Client Research: How Do You Do Your Homework?
When making contact with a client, do you know what they do? What they represent? Who they want to reach? In short, do you know who they are and what they do? Reading about the company or client you do work for is important, this way you get a head start when it comes to contact and to understand their needs.
From years of experience in freelancing, I’ve learned that clients and companies love to see that you know what they do, what they stand for and who they are. If you know a couple of important things about them, they will be surprised, happy to work with you, and they will recommend you to others. Of course, you still need to do a great job for them.
If you get a client who just started their business, make sure that you get them to talk about who they are. New businesses and privateers loves to talk about themselves. What you need to make sure though, is that you keep track, write up small support words and actually keeping yourself updated about them even after the work is done. Because there’s an 80% chance that they will come to you again, if you’ve made them happy with the work you’ve done. When keeping yourself updated on former clients, you increase the chance of making them feel less like only a client to you.
So I only have one question for you: Do you do client research, and if so, how to you go about it?
Let us know about your client research experiences and if you keep updated about your previous clients.
Leave a Comment
At my “day job” I had a lock on a job opportunity for a friend of mine. I am close to the owner of the company and my recommendation goes a long way.
We had an opening for a sales position, and my friends who blew them away with his sales experience and attitude (normal for him) lost his chance at the job because he had no idea what we did etc etc…
Needless to say, he now goes to a company’s website before an interview.
Before starting my writing project I normally ask my client 3 simple questions:
Who are the target audience
What they want to achieve through my writing service
Why would I do business with them as a customer/client
Most clients are able to answer these questions.
~~ Sarah ~~
Research in general is often overlooked – particularly for busy freelancers who work to an hourly budget – good article!
most of my clients are marketing firms and i work with their project manager, but every so often i get the opportunity to work with someone who came to me directly and i always do about 1-2 hours of industry research on top of reviewing their website. i like to think the potential client sees the dedication / effort that i put into building the relationship.. plus i hate trying to talk to someone about something that i know nothing about!
Hi Patrik, thanks for a great insight. I think research goes both ways. Our clients research on who is the best provider for them and it’s equally important for us to do the same. We ought to know if they are also a perfect fit for us. I do get most of my clients from bidding sites and I always make sure I view feedbacks on them as much as they do on me. And so far, everything goes perfectly well.
Research gives you an edge even before you write a single word on project. As Rene said this is often overlooked.
Apart from investigating their website – at the first meetup I often spend a few minutes just “breaking ice” to find out more about them, and I also always start my discussion by asking them what is the objective of their project with me!
Read everything you can find on them.
Yes, i generally ask them in very first session about their profession as most of them are consultant who used to outsource work here. I also believe and experienced that if you provide them good quality which every buyer looking for they will become addicted to your work quality.
Some really interesting opinions here! Love to see other peoples experience with this