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.

Just finished reading The Wealthy Freelancer by Steve Slaunwhite, Pete Savage, and Ed Gandia.

Before I go any further, I’ll tell you that I was quoted in the book. And in a pleasantly surprising move, they sent me a copy. (Thanks, guys!)

So with that out of the way… Get this book!

I’ve complained before that, as freelance designers, there are not a lot of books for us, especially compared to our colleagues in the copywritng field. There is Being a Starving Graphic Artist Sucks which is a fantastic boook. But beyond that, it’s a bit thin.

The Wealthy Freelancer, though, is not specific to copywriting even though that’s what you may know the three authors for. Freelancers of any type will get something out of this, including designers. (I can’t recall anything in the book that wouldn’t apply to us.)

I’ve been freelancing for a while and have learned quite a lot in that time. So I’m always thrilled to learn something new, or read about a new spin on things. This book is full of that type of material.

The first thing that grabbed me was in the first chapter. It’s The IDEA Matrix for Mindset Mastery. A lot of beginning freelancers could stop after reading that and feel they got their money’s worth.

Over on page 192, they made a great point about about dealing with client e-mail that every freelancer should consider.  (It’s a change I made after I read it. Wish I had figured that out on my own years ago.)

I don’t do “reviews” and this shouldn’t be considered one. And, frankly, their website will do a far better job of telling you about the book than I can.

But when I run into something really good like this, I want to mention it so you can explore it further and consider it for yourself.

I will say what a said when talking about the “…Starving Graphic Artist…” book: If you’re going to buy The Wealthy Freelancer, commit to taking action on what you read. Simply reading the book isn’t enough.

I’ve run into too many people who read books like this for the momentary high or boost of enthusiasm they get. But a week after reading the book, they haven’t done anything with the information.

If you don’t consider yourself a “wealthy freelancer” right now, and read this book but take no action on it, you have to question whether you really want to be one.

You can’t walk away from this book with finding a least a couple of things you can start doing immediately. If you can’t find something, it’s not the book… it’s you.

So if you’ve been struggling a bit and feel this book is for you, make a commitment to take action on what you read. If you do, I think you’ll find yourself making far more progress than you have to this point.

I’ve spent a lot of time recently looking at websites of freelancers…not just freelance designers and copywriters, but freelancers of all types.

Over time, I’ll share various thoughts, but I’ll just focus on one area today. This one is kind of specific to designers and copywriters. It may be a bit controversial, but just take it as one person’s opinion. (I guess it’s only controversial if you disagree with me.)

It’s not uncommon for a freelancer to list clients he or she has worked for. I don’t, for no reason in particular. But I have nothing against other people listing their clients on their website.

But that’s where we run into potential problems. How do you define a client? You’d think that would be easy enough, but not quite.

I’ve seen some beginners list companies they’ve done spec assignments for as clients. This is a gray area, but I don’t believe that just because you did a spec assignment for someone, that qualifies them as a client.

If that were the case, and I wanted to create an impressive list of “clients”, I could do a bunch of unsolicited spec assignments for Microsoft, Boeing, Ford and any other well-known name you could think of. I could even send my work off to those companies. Whether or not I got a job from them, or even a response, wouldn’t matter much because my main goal would be to list them as “clients.”

Does it make a difference if the company was actively soliciting for spec assignments? In my mind, it doesn’t.

Here’s how I define a client for my business: An individual or company that uses a design or layout I have created.

Notice there’s nothing in there about being paid. Although all my jobs are paid, my only criteria for being considered a client is if they used something I created based on their request for my services.

So what’s the big deal of listing spec work as “client” work? To me, it’s an issue of trust. As I’ve said before, the difference between you getting a job and not getting a job is often due to very minor, subtle things. And part of your job is to eliminate as many “red flag” items as possible.

I think, and this is just my opinion, that most potential clients interpret client lists as people you’ve done actual work for and that the work has been used.

If they ask you to provide details about your relationship with the clients on your list or about the projects you worked on for them (perhaps the potential client knows some of the people you’ve listed), you might find yourself in an uncomfortable position having to explain the true nature of your relationship with the names on your client list.

That could be enough to send the potential client to someone else. Never underestimate the importance of clients feeling they can trust what you say and do. Those initial feelings they get about you often seal the deal, for better or worse.

You might be asking, “So how do I catch someone’s eye if I’m not using recognizable names?” Simple…stick with samples that show the quality of your work. Highlight the fact that you know how to use your design tools by showing samples that make it clear. Focus your attention on a compelling message on your homepage that helps convince people to at least contact you for more information or to look at your samples.

While I’m against listing spec jobs as “clients”, I think it’s fine to show on your website the work you did on spec or the work you’ve made up. (As long as your samples page doesn’t say “This is work I’ve done for clients.”) That’s because you used your tools and skills to create it, whether anyone used it or not. And that’s the main thing clients want to know…whether you have the skills to do the job.

If you get asked about whether your samples are made-up or spec, or if they were for jobs in which you got paid, be honest and tell them. That helps you build trust.

I think the bottom line to all this is that you seriously consider the impression you’re giving people when they visit your website. You need to question how you phrase everything you say on your site and whether what you’ve included on your site is helping or hurting you.

You want to be completely confident that your site is the truest representation of you, your skills, and the way you do business.

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Forgot to mention that the first issue of the new Adobe Magazine is out. (It’s a free digital magazine.) Boy, was I disappointed! I was hoping that the magazine would be full of great tips on how to use Adobe software like InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator. After all, who better than Adobe would know how to squeeze the most out of their software?

No such luck. There are some tips, but it feels more like a bunch of stories about companies and people who use Adobe software…almost like case studies. The magazine is free, so I suppose I shouldn’t complain, but I was so disappointed. For tips about getting the most out of Adobe software, stick with Layers Magazine or some publication that is specific to the Adobe software you use.