Know When to Stop Talking
I think I experienced a new first for me in my life of freelancing. I responded to a tweet looking for a copywriter to do some basic web copy.
I responded, and chatted with the client for a little bit, discussing his needs and my offerings. Things were moving in the right direction. He seemed to be happy with the price I quoted, and I felt like I had a decent handle on what his expectations were.
Towards the end of the discussion, the conversation that had started out fairly professional had become almost casual. He asked me a question about a marketing concept, and I shared my thoughts about it. I understood the concept, but I told him it was tired and probably wasn’t a good fit for his product. And then the call got very quiet. He was still very polite, and said he would be in touch with me to get the project started, but I haven’t heard from him in a week now.
I’m pretty sure I successfully managed to talk my way out of a new project. Yay. But at least I learned when to stop talking.
I think my fatal mistake was interpreting his casual tone as an indicator that the job was in the bag, when I should have listened more, and talked less. In retrospect, there were a few indications that he was interested in this marketing concept, and I could have been more sensitive with the answer I gave him. Some might argue that I should be happy not to have to work with a client that wants to use stale concepts; that the client isn’t always right. I think in this case, the client gets what he wants from you, or he goes to someone else. You’re welcome, whoever won this new project.
It would seem that there are two types of clients available to the freelancer; those that come to you for your advice and expertise in your field, and those that come to you to execute the instructions you are given. The trick is learning how to figure out which is which.
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Sorry to hear about the prospect evaporating.
It seems like you would have probably gotten the job if you said no to the marketing idea and let him explain it to you.
Excellent post, Jason.
We all learn from our mistakes. Better luck next time:)
Sounds like one of those clients who you need to be very neutral with. Sometimes you can offer an opinion with clients, really let them know how you feel about something and let them know when you think something is a good or bad move for them. Sometimes, however, a client like the one Jason encountered has already made up their mind and thinks that their plan is genius, and telling them otherwise will insult them.
I’ve never been in a position where I said something that lost a client, but I figured out how to not say anything risky through a somewhat similar scenario. I got off the phone with a client after talking to them in very casual terms about some creative strategy and offered my opinion on the direction they should take, and a direction they should definitely not take. After I got off the phone, it hit me that I might have offended them if they were ever considering the direction I advised them against.
Fortunately for me, they weren’t offended and things went smoothly on the project. But I realized that you never know what a client went through before they found you, and you never know what other possible solutions they’ve considered, regardless of how awful those solutions might have seemed to you or me.
The best thing to do, especially in new-client conversations where you really don’t have a grasp just yet on their personality, what they like, dislike, etc., is to simply be as neutral as possible. Instead of taking a stance on their ideas about launching a social media campaign, even if social media is the worst possible idea for this particular client, I would just try to offer a neutral response. Something along the lines of how social media campaigns can yield good results with solid content and regular updates, but that in this client’s industry the results can vary and it’s something that would might benefit from some additional research into what realistic outcome they could expect. Kind of leave it as a “Let’s look into that,” instead of a definite “Yes you should,” or “No you shouldn’t.”
Once you know the client a little better, you will begin to understand their process and discover whether they are really looking for an opinion or if they just want you to agree with their every decision. And the client’s who have already made up their mind and just want you to agree aren’t necessarily bad clients. Just not the sort who are open to much advice from their freelancers, and that may influence your decision on whether this is the sort of client you want to continue working with or not.
Good advice Michael – thanks for sharing.
being neutral is a safe option….but we’ll see how I handle it next time!
Talking too much is definitely something I risk doing all the time due to my often friendly, casual tone. So far (luckily for me) it seems I make my clients feel comfortable more than anything else. I will certainly heed your warning though!
Jason,
This is always a tough one to hear. While some people would tell you to just straight shut up and never tell the client they are wrong and people will also tell you that the client can shove it, the truth lies in the middle.
It is your job as a professional to tell the client how you feel about a trend or practice. However, you should also always let the client know that you are happy to work with what they want to do, but that you suggest a different approach.
It allows the client to understand your professional opinion on the subject, but that you are willing to work with the client on their ideas and not shun them. Clients tend to get very angry when you flat out dismiss their ideas and they will also get angry if you went along with their idea and it didn’t work like they had invisioned.
I guess its almost tempering their expectations a bit from the start while being polite. Just my $.02
Good points, Matthew.
I agree – you need to be diplomatic and somewhat in the middle.
I’d rather lose the client than have them take a direction that I know will be detrimental to their business, but in the world of marketing, there are so few absolutes.
What I need to learn is how to suggest better. Thanks for sharing.
J
I’m sorry to hear you didn’t win the project. At least it’s a lesson learned, right?
I experienced something similar before except we were already half-way through the project and he decided to disappear out of nowhere after realizing that he hired a writer, not a content marketer.
I’m sorry to hear you didn’t get the project. But at least it’s a lesson learned, right?
I experienced something similar before with a past client except we were already half-way through the project and he decided to disappear when he realized that he hired a writer and not a content marketer.
Great post. It’s best to let clients talk and not interrupt (even when they start sounding a little crazy). After they are completely finished address their needs, concerns or questions. Use your judgement to say just enough and estimate whether it would be okay to be beyond a neutral position on the subject.
I feel like sometimes the inexperienced move is to show that you are listening by responding to them as soon as they say something, when really the best thing to do is show you are listening by just listening and not interrupting.
Well… It’s a fact that there’s lots of tipes of clientes, people or co-workers, but many of them doesn’t like to hear from someone that we don’t know yet, a totally negative response about something that they think.
We have to be sure, that keep the rapport healthy just, trying to say the negative points of what we thing about, like something superficial, pointing harder a positive thought about it. Maybe the next meeting you can tell him that you were thinking about it and that you have a few tips for thinking about.
The point is, that we shouldn’t tell the people what to do, we have to make themselves get the right answers.
Too bad the client is not flexible enough to consider your idea. As they say, if someone closes a door at your face, you can always come in through an open window. I think freelancers should also be wary of not giving too much freebie that the person you’re talking to got away with consultation time – for free. If you pay your doctors for consultation time on your physical condition, why should you not get paid for your ideas too? Just because you’re a freelancer, it doesn’t mean your time is for ‘free’ – which many takes advantage of.
Just like that famous scene in “Boiler Room” where the stock broker just waits on the phone…….. and the client just breaks and says “Okay!”.
anytime you can apply a “boiler room” quote – you’ve got a winning comment!
“Act as if”
I did not think it is a mistake.. as might be an open minded client would have behaved totally opposite.
I think it is just part of the game we play and we should learn to live with it.
I did not think it is a mistake. you might have get totally opposite response from an open minded client.
I think it is just part of the game we play and we should learn to live with it.
“talking too much” is my Achilles heel… I dont think i have lost opportunities because of it, but i have managed to get on a roll of spitting other marketing ideas left and right that usually end up being assumed by the customer that i am going to do for the original price… definitely a great piece of advice in this article!
My experience with “talking too much” is centered around over explaining. Often I’ll speak on a topic, but I don’t allow enough space for my audience to digest what I’ve said before I start feeling like I have to go back and break it down more. I’m not certain i’ve lost work do to this, but I have walked away from meetings feeling like I had come across like a pompous ass.