VOLUME 18, ISSUE 12 – DECEMBER 2019
THIS MONTH’S MENU:
I. APPETIZER: BELIEVE IN YOUR ABILITIES? THEN, ACT LIKE IT!
Yours Truly Humbled by Client Reminding Me of the Value I Deliver
II. “FIELD” GREENS: “ALWAYS TALKING MONEY” WITH CLIENTS?
OH FLCW Beats Her Fear of the $ Conversation, Starts Owning Her Value!
III. MAIN “MEAT” COURSE: GOT LEAPS OF (FINANCIAL) FAITH?
Pro FLCW Tires of Low-Ball Clients; Raises Rates & Universe Rewards Her!
IV. DESSERT: SWEET SUCCESS STORIES & TIPS
FLCW Lands Gigs Crafting Company’s First Marketing Materials (& More to Come!)
TIP: Small-Biz Coach: How to Convince a Low-Ball Client to Hire You? Don’t!
I. APPETIZER: BELIEVE IN YOUR ABILITIES? THEN, ACT LIKE IT!
Yours Truly Humbled by Client Reminding Me of the Value I Deliver
I just realized that the thread running through most of this issue is Know Your Worth. And that discussion starts with a chastening experience I just had…
A few months ago, I was talking with one of my graphic-designer clients, with whom I’ve partnered extensively over the years. We were discussing my doing some writing for a new direction in which they were taking their business. After explaining the scope involved, the next step was to get them an estimate.
Having a good sense for the amount of time it’d take, I floated a number past them. They were actually surprised, not thinking it would be that high.
They said they needed to discuss it for a day or so, and then they’d get back to me. No problem, I said, take as much time as you like.
After we got off the phone, I got to thinking about my quote, and the fact that they were a really good client, who always took good care of me. As such, I decided to offer them a 25% discount off my original quote.
Besides, I was just finishing up a few projects, would be starting a few more in the next week or two, so things were a bit quiet at the moment. So, why not do it for a little less and stay busy? How we justify things…
I sent the email, and the next day, got this email from them:
Good morning Peter: Sorry for the late reply. We are good with you moving forward on the project discussed. We believe your work is worth your original quoted fee. Please send me an invoice for down payment to get started.
Well, shut my mouth. It’s sad when it takes a client to remind you of your value, but often, WE can’t be counted on to know it. I mean, think about it: This client, after receiving my email cutting them a 25% break, chose—based on the value they know I’ve brought to the table for years—to reject my downsized offer, and pay me my rate.
Talk about feeling a little foolish AND proud at the same time.
Bottom line, if you know you’re good at what you do, based on years of positive feedback from people willing to pay non-trivial sums of money for your services, it’s far wiser to listen to and trust them, and not the little—and I mean little—nay-saying voices in your own head. As that old expression reminds, “Your own mind is a dangerous neighborhood. Don’t go there alone.”
On that “righteously-head-swelling” note, let’s eat!
II. “FIELD” GREENS: “ALWAYS TALKING MONEY” WITH CLIENTS?
OH FLCW Beats Her Fear of the $ Conversation, Starts Owning Her Value!
Last year, I ran a piece in the EPUB from Ed Gandia about “ATM,” which underscored the importance of always talking money early in discussions with a client. Got the following piece from Cincinnati, OH FLCW Holly Helscher about how things changed for her once she took Ed’s advice to heart.
When I first started out in copywriting, I was embarrassed to ask for fees consistent with industry standards. I cut those figures by 30% simply because I was inexperienced. But, the bigger problem was asking for the fee at all.
At first, I was so desperate to land a client, I put off the money conversation until there was no other choice. Then I was afraid to ask for what I wanted. I charged that client $150 for my first 500-word article, which took twenty hours to research and write. But, I was getting experience writing for a genuine person as opposed to writing about pretend products.
As I continued my journey, I walked a frenzied line between wanting experience and needing money. I connected with another client who needed some B2B articles. Same thing: I still was afraid to ask, waited too long, and ended up charging less than I’d planned (though more than that first article!) My bigger mistake? Being afraid to ask for a deposit.
Not my brightest move, and I knew better. He got twelve articles out of me over a two-week period and never paid me. The only good news is that I got living examples, most of which are still online for the various companies he represented.
Then I learned from Ed Gandia about the ATM approach: Always Talk Money. Clearly, I was failing at this vital task. I also needed to value my time and my skill, which I wasn’t doing. In corporate America I was paid to do all kinds of writing, so I did have experience.
When I spoke with my first client after Ed’s ATM idea, at the top of my list of talking points, in red, I put, “ATM, ATM, ATM.” That time I got 75% of the fee I wanted to charge—and got the client. After that, ATM got progressively easier.
My self-worth improved with each successive conversation. I had a skill and deserved to be paid. The client and the writer will always have competing agendas. The client wants to pay the least, and the writer wants to charge the most. If I didn’t lead and control that conversation, I’d lose every time.
I’m much better at asking for fees now, although “ATM” is still at the top of my notes. It reminds me not only to have the money conversation, but also, that I’m not this client’s employee. I’m not interviewing for a job. The bully factor of an intimidating boss doesn’t enter my thought process (and if a client is that way from the start, I don’t even continue the conversation. I exit gracefully.).
Get good at “making the ask.” If you don’t, you’ll drain your savings account and give up without really knowing if you could have been successful.
III. MAIN “MEAT” COURSE: GOT LEAPS OF (FINANCIAL) FAITH?
Pro FLCW Tires of Low-Ball Clients; Raises Rates & Universe Rewards Her!
Last year, I ran a post on my blog where I underscored the fact that the kinds of clients we want are those for whom the Superior Predictable Outcome is always more important than money (within reason).
Those are clients willing to pay well to know that when they assign you a project, they’ll need to spend a small amount of time explaining it, and then they’ll go back to what they need to be doing, confident that on or before the agreed-upon deadline, you’ll be back with a result that’s 95+% on the mark.
When you get known as a writer who delivers that at a high level, consistently and reliably, you’ll thrive.
A veteran copywriter weighed in, and what she wrote is worth sharing (I’ve omitted her name as I wasn’t able to reach her to approve the following). Her confidence (and unwillingness to suffer fools gladly) shines through:
Yes, I currently work for clients who pay more for my services because what I deliver is what they want. They know I’m reliable, that I hear what they want and deliver it, and that I’m easy to work with.
One client actually come back after they tried to breach the contract by paying me less for something. After their “horrible” experience with another writer (you get what you pay for), they said they’d pay whatever I charged. I humored them for a few months, but soon they were back to their old games. We ended amicably, but I was clear on why.
Yes, I’ve been in the low-paying world. I hated it. I hated the passive approach to getting clients (job boards). I hated giving all control of my wages and my skills to those clients, who rewarded me with some of the more awful behavior and shady tactics I’ve ever witnessed. I decided to raise my rates, and they disappeared. Amen.
The clients who filled in those now-empty spaces gave me something the low-payers never did—respect. And not one hassle at invoice time.
My whole approach is proactive. The minute I realized I was holding myself back unnecessarily simply by relying on job boards, my business results changed. Drastically. I’m making $150 an hour and my clients are repeat customers.
Because I’ve established my business as a serious one, I can now select whom I’ll be working with. Do I still get tire kickers? Sure. But they’re just not my clients.
Do I negotiate? When I want to and when the project or the client is interesting to me. I’ve never regretted raising my rates or setting up and defending my boundaries. It’s only brought good things.
I was struck by what she wrote, and replied (excerpted):
Love the mindset shifts you’re talking about here; it gets into the realm of a leap of faith: Once you stop dealing with low-paying clients, and draw your line in the sand on rates and terms, though there’s no proof or guarantee you’ll get better clients by doing those things, that’s in fact what’ll happen.
But, most people won’t trust themselves (or the universe) enough to make those changes, and trust that those good things will then come their way.
Instead, they try to “control” situations, but that control amounts to little more than cutting rates to nothing in order to land a job. So, they “stay in control” and stay poor. All because the illusion of control is more comfortable and certain—even if impoverishing—than uncertain (in their mind) abundance.
Any wheels turning?
IV. DESSERT: SWEET SUCCESS STORIES & TIPS
FLCW Lands Gigs Crafting Company’s First Marketing Materials (& More to Come!)
TIP: Small-Biz Coach: How to Convince a Low-Ball Client to Hire You? Don’t!
Got the following success story from a Northeastern FLCW who’d like to remain anonymous (often the case with success stories, for obvious reasons). It underscores that our work takes many forms for many companies at many different stages.
What would be pretty elementary for one company might be positively cutting-edge for another, depending on their respective stages of business evolution.
After that, a great “pressure-taker-offer” from friend, colleague, former FLCW, and small-business coach, Ed Gandia. Ed reminds us that it’s not our job to convince bargain-writing hunters to hire us. Amen to that.
I recently picked up a new client who found me via Google. Often those can be low-ballers, but this marketing director, with a big firm, understood how important a good copywriter could be, and had a decent budget.
He’d inherited a mess when he’d arrived—a company with an ancient web site in dire need of an overhaul. The company had hundreds of retail locations staffed by people who were typically high-school educated, blue-collar types.
Their goal was to create a messaging platform: fixed talking points and explanations that would provide their staff with a brief “tool kit” of sorts (i.e., “If the customer asks, this, say this…” for starters), for dealing with a whole host of everyday situations and circumstances.
They had virtually nothing in the way of printed materials, so even this very basic step would take them to the next level of communications. Fine-tuning and supplementing would come later; for now, they needed bare-bones stuff. And given that the MD was basically a department of ONE, he needed all the help he could get.
Happy to say, he was most pleased with my first round of copy, and assigned me (and I completed) a second project. Knowing he’s got a good resource now, we’re talking about several other projects, with more to come.
Ever approached a prospect and discovered that he/she is currently working with a “bargain basement” writer? How can you convince them to hire someone with more experience and skills such as yourself? Well, here’s the good news…
It’s not your job to convince them!
Chances are, you won’t change their mind. They’ll have to come to that conclusion themselves. At best, just position yourself as an alternative, saying something like:
“I offer something different. I have eight years of experience in this area/industry/sector, including specific experience in X, Y and Z. If these things are important to you, then I might be a good fit. But if your primary concern is price, then probably not.”
You’re not trying to convince them. You’re just explaining the difference.
And who knows, maybe at some point in the future they’ll come around. But until then, it’s not your job to try and change the way they think.