communication

The following posts are hopefully related to "communication" in some way.

Monday, January 21, 2008, 1:04pm

Talking to Your Clients About Money

Home Biz Notes points to a post by The Golden Pencil describing the way people discuss money - or really the way people DON’T talk about money.

I think this topic relates to all kinds of freelancers. Here’s a snippet:

As Anne says, especially if you don’t have a business background, it’s quite common to think that money seems to be somehow associated with greed. In fact it’s your earned income, just like employees get a wage. You have expenditure, running costs, charges and profit.

You can extend this idea to a discussion of money and payment with clients. Money can be an uncomfortable subject for new freelancers, especially after unforeseen problems or design revisions make a “liar” out of the initial estimate. While clarity is certainly important in preventing discrepancies, composure is just as critical in a difficult situation. (more…)

Tags: communication, Freelancing, money

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Saturday, January 5, 2008, 12:06pm

Always Provide Premium Customer Service

Yesterday I received a cable bill from Time Warner for service I canceled almost 2 years old when I graduated from college. Somehow I was being charged a $36 “service adjustment” on top of a $19 credit, for a final balance of around $20. First of all, why am I getting this bill now, after canceling the service in May 2006? Second, if I had a credit of $19 on my account way back then, why wasn’t I informed earlier?

I figured I’d bring this up because it’s a perfect example of poor customer service. So maybe a large company like Time Warner can get away with this type of thing, but as a freelancer you must be willing to maintain an open line of communication while on a project and offer premium customer service throughout. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to start off on the right foot. It is critical that you be upfront and honest about all aspects of the project from the beginning - you’ll set realistic expectations and avoid most headaches. (more…)

Tags: communication, customer service, Freelancing

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