In the world of freelancing, clients are the primary sources of income. Since you’re personally working on projects for your client, you can get on-the-spot feedback regarding your works while not having to restrict yourself with rigid bureaucratic processes. In most cases, you’ll even have time for yourself: as long as you’re able to finish your workload, schedules shouldn’t be a problem in the freelancing world.
However, looking for clients can be a gamble. Sometimes, clients who just want a temporary project that will last a day; while there are other times that a client will look for a freelancer that they want to work within the long term. But one thing is for sure: nobody wants to work with clients that are too demanding and will only waste time and resources. ;
Frequently, we see a lot of cautionary tales and stories of bad clients that have ghosted, never paid in the first place, or asking an unreasonably large amount of work.
But for now, we’ll tune out all the negativity when looking for a client. Instead, we’ll be focusing on what makes a client reasonable and easy to work with. Whether you’re a one-person design team, a freelance writer looking for the real story, or even a trusted and certified electrical repair company, it’s essential to know to build a lasting professional relationship with your client.
Signs of a Good Client
On an everyday basis, freelancers will have to deal with clients. Of course, there’s no such thing as a ‘perfect’ client, with most being a mix of both good and bad in terms of professional behavior.
As such, recognizing a good client can help you know if you should be staying with them for in the long-term or not. At the same time, this can help you build momentum and your reputation as a freelancer. That will increase your network of referrals to other clients who have the same professional characteristics.
But before we get anywhere else, what are the signs of a good client?
They Are Rational and Realistic
Clients will have to be rational and aware of how they handle co-workers and those they are funding. There’s bound to be clients who are entirely new to the industry and won’t know the average pricing schemes. Most of the time, these individuals will try to low ball lower the bargaining price. But a rational client will always hear out the other party and ensure that what they are paying for is worth the budget. ;
Pricing is a crucial aspect of almost any type of transaction. For instance, if content needs to be urgently done for a site, then the pay should compensate for the time and effort being placed for a short timetable; it’s not easy working sleepless nights to finish deadlines.
A good client will know when to allocate more funds towards the project if they are asking for more to be done. Having a transparent two-way communication mode between the two of you can ensure that there will be no disputes in the workload and its relation to the payment.
Responsive and Understanding
It’s only a collective professional demeanor to communicate with your client and respond on the same day. However, this is easier said than done, especially when your client is traveling for hours, and the only way of reaching them is through one messaging platform.
Here’s the hard part: there will be times that your client might be unreasonable, and you will need to air out your side to him. As a freelancer, you will still need to hold your ground and ensure that you’ll be getting your salary promptly.
Besides, there might be an emergency that you might attend from your end. A good client will respect your time and understand that there might be some things beyond your control.
Clear and Concise Instructions
Of course, if you were a client and met a freelancer an hour ago, you’ll need to convey what your project entails and the different steps required to complete the project. Whether this is writing an article, designing a website, or commissioning an artwork, instructions need to be conveyed clearly.
75% of freelancers in the United States are in the arts and design industry, which is an industry that will require the right amount of instructions and skill. That said, clear and concise instructions will need to be conveyed.
The last thing that a freelancer wants is doing around a week’s worth of work to realize that everything needs to be changed because the instructions weren’t clear enough.
We have to understand that each individual will have their own personality. While most clients don’t need to have all of these characteristics, it will make the process easier. After all, no one is perfect, but if a client is reasonable and rational on their workload and expectations, then it’s going to be easier to work with them.
