Youāve heard the warnings, red flags, and cautionary tales of working with ābadā clients, but what about the good ones?
How do you know when youāve got a rock-star, kickass client on your hands that you better hold on tight to and never let go?
In this blog, Iām gonna talk about 5 client GREEN FLAGS. So you can tell the good ones from the bad ones, every single time.Ā
Hey Posse! Whatās up? Itās Alex.Ā
Coming to you this week with a brand new tutorial that was inspired by a community member that I received a few months agoā¦
They were asking for tips on how to tell āgood clientsā from ābad clientsā and what are some red flags to look out for.Ā Now, I already have a tutorial where I talk about six red flags to watch out for when looking for a job as a freelancerā¦
But this request really got me thinking about this topic from a different perspective.Ā
Because the truth is, not every ābad clientā will be a āred flag clientā.Ā
And taking on a client simply because they didnāt display any red flags doesnāt guarantee that youāll have a good ā or even pleasant ā working relationship with themā¦Ā
So doesnāt it make more sense to spend your time identifying the GREEN FLAGS that clue you into when youāve got a great client with long-lasting potential on your hands?Ā
Yeah.Ā
Thatās a way better use of your time AND your energy, if you ask me.Ā
And with over a decade in the industry, Iāve gotten pretty good at noticing the subtle signs of an amazing client.Ā
So THAT is what weāre talking about today.
But first, if youāre new to the crew ā welcome!Ā
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Alright, now letās jump right into GREEN FLAG #1ā¦
#1. Theyāre Responsive
And not just when they need something from you.Ā
From the very beginning, before you ever start working together ā if theyāre quick to respond to your emails and questions, then you probably have a great client on your hands.Ā
Because plain and simple,Ā itās easier to work with clients that get back to you.Ā
Thereās nothing worse than waiting weeks for clarifications on scope. Or not hitting the deadline because youāre still waiting on the information you requested. Or not getting their notes and feedback back in time to finish revisionsā¦Ā
And in my experience, the clients that don’t respond to your messages in a timely manner, usually donāt pay invoices in a timely manner either.Ā
So this is a huge one to look out for.Ā
Now a quick disclaimer before we move onā¦
Business owners ARE very busy people. So donāt expect a response from anyone on the same day.Ā Especially if youāre cold pitching them or are early in the stages of client acquisition.Ā
In this case, I would say a reasonable and respectable timeline for a response from a potential client is about 3 business daysā¦
And once you start working together, I would expect a quicker response time than that.Ā
Alright, moving on to GREEN FLAG #2ā¦
#2. Theyāre RespectfulĀ
Of your time AND your energy.Ā
The best clients out there will ask you what your capacity is ā before assigning you any big projects, setting unrealistic deadlines, or requesting a meeting with you 30 minutes from now.Ā
Theyāre aware of the fact that they are not your only client and that you do, in fact, have other obligations and deadlines to meet besides theirs.Ā
These clients will encourage you to take your weekends offline.
They wonāt be sour or sassy if they message you on a Saturday and you donāt get back until Monday.
And probably the biggest green flag of allā¦
When you tell them you have a lot on your plate right now, they reach out wondering how they can help to lighten your load ā or what they can do to better support you.Ā
They donāt get angry, dismissive, or argumentative.Ā
You see⦠the best clients are the best clients because of the way they treat you.
They recognize your humanity and treat you with respect, empathy, and understanding.Ā
And not like some word-producing-robot that works on demand.Ā
With that saidā¦
If you tend to make a habit out of missing deadlines or continually coming up with excuses, it may lead to some frustration on their end with your performance.Ā
And for good reason.Ā
A good client can only respect your time and energy as long as you continue to respect theirs. So this one is a two-way street. Remember that.Ā
Alright, on to GREEN FLAG #3ā¦
#3. They Work With You On Payment & PricesĀ
Good clients wonāt waste anyoneās time with price haggling or ridiculous negotiations. They wonāt try to ālowballā you or try to get the best ādealā.Ā
And in my experienceā¦
The best clients out there will accept your rates and fees without too much objection at all.Ā
Because the best clients understand that good copy is well worth the investment.Ā
And theyāll happily pay for the experience and talent of a copywriter who gets it.Ā
And letās be honestā¦
The clients that price haggle are almost never enjoyable to work with ā because they usually just donāt understand copywriting.Ā
They donāt understand its importance, nor its purpose.Ā
So these are the clients that will argue with you on why you did this or why you did that or why they need 6 emails instead of just 1.Ā
Now again, there are exceptions hereā¦
Some businesses ā usually the ones that are just getting started or are relatively small ā genuinely canāt afford to pay high copywriting fees.Ā
But that doesnāt make them a bad client.Ā
So with this one, youāll have to use your best judgementā¦
- Is the client asking you to lower your rates from a place of respect?
- Do you resonate strongly with their brand, mission & values?Ā
If so, then itās worth some negotiating to see if you can settle on a price youāll both be happy with.Ā
Iāve never had a problem lowering my rates slightly to help out a business thatās doing good things in the world, with a mission that I support and resonate with.Ā
Alright now on to GREEN FLAG #4ā¦
#4. They Donāt Expect Anything For Free
This one is two-foldā¦
A lot of clients tend to ask you to complete a ācopy testā before hiring you.Ā
Rather than just reading through the samples in your portfolioā¦
A copy test helps potential clients visualize how your skill will translate into their brand. How well you can capture their voice, etc.Ā So this is a normal request.Ā
But a good client wonāt expect you to spend more than 15 mins of your time doing a test for free.Ā
A GREAT client will offer to pay you a fair rate thatās equivalent to what youād charge for it in real life.Ā
Now that leads me to something freelancers are all too familiar withā¦.Ā
Scope creep.
Sure ā itās nothing to get too worried about if a retainer client requests an additional ad or email every now and thenā¦
But they shouldnāt make a habit out of it ā or try to add a bunch of new responsibilities to your plate (and ahem, neither should you! Remember this works both ways).
This one actually goes back to Green Flag #2 ā being respectful of your time.Ā
If you and your client had agreed to a retainer rate for a certain amount of hours, assets, or a clear scope of workā¦
And they suddenly have the need for things outside of that scopeā¦
Then they should first ā have a conversation with you to see if you have the capacity to take on moreā¦
And second ā they renegotiate your rate to include the new, agreed-upon expectations.Ā
Alright, now on the final, and probably most important, GREEN FLAG of allā¦. #5ā¦
#5. Theyāre PreparedĀ
They know what they want and have the materials and information youāll need to complete the project.Ā
Because weāve all had that one client…
The one that says:
- āOh I donāt care, just do whatever you thinkā¦ā
- Or the one that sends over a brief with 5 different directions on itā¦Ā
- Or the one that canāt answer any questions about what theyāre looking forā¦Ā
While creative freedom is nice to have, this level of unpreparedness and indecisiveness usually only means one thing for YOU, as the copywriterā¦
A shit load of revisions.Ā
The client who isnāt clear on what they want usually signals plenty of frustrations and miscommunications lay ahead.Ā
Whereas the client who knows exactly what they want, can communicate clearly with you, is able to answer your questions, and can provide you with the info you need is a BIG time and headache-saver.
Alright guys, I hope this blog gave you some good tips for spotting good clients.
What GREEN FLAGS do you usually look for? Comment below and let me know.Ā
And until next time, Iām Alex. Ciao for now!
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