Credit: J Wynia on Flickr

Some great long-term client relationships, for writers, originate from the client’s lack of time rather than their perceived lack of skill. In other words, they bring on writing help because they do not have the time to handle all the internal demands for writing services. This may be a chronic overload, or it may be a short term bulge in demand.

Either way, the more quickly you demonstrate that you can write in the client’s voice – that you can not only “write,” but you can “ghostwrite” — the more likely that you will become a trusted resource for that client.
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Photo by /junku-newcleus.

In 2007, I was an employee working with a great company.

My boss was intelligent and inspiring. My coworkers were amicable and worked well as a team. The office environment was entirely casual; no suit and tie required. The pay was acceptable and vacation time fair.

The work was adequate, with some days more challenging than others. Office communication was radically transparent, as the staff would often meet weekly to review the recent triumphs and discuss the goals ahead. By most accounts, I should have been content with my career.

But something was missing.

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On July 31st we launched a collaborative initiative with FreshBooks to give away ten 1-year Shuttle Bus subscriptions worth $168 each (see the prize). The catch? Those who wanted to win a prize had to provide their best non-intuitive tip for creating a word-of-mouth worthy experience for clients.

Entries closed on the 7th and ten winners have since been chosen. All in all, over 40 incredible tips were submitted, and they’re laid out here. You’ll find the names of our winners, their ten tips, and the rest of the client experience guide (28 more tips) after the jump!

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Muhammad Saleem is a social media consultant and a top-ranked community member on multiple social news sites.

This post is part 8 of 10 in our groundbreaking series on how freelancers can use social media and the principles of simplicity to build their businesses.

Day 8 – The Eighth Law of Simplicity: Trust

In simplicity we trust.

Trust is one of the most important elements of any relationship. Whether it be the relationship between a writer and her audience, a consultant and his client, or an individual and his fellow community members, without trust, the system screeches to a halt.

Trust and You

Before you can do anything worthwhile, you have to learn to trust yourself. Only once you trust yourself will you be able to trust your peers and trust the system, and if you don’t trust yourself, others are even less likely to do so. Every time you start a blog, someone has already started one better, when you start a business, there are a dozen more people trying to do the same (and with the backing of venture capital), and every time you go to participate on a socially driven site, there are dozens of “top users” who are dominating the conversation. But this shouldn’t be discouraging, not as long as you trust yourself and your abilities that given time, you can rise to the top and be a part of the so-called “A-list” crowd.

If you trust yourself, you make your life simpler by not wasting time worrying about everyone else and can actually achieve your dreams. Continue Reading