Photo by aussiegal.

Most new freelancers make one vital error: we catch ourselves acting like employees.

But even as we become more seasoned, even the best of us can fall into the ‘employee’ mindset trap that is at the foundation of virtually every major freelance mistake:

“As long as I do the specific job I was hired to do, and I do it well, everything will be fine.”

But unfortunately for us, when something goes wrong with any portion of a project we’re working on, somehow it’s always our butt on the line.

So how can you approach each client’s project in a way that protects you, protects their interests, and helps secure overall success and fuzzy feelings?

Well let’s look at common mistakes we make, and how to prevent them.

#1. Did You Start the Project on the Right Foot?

We know the drill about first impressions, but when someone has just dropped a check for a couple thousand dollars, or they’ve just fastened 40% of their budget to your coat tails, well…it doubly matters!

After securing and managing over 100 projects for myself and freelancers I coach, I’ve tested various ways to instantly set a project on the right foot within the first 30 minutes of securing the deal. We tested sending thank you gifts like movie tickets, informative articles we think they might like, doing nothing at all, and even calling everyone on the team for a brief introduction.

Surprisingly, none of that did much to sway results. What seemed to make clients happy and secure a long-term relationship even when problems arose later on was one simple thing:

Within the first 30 minutes, send an immediate deliverable related to your project and what you were hired to do.

Example: If you were hired to design a company’s website, within a half an hour of taking the project, just send an email with links to a couple websites you think have elements they’d like for their site. Ask them for their feedback, and ask specific questions like “I’m thinking of creating a header similar to the one at xyzwebsite.com. What do you think? We’ll change the colors and exact design, but is this the feel you’re going after?”

Same with copywriting or virtually anything else. Send examples of what you think they want to get their feedback with specific questions.

#2. Have You Been Too Available?

This one really surprised me when I first began freelancing. I found that when I made myself overly available, my client more than took advantage – to the detriment of my sanity and the project’s health.

Though not as much of an issue with a corporate client or a medium sized business, if you freelance for professionals, startups, or very small companies, you’ll find that they get really excited, want to discuss new ideas with you, and sometimes even want project updates numerous times a day.

Not only does this stress you out, but more importantly it prevents you from focusing on the actual work. Studies show that when a person’s focus is interrupted, even if for just a moment, it takes an average of 25 minutes to two hours to regain concentration and return to the original task. In essence, it is costing you time and costing your client money.

Photo by foundphotoslj.

I suggest providing an email address and an emergency phone number, and that’s it. Definitely no Instant Messenger! I made that mistake with my first client and literally, several times an hour, he would message me about some press they were trying to get, who said what about their website, and new ideas he had that he wanted my feedback on.

Regulate that small talk to a weekly meeting if you have to. And if you’re in the middle of a productive session, don’t pick up the phone. Let it go to voicemail, give it half an ear, and if it sounds like a fire burning, then you can stop what you’re doing to put it out. Otherwise, call them back when you’re done.

#3. Will You Let Your Client Sabotage the Project?

One of my freelancers recently accepted a project she was really excited about. Unfortunately, her client was also very excited and constantly bombarded her with new ideas, new tweaks, and additions he wanted.

The project they originally specified grew way beyond its initial framework and worst of all, every time she would make progress on the project, he’d call and say, “I just had a brilliant idea. Scrap everything before…let’s do it like THIS!”

Because he was one of her first clients, she didn’t want to rein him in and tell him “No.” But then, three months after they began working together, he started accusing her of taking too long to complete the project, and over-estimating her hours.

“But he keeps changing everything!” she’d complain to me.

So finally she took my advice and sat him down for a serious talk. She explained that during this meeting they were going to revisit the project’s goals and set a new deadline for completion. She was going to ask him to tell her exactly what he wanted and at the end, she would review the new project details with him. If he had no changes to make, then she would consider the new outline approved and he would, under no circumstances, be allowed to change it afterwards.

It was the only way to meet his deadline.

He agreed and after a couple kind but firm “No, I told you, we can’t change it,” talks, he eventually stopped calling. And the project met its deadline and he was satisfied.

But what if you try to say no and your client isn’t willing to cease?

Say, “That’s a great idea. I’ll write that down for Phase 2. We’ll see how this version of the product/campaign does, and once we have enough data, we’ll test these new ideas against it, and see which does better.”

I’ve yet to meet a client that could argue with a strategy that involves testing and cold, hard data!

And that leads me to….

#4. What If You Disagree With the Client – Or *gasp* Argue?

This is a very touchy subject for many freelancers. How do you approach a client that has strong opinions that, in your professional opinion, may hurt the success of the project?

If you let the client have his way, you risk the project not hitting its targets and regardless how you feel about it, the responsibility will almost 100% land in YOUR lap.

But who wants to go against the client we value and depend upon for our daily bread?

I’ve found the safe, but firm ground to always walk on is that of the data. We all have opinions and they will always be attached to emotions. To keep from arguing with a client or having it get personal or uncomfortable, just use this simple technique:

If your client wants to use a different headline, or a different color, or a different marketing channel – whatever it is, just say, “Sure. We can test that. In my opinion such-and-such might be a better option because [always validate your alternative with reasons and as much data or past experience as you can].”

Most of the time, because you haven’t invalidated their idea, they’ll go with your expertise and let you do it your way. But if they feel strongly about it, there’s still no need to argue. You just agree to split test your alternative to theirs. Then go with the one the market chooses.

#5. How Will You Manage a Client’s Dissatisfaction?

Strangely, my staunchest supporters, most prolific referrers, and happiest clients are the ones that at one time came to me with some issue about where our project was going or how I was handling it.

How could this be?

Because misunderstandings, miscommunications, and overall discomfort are guaranteed to occur at some point in the virtual freelancing world. Your client is most likely used to an office atmosphere where everyone is copied on every email, clarification is just 10 feet away in the next cubicle, and someone else can always be to blame.

But we’re the lone rangers on the other end of the DSL line (or hey, maybe you’re into cable…). And if you’re like me, most of your clients have never, and will never, meet you in person. So you’re mysterious, removed, and “what exactly is she spending all her billable time on?”

So what do you do when your client comes to you dissatisfied or even upset?

Unless it’s a simple issue to handle, don’t respond right away. Tell your client that you understand this is an issue and you’ll get back to them within the day (or the next day) with a solution. This way, you’re not put on the spot.

Then try to see the problem from their point of view and find what element, action, or result is leading to their dissatisfaction or belief that something is wrong. Don’t treat this as a blame game where, if you validate their assertion that something is wrong, it automatically makes it your fault. It doesn’t. The key here isn’t to find blame. It’s to acknowledge that no matter what, the client sees a problem and that means you have a problem: how to make the client satisfied again.

What I’ve found works every time for handling client dissatisfaction is to first validate their belief – explain to them that you see where they are coming from and you apologize for the inconvenience. Just don’t invalidate yourself in the process.

If you see where they may have misinterpreted the situation, don’t be afraid to bring this to their attention…but don’t be defensive either. Always see you and the client on the same side of the line, a team trying to solve a problem together. Not as opponents trying to fling the blame to each other.

Next, propose a solution. If you both agree that the real issue was client misinterpretation, explain that their misinterpretation wasn’t their fault, but rather a result of the process. Work with them to find the missing link. Perhaps you aren’t providing them detailed reports on progress, or you’re providing the reports but not summarizing for them what the data means.

If the issue is that you aren’t getting deliverables to them fast enough, re-evaluate the project and its deadlines. It’s important to be honest with each client at the outset of the project. Leave yourself ample time with deadlines – don’t rush yourself on account of pleasing them. Be reasonably speedy, but don’t promise something you can’t deliver without breaking your own back.

Also, the moment you see your time availability shifting, or a new project taking much more of your time, notify all other clients that you won’t be as readily available or quick with turn-over of deliverables as you’ve been in the past.

I find that clients can handle almost anything as long as they’re aware of it before it affects them and their project. That way everyone involved can re-task to deal with it.

Ummm…So Now I….What?

Okay, that was a lot of information about several scenarios, many of which aren’t completely concrete.

So what should you do with this list to make sure you look out for the mistakes discussed?

One option is to write down just the headlines of each mistake and a quick sentence to jog your brain about how to address such an issue if it came up. Then pin it to the wall above your desk. Some freelancers feel it helps knowing it’s there and a quick glance while writing an email can save you from shooting off a quick response committing one of these mistakes.

Another option is to move on with your day and trust you have it committed to memory.

I suggest you share which one was your favorite and share with us the biggest mistake you’ve made or heard about, and what happened.

Jaime Mintun is the premiere expert in internet marketing consulting to offline businesses, and is recognized as the leading expert in earning a six-figure income freelancing for offline businesses part-time.