The Three Simple Techniques I Used to Lose a Client—Not Recommended for Any Writer

It’s a great feeling to land a new client. There is nothing like getting paid for work that you love!

With each new relationship, you want to show you are capable of doing the work plus prove that you can do more.

Creating a connection of trust is the goal.

You want to be the go-to writer.

The person your client thinks of when a new project arises. Turns to for suggestions. Wants to keep on retainer.

It takes effort to achieve and maintain a successful writer/client relationship.

But it is easy to screw it up.

I know because I landed and lost a client in thirty days.

Many years ago, when I was new to copywriting, I bid on a job to produce four blog posts a month.

“Fingers crossed, fingers crossed, fingers crossed,” I hopped around my office.

My husband and the dogs watched as I danced around my computer screen.

“I don’t dare to look. What if I didn’t get it?”

“This might sound dumb, but didn’t get what?” my husband asked.

I stopped moving and stared at him. “Remember the dream job I applied for?”

“The one that’s writing about writing?”

I pointed at him. “That’s the one. I just received an email from them.”

He walked to my computer. “Congratulations, we’re accepting your bid,” he read.

Just like that, I had a new client.

Although I wasn’t the lowest cost, I had a unique angle given the work I was doing with a popular e-zine.

My client made it simple: they would send a topic and I would churn out four blog posts every month.

I would be published with a byline.

The perfect fit.

Then my mom got sick.

A week before the articles were due, the content manager reached out.

“Hey Joanne, just checking in to see how the writing is going. Do you have any questions for me? Will you make the deadline?”

I shot back a reply. “Hi Jeff, things are great. You’ll have the articles by the deadline.”

The truth is, I hadn’t started writing them.

Panic set in.

What had I done the past twenty-three days?

Spent a lot of time with my family. Talked to doctors. Ran errands, cooked, cleaned, drove my dad back and forth to the hospital.

I managed to get four, poor quality blogs done by the deadline.

I was embarrassed.

That embarrassment turned to humiliation the next day.

“Thank you, Joanne. We won’t be using these and will be moving on to another writer.”

I was devastated.

My other clients were pleased with my work, and I was grateful to have them.

But I’ve always believed that this new client would have been my “in” to bigger and better projects and would have really launched my freelance writing career.

It was difficult to analyze what went wrong. But to avoid the reputation of being an untrustworthy freelancer, I had to go through the painful process and relive those thirty days.

It was easy to see where I went wrong.

I know I could have kept the client if I hadn’t made these three BASIC mistakes.

UNDERESTIMATE TIME

I don’t know about you, but I always assume a task will take less time than it does.

Always.

Even at my most focused, I don’t produce output as quickly as I think I will.

I’ve gotten into the habit of adding time cushions.

I also set a hard, non-negotiable deadline that is days before work is due, and stick to it even if it means staying up late to write.

Remember, time is fluid and passes whether you want it to or not.

FAIL TO COMMUNICATE

Open lines of honest communication strengthens relationships.

A simple concept, but one I failed to take advantage of.

How hard would it have been to email the content manager when my mom got sick? Or been honest when he emailed me?

I didn’t want to sound like I was making excuses.

And my fear was that if I didn’t meet their publication deadline, I would lose the gig.

We know how that turned out.

I’m sure I left them scrambling to get those four blog posts written.

Instead of helping, I hurt them.

MISS THE MARK

My four deliverables were hastily written, not well-edited, and less than the five hundred words they wanted.

I only wrote one headline instead of five for each as requested and didn’t use all the keywords.

What I got right: they were double-spaced and 12-point Times New Roman font.

Whoo-hoo—chalk two up for me!

The specifications were clear, and I failed to meet them.

It’s hard to admit that I didn’t follow instructions, especially because they weren’t onerous.

I missed the mark.

Years later, I still cringe every time I think about Jeff’s reaction when he opened the blog posts. He should have been excited about the content and sharing it with their audience.

Instead, he had to go to his colleagues and explain that he made a bad decision to hire me, and they had to start over.

Even though this was a difficult lesson, my fix is simple: have better time management, communicate well and often, and meet the requirements.

And I apply it with every client project.

If you need a writer who is diligent about deadlines, asks questions, gives status updates, and provides excellent copy and content according to your specifications, connect with me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected].

__________________________________________________________________________

Joanne Hirase-Stacey is a Compliance Communications Specialist who writes copy and content for companies who sell compliance products and services. She is a former General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer, and Risk Manager who has navigated the vast world of regulatory compliance and has lived to write (and tell) about it. Visit her website at www.jhstacey.com to learn more.