One of the biggest complaints I hear from freelancers and content buyers alike is turnaround time. Content buyers often run into problems with freelancers missing deadlines and freelancers often have to chase down their payment once their work has been delivered. Both of these practices can really hurt your business and cast a poor light on you to potential customers.
As a freelance writer for a number of years, I am no stranger to deadlines. I always try to accommodate clients who have a special need regarding turnaround time, but in the event that I can’t – and I know that I can’t – I tell them up front so that they have the option of hiring someone else that can work within their timeframe and get their project to them as quickly as they’d like. Alternately, things happen – such is life. If, for whatever reason, I am unable to meet a deadline that I promised or agreed to and it’s my fault – the project is free. This is a guarantee I offer all my clients – from the largest of projects down to the smallest. Knowing that I may have to work for free keeps me disciplined and focused on the project at hand, thereby allowing me to give my clients the attention their project deserves. I also know that 80% of my business is going to come from 20% of my clients – the old 80/20 rule. The happier my clients are with the service I provide, the likelier they are to, not only become a repeat client, but to refer me to their colleagues. Contrary to what any marketing guru will tell you – word of mouth is the very best – or the very worst – advertising your business can receive.
That same marketing logic applies to content buyers as well. The writing community, especially on the Internet – is quite small and closeknit. We talk to each other about our clients, recommend clients to each other, pass along job postings – and we also look out for each other (most of the time). If we have been stiffed in the past by a client that refused to pay or that getting payment from was the equivalent of pulling teeth, more likely than not, we’re going to warn our peers about that client. As the word spreads, the pool of writers who are willing to take the risk of working for that client gets exponentially smaller. The more experienced writers will usually err on the side of caution and avoid that client like the plague, taking with them some of the better content available to the buyer. The less experienced writers may decide to take the chance, but will often times produce content that may not be on par with the more experienced writers, decreasing the likelihood that the client will be pleased with the results. It’s a vicious, never-ending cycle. The more writers get stiffed, the more writers talk, the more word gets around, the worse it looks for the buyers.
We need to get back to the Old Days when a person’s word was his bond – and apply the Golden Rule to our business dealings:
Buyers – Be the kind of buyer you would give your business to.
Freelancers – Be the kind of worker you would want to hire.
