17 Ways to Use Active Listening Techniques in Online Communication
Business depends on communication, and communication is a two-way street. Not only do we need to develop the skill not just of making ourselves understood clearly and accurately, but we need to return the favor and put some effort into understanding the other person.
In a recent article I talked about the value of active listening for improving business. Only 35% of communication is contained in the actual words we are hearing or reading. The other 65% of the message is contained in body language, facial expression, tone and rate of speech, and other non-verbal aspects of communication. Active listening techniques can help us make the most of that 65%.
9 Ways to Make Your Writing More Compelling
You don’t need to be a freelance writer to have a good reason to improve your writing skills.
Whether it’s marketing copy for your client, a sales pitch to a client, or a cover letter for your resume, all of us need to write in a way that is compelling, interesting, and unique.
If your cover letter is enthralling, you get the interview. If you’re persuasive, you make the sale. If you’re convincing, you get a slice of the new budget (maybe).
Here are nine ways to make all of your writing more compelling and interesting:
How Freelancers Can Use Active Listening to Improve Business
Imagine we’re having a conversation, and I’m telling you about where I live. I might describe how Eagleby is located between Brisbane and the Gold Coast, and mention the names of important roads. I might explain that Eagleby is situated between twin rivers, and the bird life in our wetlands—including eagles—attracts bird watchers from around the world. I might also mention that the reputation of some parts of Eagleby is summed up by the name given it by the locals: “Illegalby”.
While I was talking, most likely you were only half-listening. Perhaps you were also thinking about lunch, organizing three things you need to get done this afternoon, daydreaming about how cool you think eagles are, evaluating some ideas for a new website, and wishing I would change the subject.
Now imagine that the context of the conversation was that you were about to drive to Eagleby to meet with me about an important job. You would have listened in an entirely different way. And that’s the difference between passive and active listening. In this article we’ll look at why active listening is an essential skill for freelancers.
To Your Satisfaction: How to Get on the Same Page as Your Freelancer
Freelancers have wide skill sets, but most don’t really offer mind reading. In order to make sure that your project is completed to your satisfaction, it’s important to carefully communicate with your freelancer. Even a relatively small miscommunication can affect the end result of your project, whether you need a website designed or copy written. And if a problem creeps in at a fundamental level, the way a freelancer executes your project can be very different from what you have in mind. The final project may be great, but if it doesn’t reflect what you originally wanted, you won’t be too pleased. Such situations can be avoided by making sure that you and the freelancers you work with are on the same page throughout each project.
How to Explain Your Production Process to Clients
Creative freelancers are, by nature, a rebellious lot. Just look at this FreelanceSwitch blog. The descriptions of our former jobs read like jail sentences. Now, far be it from me to say that we shouldn’t be happy in our work. After all, I’m writing this from the United States of America, where we have certain unalienable rights – life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Note the wording of the third right – it’s the pursuit of happiness. You have to chase after it. And there’s nothing that says that happiness won’t be wearing its lucky socks. Which means that happiness breaks the finish line tape well ahead of you.
And there you are, gasping for breath while happiness basks in all the glory. I’m going to offer a tip that could improve the odds in the next You vs. Freelancing Happiness footrace. It’s a two-word tip:
Five Common Client Phrases Decoded
It may be easy for two design professionals to discuss hierarchy and layout, but it can be very frustrating for a client. During my experience, I’ve noticed a few patterns when it comes to client feedback and the phrases they choose when trying to communicate. Below are five common remarks I’ve picked up on and have translated into designer-speak.
“Can We Make This Bigger?” = Not Enough Emphasis
As designers we’re trained to give the most important elements in a piece the largest physical size. This gives the component priority and as a result, it becomes the focal point. So what happens when your client is asking you to make just about everything in the work bigger?
Chances are, they’re trying to tell you that the emphasis is on the wrong item or there’s just not enough in general. Ask the client to rank the content in terms of importance. What should be the chief element in the design? The second? Third? By getting your hands on this list, you and your client are both on the same page about what should be the largest/have the most importance.
How to Get (and Leverage) Glowing Testimonials
Word of mouth works! A potential client hears rave reviews about your products and services from someone they trust. The advertising is believable and motivating. And it doesn’t cost you anything – other than consistently delivering a service that keeps your clients happy and coming back for more.
It’s surprisingly effective. One of my freelancing spheres is computer support to small businesses and home users. Over two years ago I reached the limits of my availability, and stopped advertising. Since then I have continued to receive hours of work most weeks purely from word of mouth. Two friends will be chatting over coffee. One will mention computer problems, the other will mention me, and another job is in the bag.
But word-of-mouth advertising reaches a very limited set of people. It only reaches as far as the friends of your clients, and only when there is a knowledge of their need for your services. That’s where testimonials come in. They take word-of-mouth advertising, and make it more accessible.
Good Communication: The Backbone of an Online Business
As a freelance writer, I always conducted my business exclusively via the Internet. I still do. There are still plenty of people doing the local, in-the-flesh freelance creative gig. That’s fine and the Internet as a marketplace doesn’t invalidate that way of working, and it’s good that we get to make choices in this area that suit the way we like to work. While good communication forms the backbone of all sorts of businesses, we’re going to approach the topic as relevant to the online business, where communication can be treated very differently.
Running an online business allows you to choose how communication is done, as simple a thing it may seem from a distance. Communication is the thing most businesspeople, including freelancers, end up spending most of the day on. Thus it’s important that you know how you want the communication to happen, how much of it you want to be doing, and how to make sure that communication is both efficient and effective by developing a skill for only communicating with clarity and purpose.
The Masters of Disaster: Promotion is Not Enough
In order to build a successful freelance business, you must do three things, and do them well. If you don’t, no amount of promotion will save your business from oblivion. Here are the Three Elements of Business Success:
1. Doing Business.
Provide the goods and services that people pay you for. Part of this process is providing customer service so good that people will want to do business with you again, and send referrals.
2. Getting Business.
This is where your marketing and selling activities fit in.
3. Running the Business.
Tasks that don’t directly make you money but must be done fall into this category. We’re talking about things like administrative tasks such as long-term planning, accounting and bookkeeping, handling legal matters, and office and business management. Employee hiring, training, and supervision are included in office and business management.
The following story illustrates what can happen when there’s an excessive focus on getting business at the expense of doing it and running it.
50 Freelance Follows on Twitter
Since freelancers tend to spend long hours hunched in front of a computer, it makes sense that many of them have also congregated on Twitter. Think of it as a virtual watercolor where you can chat about new projects, catch up on industry news, or just take a quick break. Some freelancers are also using the microblogging platform to find new clients and promote their business.
For those who are new to Twitter or just need some new follows, we’ve rounded up 50 users who often tweet about freelance-related topics. Not surprisingly, writers are very well represented on Twitter, but we’ve also uncovered some designers, developers, and other freelance folks. Obviously, there are many more than 50 freelancers on Twitter, so feel to leave your username in the comments.
Getting Client Information — And Keeping It Organized
I have one client with a two-week cycle for invoices, who is always out of the office on Mondays. I have another client who pays invoices on a monthly cycle and wants copies of all projects sent to three different stakeholders.
Remembering these details about my clients are crucial for making sure they remain my clients, but I certainly have no hope of remembering all of it on my own. To make matters more complicated, getting these details in the first place can be completely complicated: how often do you have to rely on trial and error to find out when a client is actually in the office?
Four Excel Tools You Can Use
I recently concluded a series of articles on New Year’s Planning. And here we are, in the New Year, and I have it on good authority that some of you still haven’t created your 2009 client acquisition plan.
I’m also hearing that there are some freelancers who have yet to do an annual budget.
We’ll start with client acquisition. I’ve created a free Excel application that will allow you to track your efforts. Download the 10 Business-Building Tools Tracker file and open it in Excel. Since it’s in Read-Only format, save the file under a different filename so you can work with it.
