7 ways how NOT to run a blog consulting freelance business

This is just the most recent email I have got from a potential client who is complaining about a blog consultant they hired:

Hi,

I love the testimonial from Dr. Hayes. My friend just had her site redesigned and her web designer stopped answering/responding to her questions after the final payment. He didn’t teach her how to maintain the blog, especially how to add pictures to her portfolio page (which is highly important) for her business. How much do you charge to teach her just that one thing? Unless, of course, it’s more involved than that.

Thanks,
Lola

I am not sure who these freelancers are or what their plans are, but blog consulting surely is not something they are thinking about long-term. It is easy to compete with freelancers / consultants like these. If you’re willing to take the time to treat your clients right, you’ll stand head and shoulders above the competitors.

These are my 7 rules on how NOT to run a blog consulting or a freelance business by:

1. Looking for work at Elance and other job boards

This is not the way to go. A better way to get customers is to build your brand and showcase your abilities by for example having a blog. Every blog consultant or a freelancer needs to have a website where they can showcase their opinions, skills, knowledge and past projects.

This will differentiate you from the rest of the Elance crowd and it will give your potential clients a great chance to discover what you are about before they decide to hire you and will strengthen your chances to be chosen for the job.

2. Being a discount freelancer

I do not know where these freelancers who offer their work for pennies at Elance, Craigslist etc. live, but I find it hard to believe that someone can’t do something more valuable than sell their time so cheaply. It is damaging to professional consultants and freelancers who need to earn a living wage.

Inexperienced buyers may go for the smallest bids and end up like unfortunate people that end up contacting me complaining about what some freelancer did to their blog. The experienced buyer will always pay more to get the best quality.

As a blog consultant and a freelancer you should believe in yourself, you should value your time and ability and you should be a brand that charges premium prices. Never undervalue your work, do not bid small and do not engage in price wars with other freelancers. Have your price and do not discount it. But always make sure you deliver quality and timely work that compliments the rate you have set.

3. Not caring about your client’s happiness

Some freelancers have the “take the money, do as little as possible and run away” attitude. If you do work for your client according to the deal and if you make him / her happy, that client will not only give you a testimonial but also refer friends to you and hire you again for future projects.

Make sure your clients are happy when you work with them. The story your customer tells about your brand is the most important story and the great feedback and word-of-mouth comes from working closely with your client and ensuring they are happy with the end result.

4. Writing fake qualifications

Always be honest. You do not need to exaggerate your qualifications and your experience. Trying to work on something that is above your level is not the way to go, as the end product will not be satisfactory to the client and you will do more bad than good to your reputation. You do not need to accept work that you do not feel confident about.

5. Not meeting deadlines

Meeting the deadline is important. If you have agreed on a deadline that you both are happy with, you must make sure to deliver the agreed product and the agreed quality within the deadline. Meeting deadlines shows that you are trustworthy and that your clients can trust you.

6. Not caring about customer support

Try to respond to your clients as soon as possible after your receive their query. You must be as responsive and as cooperative as possible. Your client will like this and it will contribute to a much better client experience.

The same when you are contacted by a potential new client. Try to answer as soon as possible when you are contacted. Clients won’t spend a lot of time waiting for you. You must be prompt and responsive.

7. Not having very open and detailed communication

When being asked questions by clients, answer in a very detailed and clear manner. Make sure to be as detailed as possible. It is extremely important to openly communicate with your client. Before you accept the project, ask questions until you and the client are on the same page with the direction of the project.

Establish communication methods before you start the project (email, Skype, GTalk or whatever is preferred). You do not want to waste valuable time trying to chase down the client to have some critical questions answered and in the same way, your client wants to be able to get in touch with you. It helps that the client knows how to reach you.

Clients can help as well

Clients also need to realize that in most cases you do indeed get what you pay for. If you are looking for the cheapest option available when needing help with your blog, you should be prepared to experience problems. If it is just someone you find on one of the job boards or freelance bidding sites, and you get a very good offer, it might not be as good as it seems. If it is too good to be true, it probably is.

Conclusion

There are so many freelancers out there competing for the same work so by not treating your existing clients right you will not be getting many new clients and without enough clients to support your blog consulting business it will be a very unsuccessful venture.

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