering. Ask each of my four questions – if you like the company, if it has professionals running the show, if there’s a crisis, and if you’re likely to get useful feedback. Then, use the answers to help screen out less-than-perfect options and focus in on the best-quality opportunities available to you. You may be pleasantly surprised at just how much of a difference it will make in your stress levels, project quality, and income!
