Earlier this week, I spoke with three new writers who are dealing with the same situation: they completed a job for a client, but have yet to receive payment. And unfortunately, it has been more than a couple of days. Two of them have been trying to get paid for more than a month, while the other is going on six weeks.
If you are going to work as a freelance writer, there will probably come a point when you are stood up and not paid for your services. While this is part of the business, it does not make dealing with the experience any more enjoyable.
There are two types of non-paying clients: those who are in communication but won’t pay, and those who simply disappear. Obviously, it is better to be in communication with a client than to never hear from them. But in either case, you have your work cut out for you.
While you want to put some time into attempting to collect, going overboard is a mistake. You only have so much time to work, so you want to make sure you are focusing on all the right areas of your career. In my experience, if a client does not pay after a month, and is continually hiding, you are never going to see the money. At this point, you should make a determination on whether or not to move on and forget about what has happened.
Any time you get stiffed by a client you are going to be angry. This holds true for new freelancers, as well as those who have been around for a long time. It may not make you feel any better, but remember that all of us go through this. It is one of the bad parts of the business.
No way, no how am I getting on the phone with a client. This is something I hear every day from members of my freelance writing course, as well as others who just get in touch to talk. Of course, I find this strange because speaking on the phone with clients offers many benefits.
If you think you can continually get away with avoiding phone calls, consider these three benefits and what they can do for your career:
1. It is quicker to use the phone than any other method of communication. While email is fast, it can become slow and confusing in no time at all if both parties are not willing to respond in a timely manner. With a phone call, you can go back and forth, for as long as necessary, until both parties are on the same page. What takes you many days to discuss via email can be handled in a few minutes on the phone.
2. Ask and answer questions in real time. While this is a huge benefit, many freelancers see it as a disadvantage – this is because they do not like to think on their feet. When speaking on the phone with a client, you may be asked questions that need answered on the spot. For instance, what would you say if a client asked for a quote on the phone? The thought of this is reason enough for many people to never use this communication tool. But instead of seeing this as a bad thing, you should realize that the ability to both ask and answer questions is a huge benefit.
3. You learn a lot about the person on the other end of the phone. While you may think you know somebody by the emails you send back and forth, there is nothing like a phone conversation to show you what they are really like.
Even if you are opposed to speaking with clients on the phone, give this a try just one time. You may be surprised by the benefits above, as well as many others.
As a freelance writer you should always be looking to better your relationship with clients. While this may come easy to some, others have a much more difficult time making this happen. Fortunately, there are many basic things you can do to help clients and forge a better relationship.
1. Make yourself available as often as possible. Over the years I have found that approximately 75 percent of clients will have questions or feedback as you are working for them. It is important that you are available for discussion. This does not mean that you have to take several hours out of your day to personally speak with every client. But you should make yourself as available as possible, by phone and email.
2. Meet deadlines. This should go without saying, but many freelancers overlook the importance. If you want to keep clients happy and ensure that they get what they want, make sure you know your deadline and do whatever it takes to meet it. If you know that this is not going to happen, tell the client as far in advance as possible.
3. Ask if there is anything else you can do in addition to writing. You may be surprised to find that some clients need help in other areas. For instance, you may be able to assist in finding images, with marketing related tasks, etc. Of course, you need to decide which services you do and do not want to offer.
If you want to better assist your freelance writing clients you should make yourself available, meet deadlines, and let them know about all the services you offer.
