My Relationship Status As A Freelancer: Strong Client Relationships And Foundation

 My Relationship Status As a Freelancer

Strong Client Relationships And Foundations

This week marks the start of my journey as a full time freelance writer. One thing that I knew before traveling on this road was that if I were to be successful that I needed to build strong client relationships with each person that desired to hire me. If I did not do this, I would be doomed to fail. It is unwise to bite the hand that feeds you, and not building a strong relationship with your client is doing exactly that. However, here are 3 steps that I have found to have worked for me to create strong client relationships.

1. Proper Schedule Planning- Before you take the dive into full time freelancing it is essential to take the time to create a rough draft schedule of the days and time that you wish to give each client each week. I first sat down and figured how many hours a week I wanted to write, which was about 40-46 hrs. Next, I took each project that I had and estimated the amount of time that I would need to spend on each one to split my time up as wisely as possible. Finally, I took all of this info and put it into a spread sheet and also posted it on my Elance profile to give potential clients an idea of my availability. When planning your first week to two weeks of work you should keep in mind that it is likely to change many times. To avoid any changes that are not essential, I recommend lining up consistent jobs that you know will provide work on a weekly basis.

2. Communication- Anytime you are providing a service for someone communication is key. However, in the first two weeks of full time freelance writing it can make or break some contracts. Let your clients know that this will be a time of growing pains for you, that you appreciate their willingness to hire you in the first place, and reassure them that they can trust things will get better. I have already almost screwed up here a few times myself. Thankfully, I have some very understanding clients. To succeed though, communication is a top priority in building strong client relationships.

3. Keeping An Eye For Details- Having a keen eye for detail is something that is needing during any freelancing project. If you are sloppy in the beginning on client projects then many clients may decide not to continue with you as a freelancer. A strong client relationship and eye for detail extended beyond just your projects. Are you keeping an eye on the details of your own promotion on social media as a freelancer? What about the treasure trove of information available on the web about the freelancing trade? This may seem like you would have to have eyes in the back of your head, palm of your hands, and god knows how many more where else to be as detail oriented as possible. It is possible though to keep an eye for detail if you take the time to organize the details.

 On What Terrain Are Your Client Relationships Built?

The idea for this post originally came to me when I was talking to my friend +Naias Kabir  . We were discussing the aspects of being patient, hardworking, and consistent in our freelance writing work. One thing in specific that I would like to mention from my conversation with him is about the ground that we build the foundation of a relationship with a client on. If we build the foundation on a fault line, then we will surely experience earthquakes that could potentially rip a strong client relationship apart. If we build it on sand, then our relationship with our client will slowly sink away and be swallowed back into the Earth. However, if we build a freelancing relationship with our client on stone then it is sure to be a sturdy, stable, and a strong client relationship. This is My Relationship Status As A Freelance Writer