Comments on: Many Irons, Fires are Starting

By: Devon Ellington

Devon Ellington — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:11:36 +0000

I say no to clients if red flags go up. Because of the feast/famine cycle, if I'm feasting and I get in a lot of work that I want to do, I say yes and work longer hours. That's part of the freelance life. If I wanted 9-5 with weekends off, I'd work for someone else and get benefits.

If someone wants quick turnaround, there's a rush fee attached. Amazing how their deadlines lengthen if they have to pay for the short turnaround!

By: Denene @ Freelance-Write-Now

Denene @ Freelance-Write-Now — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 22:09:18 +0000

Thanks for the info. I'm building up several new marketing tactics to work on in 2012 and you've been giving me so many great ideas! Really enjoy your blog!

By: Lori

Lori — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 19:52:42 +0000

Paula, that's using your head! Good for you.

Denene, I do pitch to them. Sometimes they come to me on their own, but I love making friends with good PR people. They're connected, they know where the needs are, and they're willing to share in order to build a relationship.

I've actually ended up working for sources, too. One or two interview subjects became clients!

By: Damaria Senne

Damaria Senne — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 19:50:50 +0000

I've said No to several clients. But it's hard and I usually only manage it to clients that I wanted to trim off my list for one reason or another.

By: Denene @ Freelance-Write-Now

Denene @ Freelance-Write-Now — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 17:13:47 +0000

Lori: I'm curious if you pitch your writing services to sources that you interview (if you think there's a good match), or if they approach you? I'm asking because I know that I don't utilize my relationships with PR folks and sources at all beyond the articles that I write and I may be leaving lots of work on the table!

By: Paula

Paula — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:06:16 +0000

I've had to decline a couple of things over the years, but those were for my less-than-favorite clients. After 15 and 8 years, respectively, I know my two best clients well enough to understand what they need and when. When under the gun (like this week) I always say I can get it to them as long as the sources are all available.

My workload "triage" isn't just deadline based. When setting project priorities I also factor in the fee, how quickly/slowly they pay, and how quickly I can put their project together once I have everything lined up.

I knew I could take the two rush assignments this week despite having a longer article due, too (and another assignment that just came in yesterday from Favorite Editor) because the rush pieces were short (one is in capsule form, so I just need to write a short intro and plug in the info as I get it). I was able to start writing the long article while waiting for info on the rush projects. One rush is turned in, all is aligned for the second to be turned in today with little effort on my part (the capsules), freeing most of my day to finish the longer article - I will need to pin down a couple additional sources.

The long piece is for the slow payer, so I want to have it finished so I can tel them it's done but they won't get it until the check arrives for my article that ran back in September.

Leverage. Sometimes even writers need it.

By: Lori

Lori — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:04:44 +0000

Perfect, Jake! I'm hoping to employ that very strategy this week. The project box is already piling up.

By: Jake P

Jake P — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 14:38:34 +0000

"Project triage." Great phrase.

Heard a funny comment about "say no" from another freelancer. She said that the client not only wasn't upset, but more like a jilted lover — wanting her services more than ever.

Never forget, exclusivity is an important motivator of human behavior, along with greed, fear, etc. (Back in my sales days, I had the whole list memorized...) Nothing unethical or immoral about using it, even if you're NOT that busy. ("Oh, jeez, the next two weeks are jam-packed with projects. Let me get back to you and see when I can squeeze you in.")