You wouldn’t believe the number of times I’ve heard about freelancers losing a project or future projects, not because they weren’t good at their jobs, but because they failed to pay attention to the little things that go into creating a successful business.

My wife’s car had a flat tire the other day, so I took it to a local tire shop. I figured I would have to replace the tire, but was told they could patch the hole instead, which would save me money.

As I sat in the customer waiting area, I watched how the staff went about their work. Any time anyone was dealing with a customer on the phone, it was always with a happy voice. A few times I saw an employee walk over and open the front door for a customer who had just pulled up.

When my tire was patched, I found out that the work was done free of charge. I left the store pretty impressed with the whole experience and knowing that when it came time to buy new tires, I’d be returning to that store.

So what does that have to do with freelancing? Quite a bit actually.

There are lots of tire stores and when it comes to doing their core job – fixing or replacing tires – they can all do the job. So one of the best ways for a store to separate itself from the pack is with the consistent, little things. Things that customers tell their friends about.

You’re probably one of any number of people (designer, copywriter, etc.) who could do many of the tasks a client might want. So how do you separate yourself from your competitors?

Well, you could be the cheapest, but that doesn’t usually last long…someone else can always undercut you. Plus, being the cheapest isn’t exactly the recipe for long-term financial success as a freelancer. And being the cheapest is sometimes a red flag to savvy clients who know how much a service is worth. In their minds, cheap can mean desperate or inexperienced.

You could also specialize, but if you’re just starting out, it takes time to build up a great reputation. And even then, there are probably other people who specialize in the same area you do.

So one of the things you’re left with is focusing on the little touches that will send you to the top of the list when a client needs a service you offer. Trust me… way too many people are neglecting the little things that are equally important to clients.

The lessons I learned from the tire shop aren’t much different than what you should be doing as a freelancer:

1. Work on your phone skills. Be pleasant when someone calls you looking for information about your services. You’d think this is obvious, but it’s not. I stopped using one company, not because they couldn’t do the job, but because every time I called, they sounded like accepting my business was an inconvenience. In essence, they lost my business simply because they made me – the customer – feel like I was intruding in their lives.

2. Have one or two services that you do for free. This one may be a bit controversial, but the tire store experience sold me on it. Most projects you work on will be complex and you deserve to be paid a fair rate for them. But there are times when a quick task takes only a minute or two. For example, if you’re a designer, someone may need a single photo converted from color to black and white. You could do that in Photoshop in under a minute.

I try to follow the rule that if the job takes me less time than it would to put together an invoice for it, the job is free. It takes me only a minute or two to put together an invoice on most jobs, so I’m hardly doing tons of projects for free. But when I do a quick job for free, it helps to build goodwill and can help land me bigger jobs.

And don’t misunderstand…you don’t want to be taken advantage of. For example, if you do that free photo conversion and then the client has a new photo for you to convert each day, you’ll want to work out payment for that. And if your day is made up of only doing small, free projects for people, something is wrong. Use your best judgment.

Also, I don’t advertise my “free” services. It’s something I do when I can and when I feel it’s appropriate.

3. Take the time to educate. This is another area where you can be taken advantage of, so use your best judgment. Back to the tire store, I was convinced I’d need a new tire. But the store employee took the time to explain why a patch was going be a good solution to my problem, even though it meant they weren’t going to sell me a new tire that day.

Not every client who calls you is going to have years of experience in direct marketing, so you’re going to be the expert. Take the time to patiently share your knowledge during a complimentary project evaluation. You may not land a job that day, but you will be remembered as helpful and courteous. And that’s the type of thing that can bring you work in the future.

If they’re not appreciative of the help you’ve offered, you probably don’t want them for a client anyway.

Many years ago, I heard a tape (and just by using the word tape, you can guess how long ago it was) by business and motivational speaker Denis Waitley.

He talked about how a salesman in a men’s clothing store was complimenting him over a suit he was trying on. The salesman said something like, “That suit is really you. Not everyone can wear that type of suit. But on you, it really comes to life.”

Waitley bought the suit.

When someone compliments you like that, even if it’s a salesman and you’re a bit suspicious of his motives, it does tend to make you stand a bit taller and prouder, right?

I flashed back to that story the other day while at a men’s clothing store. I’m speaking in Australia soon about content marketing and wanted a new pair of slacks and possibly a new dress shirt or two.

I explained that in addition to speaking in front of a group, the presentation would be video-taped. So I was looking for clothes that would look great on the screen and go good with my Washington State tan. (For those who aren’t familiar with the Pacific Northwest, anyone with a tan is either from out of town, or got it artificially. We generally tend to be a bit pasty.)

The salesman brought out some traditional dress shirts, then tossed in a type of turtleneck, not unlike what Steve Jobs of Apple tends to wear. It wasn’t really my style, but I decided to try it on since the guy was insisting I might like it.

When I came out of the dressing room and stood in front of the mirror, he said, “Hey… that makes you look like a distinguished professor.”

He lost the sale on that shirt right then.

I immediately thought of the Waitley story. I couldn’t read the salesman’s mind, but I think he was feeding me a line to make a sale. Or perhaps he was sincere.

But the reason I dismissed the turtleneck was because I had no desire to look like a “distinguished professor.”

Fair or not, here’s what came to mind when I heard that phrase: Someone who has been around a long time in the classroom, not in the business trenches. Someone who tells students “these are the facts,” not a business colleague who says, “this is my experience, but there are no concrete rules.”

In other words, the phrase had negative connotations in this scenario. (And no offense to professors. I know many have lots of real-life experience to share. I’m just relating my initial reaction.)

The salesman had no way of knowing that. And I think that was part of his mistake… he didn’t really take the time to get to know me or bother to ask what type of image I wanted to convey. Instead, he probably made some assumptions based on his experience with other customers.

So here’s my question for you: When you’re talking to a prospect for the first time, are you taking the time to ask questions and really understand what he or she is after? Or are you, in a manner of speaking, trying to talk them into a shirt that isn’t right for them?

It’s vital, if we’re to be respected and called upon for our expertise, that we make sure we understand the true needs of the prospect. We don’t want to rush through the sales process because we’re afraid any delay might give them a chance to change their mind. And we certainly don’t want to give them something that we find out too late wasn’t in their best interest.

Ask questions. Understand the true need. Then make appropriate recommendations that will solve that need. Don’t try to shoehorn the prospect into a solution that isn’t a good fit.

As 2010 came to a close, I started cleaning out some old e-mails and notes to myself.

Most of it deserved to be deleted, but I ran across a note to myself to pass along a link that has some good advice. Definitely not for the “delete” button.

It’s from Jeremy Tuber, a friend I’ve pointed you to in the past. His book, Being a Starving Graphic Artist Sucks, is must-reading in my opinion.

His article, It’s Important to You, So Why Don’t Your Clients Give a Crap?, rings true with me, especially in the direct market design world.

Unfortunately, looking at the sites of beginning designers, quite a few spend more time talking about themselves and things clients couldn’t begin to care less about. Maybe that’s just normal if you don’t feel you have a track record to talk about.

If you feel yourself being pulled in that direction, resist. Talk about what’s important to the client. When you demonstrate that you understand what’s important to them and can deliver, you’ll land more clients.

On another note, this month marks the 5th anniversary of this blog which originally started on a whim over on Blogspot. I hope you’ve received some value from it over the years.

Thanks for reading!

According to the web archives, this is the earliest version of my website.

The graphics aren’t available any more, but as you can see, the site was pretty basic.

It’s evolved over the years and today, while I like the simplicity of my site, I wish I had done things differently.

Back in 2003, WordPress wasn’t the powerhouse it is today. But if I was starting a new business today, I’d do a WordPress site.

It used to be that people thought of WordPress only for blogs. But the design is flexible enough for WordPress to be used as a full-featured site. In fact, that’s what a lot of people are doing these days.

Instead of messing around with code like I did, a WordPress blog and an appropriate theme is a better route in my mind.

I use WordPress for my site’s blogs and love how easy it is to make changes and take advantage of free plug-ins that add even more functionality. But comparing the main site with the blog, you can see the design isn’t unified.

A part of me would love to totally start over with a completely WordPress-based site. But I’m afraid it might negatively affect certain search engine rankings I’ve achieved.

So my advice today is of limited use if you’re already a freelancer and have created your own site. But if you are just starting out, or not seriously invested in a relatively new site, take a look at a WordPress-based site and the advantages it would offer for your situation.

Not that long ago, I looked at my connections on LinkedIn and realized something rather embarrassing: I had no idea who half those people were.

I knew there was a reason I was connected to them because connections require permission from both parties. And I could guess that some I didn’t know were probably connections that came after interactions from LinkedIn’s Q&A section.

Just from my own completely unscientific poll, only a relative few people seem to use LinkedIn as a serious tool in terms of creating a meaningful relationship with their connections.

The rest of us really aren’t sure what we should do with the connections we’ve made. And there’s that small group who seem to just be playing a numbers game… get as many connections as possible just for the sake of it. Or use it as another way to spam people through the status update function.

Bottom line: For those of us in that “not sure what to do” category, there’s room for improvement.

So I’ve decided that I’m going to reach out to the connections I don’t really know and ask to talk by phone.

And let me be clear: This is not a sales call!

Personally, I love helping people connect. If you need a person who does X and I happen to know someone that does X, I get a lot of joy from connecting the two parties.

But how can I connect people if I really don’t know them that well? How can I find potential partners on projects if I don’t really know you or what you do? How can I be a fantastic trusted resource for my clients if I’m not constantly building and interacting with my connections.

The answer is, I can’t. Or at least I can’t do it well.

I’ve done a couple of these calls so far and plan to do a lot more in the new year.

So far, all calls have been great and showed me what a good idea this is.

I want to share with you how simple the process is. Then you can decide if you want to give it a try.

1. If it’s a brand new connection, I now tell them right off the top that I’d like to talk by phone. If it’s someone that’s been a connection for a long time and I’ve never really interacted with them, I’ll send them a note through LinkedIn and explain what I’m doing.

2. In that request to talk, I’m totally honest about why I’m doing this, and it’s the reason I’ve given above. I also make it clear that it’s not a sales call. Truthfully, I couldn’t care less if we talk about what I do. I simply want to know about the other person and his/her business.

3. Assuming they accept the invitation, we setup a time to talk either by phone or Skype. Skype is really handy to talk to people in other countries. While this hasn’t happened yet, if they have no desire to talk at all, either by phone or even e-mail, I think I’ve probably learned everything I need to know about them.

4. When the scheduled time/day arrives, I’m the one to make the call since I made the request. I don’t ask to talk, then expect them to call me.

5. I ask lots of questions, but I don’t have a rigid list. I don’t want it to feel like an interview, I want it to be a natural conversation. What do I ask? Great question. Glad you asked:

• I ask about what they do. Yes, their website probably says it, but there’s often more to it. Honestly, not everyone does a great job of explaining their passion on their site. Digging a little deeper helps me understand them better.
• I ask which keywords should make me think of them. For example, I know a lot of copywriters, but most have preferred areas they like to work in. Perhaps even more important is understanding what isn’t a good fit for them.
• I ask how they market themselves or their products. Since I don’t tend to connect with other designers, this question isn’t so I can gain some competitive edge. I mostly talk with other freelancers and we all deal with how best to market ourselves. So I’m curious to know what has and hasn’t work for them. And I’m also willing share my successes and failures if they’re interested.

And depending on how the conversation goes, there are any number of other questions that might spring to mind.

As they’re talking, I’m typing notes that I’ll put alongside their entry in my address book. And I tell them I’m doing that so they don’t hear the keyboard clicking and wonder if I’m chatting on Facebook while they’re talking.

6. If they want to know about what I do in the design, consulting and speaking realm, I’m happy to share whatever they want to know. And if that happens, we both begin to get a better picture of whether there might be some partnership opportunities between us down the road.

7. When we wrap up, I stress that they are free to contact me any time if they want to talk, bounce around some ideas, or update me on what they’re doing and their keywords.

I don’t put them on a mailing list or try to push off any of my free marketing materials on them. Not that there’s anything wrong with doing either if you think it’s beneficial and you’ve asked their permission. It’s just not my style.

In the calls I’ve done so far, I could tell there was genuine appreciation for the effort to reach out. And in all cases, I’ve shared different tips that I’ve picked up that they can apply to their own situations.

I’ve learned from them as well because I’ve found people genuinely like to engage and share what they know.

So as this year comes to a close, take a look at the connections you have, whether it’s on LinkedIn or some other site. How well do you know all of them? What might be the value of getting to know them better? What might that mean for growth and success of your business in the new year?

There have been times where it probably seems like I get really nit-picky about what another freelancer has done with their marketing, especially in how they reach out to other freelancers.

The most recent case was my article, How Not To Drum Up Business With Your Freelance Colleagues.

I could sum up why I get nit-picky like that with the old cliche, You only get one chance to make a first impression.

But let me make it more tangible and talk about it from the financial aspect.

When I first got started as a designer, I was able to pick up some work with another, more experience designer (Person A). Person A referred me to Person B who brought me in on a number of projects that she was managing for a client of hers.

Then Person B referred me to Person C where I did a few projects.

Person B also picked up a new client – Person D – where I did some work, but then Person B left. However, I’m still working with Person D.

OK… we could have probably used a flow chart on this one.

Let me make it simpler: All that work that sprang through Person A has amounted to around $60,000 or more.

Imagine if I hadn’t made a good impression with Person A. It’s unlikely I would have ever been introduced to Persons B-D. I’d like to think I would have landed other projects. But as I was just starting out, the boost from Person A was sure appreciated and got me off to a quicker start.

When you’re starting out, you need to lead with your best effort. Trying to take shortcuts shows and doesn’t leave the best first impression. That could lead to missing out on some great opportunities that others might be willing to send your way.

Maybe that means setting up a personal call with people you want to connect with instead of mass, generic e-mails. Maybe it means buying a domain so you’re not sending your business e-mail through a Hotmail account.

I don’t want you to think I’ve got freelancing, marketing and sales down to a science. For reasons I’ll go into in a future article, I’ve decided to do a bit of cold-calling for a new niche I’m looking at. Let’s just say my initial calls won’t go into the cold-calling Hall of Fame. In other words, I sometimes blow it, too, even after 7 years of freelancing.

But what has always been my hope with this blog is to share what I’ve learned so you can apply it to your business and hopefully avoid needless mistakes.

More often-than-not, clients who hire me already have a printer chosen.

But I knew that there would be times when I would be the first point of contact for a new client… not the copywriter and certainly not the printer.

Because of that, I wanted to make some direct connections with print brokers.

What’s a print broker? Broadly speaking it’s someone who finds clients the best printer and printing deals. They often have connections with a variety of different printers who might specialize in different areas. And some brokers will also be able to assist clients in the mailing of their marketing material which is a big plus.

All this is great for me because, as much as I’d love to know everything, I just don’t have the time to be an expert in printing and mailing. I know it to the extent I need to when I’m designing. Beyond that, I want my clients to get accurate information from someone who lives and breathes it.

I knew one print broker from my very first project years ago. I even got the chance to meet him once at a conference. We’ll call him Broker A. (I know… it’s not an original name. Sorry.)

It had been a while since Broker A and I had worked together or spoken, so I also asked some colleagues for other names to have handy. That led to Broker B.

Broker A and I had a good talk while reconnecting after a couple of years. I was up-front saying that it’s rare that a client doesn’t already have a printer. But I wanted him to what was going on with my business if I did need to contact him down the road.

(Hint for any potential clients reading this: Looking for someone at the last minute to handle any aspect of your marketing material is a bad idea. Introduce yourself now and be honest that you’re simply looking to make connections in case there’s a need later on.)

Broker B and I also had a good talk and the same type of conversation. But e-mail responses from him were slow. Another e-mail was never returned. While I liked Broker B, and he had a ton of experience, I didn’t like his slow or non-existent responses.

Could I have called Broker B to speed things along? Sure. But I work primarily via e-mail as do my clients. For that reason, people I partner with need to prove they respond quickly with e-mail.

In fact, I’ll restate that again just so it’s clear: If you can’t respond quickly in e-mail, I have no desire to partner with you on client projects. Because of time differences and full schedules, phone calls are too hit-and-miss. And a “paper trail” of the project in e-mail is vital for me and many of my clients.

Months after those calls to the print brokers, I’ve needed to bring in a print broker a few times. In some cases, there isn’t a good fit between client and broker. So it doesn’t go further than a quote.

But in each case, Broker A has responded quickly to me and my clients (or prospects). Information is provided to my client within 24 hours if not the same day.

That’s what I like to see not only because it makes my clients happy, but I look good for putting them in touch with someone who is on the ball.

I didn’t even bother contacting Broker B about the jobs because of his slow response or lack of response during our “get-to-know-you” stage.

I’m going to let you draw your own lessons from my example. I’m not just thinking about print brokers but more about how you interact with people involved in the creative process. That would be copywriters, designers, printers, brokers. And you can even extend that to how you respond to prospects and clients.

Do you move quickly when someone needs you?

Do you have connections with people you may need to partner with who move quickly?

Do you even have connections with people in other aspects of the creative process?

As I’ve said countless times, your success as a freelancer is not just based on the actual work you produce. Just as important is what you’re able to bring to the table in terms of great partners who can help you clients reach their goals quickly.

By the way, if you need a print broker, I’d be happy to introduce you to the one who makes me look good to my clients, and makes them happy with his personalized attention. Contact me for his name.

A few months back I mentioned Dean Rieck and pointed you to an article he wrote called, Open Letter to Direct Mail Designers. If you didn’t read it, you should. (And if you did read it, it wouldn’t hurt to go over it again.)

Copywriters should be our best friends in business. Making them look good makes us look good, and makes the client look even better.

Dean offered me the opportunity to write an article for his site, ProCopyTips.com. Instead of giving him an article I had already written, I wrote about something I recently learned to increase my freelance income. It’s very powerful and very simple.

Even though Dean’s audience is primarily copywriters, this applies 100% to designers.

So please visit Dean’s site to read my article, Ask this one question to close more freelance sales.

As soon as I wrote the headline for this article, I realized – more than usual – that what I’m about to say is just my opinion. And that what I’m suggesting you don’t do can actually work in some circumstances.

But I think there’s a better way and I’ll tell you what it is in just a bit. First, let my tell you what happened.

I received an e-mail from someone trying to drum up business as an Internet researcher. He was soliciting copywriters who might need the services of a researcher as they’re writing copy for a client. Can you see the first mistake he made with me?

Mistake #1 – I haven’t marketed myself as a copywriter for about 5 years. I state on my website that I work with businesses on the layout and design of their marketing material. So when I get an e-mail that is clearly targeted to copywriters, it gives the impression that this guy hasn’t done his homework. Somewhere he had old info, or misinterpreted something, and didn’t bother to check the facts. Not good for a researcher.

Next… The e-mail wasn’t just sent to me. I could see about 15 other names on the To: line. I knew about half of them.

Mistake #2 – C’mon… At least pretend that I’m special and you’re just writing to me. It’s bad form to solicit business with everyone’s name on the To: or even the CC: line. At the very least do a BCC: (Blind Carbon Copy.) Even that’s bad form, but if you’re going to be lazy, use the BCC. Ideally, you’d send an individual note to each person.

This e-mail was a great example of “spray and pray”… spray it out to lots of people and pray you get some response. But in this case, it just shows a bit of laziness. Not exactly the quality I want in a researcher or any other type of freelancer I work with.

Moving right along… The e-mail had different sized fonts throughout the letter… most of it bigger than normal, some smaller.

Mistake #3 – Granted, with so many different e-mail programs, it can be hard to come up with an e-mail that you know will look perfect in every single case. But especially when you’re sending an e-mail to multiple people, you have to keep it simple. It might have been wiser to send a Plain Text e-mail instead of Rich Text. Remember what they say about making a great first impression.

Next up… The e-mail suggested that I recommend him to any clients who needed a researcher. That way, I wouldn’t be paying for his services, my client would.

Mistake #4 – On a certain level, this isn’t a bad idea. But make it worth my effort. When someone refers business to me, I give them a percentage of the sale. And I have partners I work with who do the same for me. So if you’re going to make the first three mistakes, and then suggest that I recommend you to my clients, at least try to grab my attention by making it financially worth my time. Even putting aside the money issue, you better show me some proof that you’re good before I recommend you to my clients.

Which leads us to… No proof.

Mistake #5 – Every significant promotion I’ve worked on as a designer has included proof that the claims being made are true. This is extra important for clients reaching out to brand new customers. The e-mail I received – which is a promotion itself – had no proof that his services were valuable. I know a researcher can be valuable, but I’d want to know why this guy in particular is valuable. Unfortunately, there was no proof in the e-mail. It came across more as, “Here I am! Hire me!” Maybe he has proof. If so, he should have dropped a little nugget in the e-mail to pique my interest.

Finally… The e-mailer’s website and e-mail address were from an Apple-hosted site.

Mistake #6 – OK… this can be a bit nit-picky, but I’ll just lay it out from my experience and many, many chats on the subject with clients and colleagues. Perception counts for a lot. These days, it is incredibly easy to setup a website with a personalized URL and e-mail address. Take the time to look as professional as possible. A personal URL and related e-mail address based on your business name or your job comes across as more professional.

Any of these mistakes on their own might not have been too big a deal. But when combined, it simply doesn’t give the best first impression.

When I get an e-mail from you like the one this gentleman was sending, it should inspire me to respond to you directly, not blog about everything you did wrong for everyone to see.

Earlier I promised a better way. Let me spell it out and you can decide which method (his or mine) might be best. Or maybe you have a better solution.

Judging by the names on the list that I recognized, he was reaching out to some good people. How much better would it have been to contact each person personally? Send a personal e-mail or make a phone call.

If it’s an e-mail, ask to schedule a time to talk on the phone and explain what you’re offering. The best social media tool is the telephone for a one-on-one conversation with someone. That’s the quickest way to get to know someone and begin developing a meaningful relationship.

Here’s something you might use or adapt: “Hi, my name is _____. I’m an Internet researcher, helping clients and copywriters quickly and efficiently gather the necessary information to create winning promotions. I’m looking to develop partnerships with other copywriters and was hoping to talk to you on the phone… learn what your needs are and show how I might be a valuable member of your team based on work I’ve done for other clients. If we find there’s not a good fit, no problem. I’d still find it valuable to learn more about what you’re doing in case there’s a good fit down the road, or if a client of mine might need your services.”

During that phone call, ask a lot of questions. The answers to those questions will help you determine if there’s a good fit.

If not, I think you will have left a better impression which is important… not a good fit now doesn’t mean there can’t be a good fit in the future.

What else could you do? How about a link to a video introducing yourself? How about a free report on the value of a researcher and why you’re the right one to choose? How about a case study showing what you brought to a project?

Like I said at the top, this guy’s method might work in a few cases. But my belief is that you’ll have even greater success using a more personal approach.

I’m working with a new person at a company I’ve worked with for about a year or two now.

Since I haven’t been working with this person in particular too long, I took a moment to let her know what other layout services I offer.

And that’s the first lesson today… let your clients know what else you do.

I’ve probably told this story before, but I had one client years ago who had hired me to layout the same type of projects he saw me laying out for another client.

One day, he and I were talking on the phone and I mentioned that I was in the middle of a book project. His response? “Oh, I didn’t know you did book layout. We may need you for that.”

I have to admit that I was a bit stunned. I had assumed before he hired me that he had been to my site and saw the other types of projects I could handle.

Nope… he hadn’t.

Lesson learned. I realized that I needed to make sure my clients knew everything I could do for them.

I was applying that lesson this week to this other client I’m working with. After listing what else I do, I also mentioned that I would appreciate her dropping my name to other people she knows who might need those services.

Her response is interesting and one I love to hear:

“And I will certainly pass your name along to anyone who needs design help. You’ve been so easy to work with, I would be happy to recommend you.”

The part I love? “You’ve been so easy to work with…”

Let that sink in.

She didn’t mention anything about the quality of my work, although I’m sure she appreciates it. The fact that the company has been using me for a while would lead you to believe they do like my work.

But the part that seems to stand out most for her is that I’m easy to work with.

You might not believe just how important that is to your success as a freelancer, whether you’re a designer or another type of freelancer.

You’re not the only freelancer out there. And odds are, you’re not the best one in your category either. But being easy to work with can lead to more repeat business and referrals than just about anything else.

Think of your client. He or she is trying to manage all sorts of projects. Some of that stuff has to be put into the hands of off-site people, like freelancers. Right there is an extra layer of stress.

That person has to trust that you’re doing your thing and staying on schedule without the benefit of being able to walk over to your cubicle or office to check in.

When you’re easy to work with, and making all the communication between the two of you as pleasant as possible, it’s noticed. It’s appreciate. And it’s one of the main ingredients in getting called again for future projects as well as getting referrals.