You’re new. And confused. The world is your oyster, but you don’t know where to start and which one’s a dud, and which one’s holding the pearl.
Don’t worry. We’ve all been there. Even as experienced writers, we sometimes slip and fall into the cracks.
The good news is that there are a few red flags you can take note of now to prevent the white flag of giving up down the line.
Here are five:
1. The client who wants to be your best friend.
I’m all about making friends and being friendly with new and potential clients. But what I’m talking about is the client who wants you to shop with them during business meetings, who takes you with them on errands and when it comes time to paying says, “Well, I thought you’d give me a good discounts since we’re friends!”
It happened to me once, but never again. It’s fine if you have a good relationship with your client before or even after you started working together. What’s not fine and not healthy is finding someone who confuses work time with play time and who befriends you for the discounts. Not nice at all.
2. Clients who feel uncomfortable about contracts.
Yes, contracts can be uncomfortable and awkward. But if everything you discussed has been agreed up, there is no reason a client should be against signing one. After countless mistakes on my part not to have one, I realized it’s a lot less painful when both parties are clear and up front about what’s expected.
3. Clients who talk negatively about past writers.
Just like I’m sure it reflects badly on us when we bad mouth editors and clients, it works the same when clients vent their dissatisfaction about other writers. What’s key is listening to what exactly they weren’t happy with and then thinking about whether their expectations are too high or don’t fit with what you can do. For example, I had a potential client who said he hated it when he gave an intern a project and the intern asked what was expected of him. He said he much rather have the intern come up with an idea on their own. Now that sounds nice doesn’t it? But what happens when their idea is completely different from the one he had in mind?
In my case, it meant the client was unhappy and refused to pay me. Not a good situation at all!
4. Clients who’s words don’t match their actions.
Just like in romantic relationships, it’s much better to observe what someone does than what they say they will do. For example, if you have a client who says they sent you payment, but three months later, you still haven’t seen anything, then you know what to expect in the future. While everyone is late now and again and it’s always important to be compassionate to your client’s situation, it’s important to take note of how many times it’s happened. Also, see if they are being inconsistent in other aspects of your relationship. People always show you their true colors. You only need listen and observe to be sure.
What about you?
Is there anything you wish someone had told you to watch out for when you first started out as a writer?
Share them here.
